Swiss university refuses to withdraw "PhD" from Italian dictator Mussolini

Despite calling the honoring of Benito Mussolini a "fatal mistake", a Swiss university committee decided not to withdraw the honorary doctorate it had awarded to the Italian dictator.

The University of Lausanne paid tribute to Mussolini in 1937 because he "created in his homeland a social organization that will leave a profound mark on history."

The university has been repeatedly asked to withdraw its controversial honors for a leader who was an ally of Adolf Hitler during World War II.

A panel of experts assigned to look into the case concluded that the decision to award the doctorate "was a grave mistake on the part of the academic and political authorities at the time".

"This title constitutes a legitimization of a criminal regime and its ideology," it added in a report published on Friday.

However, the committee did not recommend withdrawing the title, saying this would give the false impression that the original decision to award him a doctorate could be "corrected today".

The university said withdrawing the award could lead its critics to believe it wanted to erase the past.

"Instead of denying or erasing this incident, which forms part of its history, the University of Lausanne administration wants it to serve as a permanent wake-up call," she said in a statement.

It is worth noting that Mussolini, who lived in Switzerland between 1902 and 1904, was executed by revolutionaries in April 1945.

Follow our latest local and sports news and the latest political and economic developments via Google news