UNI FAILS TO REVEAL REPORT

By Joe Poprzeczny

University of WA documents that have just surfaced show there were two reports criticising the management of its controversial archaeology department.

But the first report, in 1987, was never passed on to UWA's senate.

Only a summary was provided.

UWA registrar Malcom Orr said the 1987 report had not been accepted, endorsed or transmitted to senior campus committees.

"The report therefore has no status outside the planning committee," Mr Orr said.

"What was transmitted to the academic council and academic board was a distillation of its recommendations."

Last February, UWA's senate launched an inquiry to assess archaeology after a critical parliamentary speech by Labor MP Mark Nevill.

"The handling of this issue by the UWA has been disgraceful and probably scandalous," Mr Nevill told Parliament in December.

UWA has repeatedly rejected Mr Nevill's allegations.

UWA is also the subject of a parliamentary inquiry into the removal of archaeologist Dr David Rindos, who strongly criticised the management style of the archaeology head Professor Sandra Bowdler.

Professor Bowdler was a member of the planning committee in 1988 which Mr Orr said neither accepted, endorsed nor transmitted the report.

Parliament is studying UWA's filing and record keeping systems to the extent that it has installed proper mechanisms to prevent unauthorised interference.

But the UWA and parliamentary inquiries have received only the 1991 report.

Minutes of UWA's planning committee that drew recommendations from the 1987 report confirm problems Dr Rindos raised in 1991 existed before he reached Perth.

The minutes show both reports slammed the department's management, financial accounting, and possible conflicts of interest.

Both reports referred to student complaints and teaching problems in the first year course.

Confusion surrounded the 1987 report this week.

Early this week Vice-Chancellor Professor Fay Gale said: "I have looked through our records and I cannot find a copy of the report you requested."

Later, Mr Orr said he had launched a search but had not found it.

But at the end of the week he said an extensive search had today produced a copy of the report which would be released.