RIS317099 Problemen en intimidatie op Universiteit Leiden, campus Den Haag bijlage 2

A statement from members of the Leiden University community on the Wijnhaven campus events of November 9th We are dismayed by the events that have taken place at Leiden University over the last 24 hours. Because we endorse the premise of freedom of expression on which the University is based, we wish to express our deepest concerns and call on the Executive Board (CvB) to reverse its systematic approach to policing and repressing Palestine related events on campus. On the afternoon of Thursday November 9th, in the University’s Wijnhaven building, students and staff members who were participating in a peaceful teach-in about the current situation in Gaza were physically assaulted and filmed without their consent by the head of the University security team, with students of color particularly targeted by these actions. Students and staff were subsequently followed by members of the security team after having left the Wijnhaven building and campus, despite repeated requests from academic staff to desist. We affirm that students and staff should be able to gather freely, including in common spaces like the ‘Spanish steps’, to debate and discuss pressing issues in our society and the world, as the mandate of a public university like Leiden should endorse. Teach-ins regarding Palestine have taken place across the world, and they are a normal aspect of university life.

One which should be encouraged and facilitated by our institutions. The teach-in that took place in Wijnhaven was peaceful, respectful, and led by both students and staff who shared thoughtful and insightful reflections on the current horrors taking place in Palestine. Needless to say, these kinds of initiatives are habitual in a healthy and vibrant academic culture, they have happened in the past regarding a variety of issues, and there is no reason why they cannot happen in relation to this war. The statement released by the CvB in response to the teach-in makes mention of not tolerating incitement to hatred or violence. Neither do we. In fact, the event and talks did the opposite. They explicitly condemned racism and antisemitism and called for an end to indiscriminate targeting of civilian lives, for equality and freedom, and for an open space to say these things. Unfortunately, the Leiden University management together with the security office - over a prolonged period of time - have done the opposite when it comes to Palestine in what can only be described as a form of institutional silencing. It has repeatedly canceled events, cast unacceptable aspersions about the character of Palestinian colleagues, and imposed draconian security measures on students and staff trying to set up open meetings and discussions on the topic.

Over the last month, for example, a group of Leiden University scholars who specialize on a wide array of relevant topics - including Palestine, Israel, and Middle East studies, as well as wider issues of racialisation, colonialism, and international law - faced with the failure of our institution to engage with their expertise at such a dramatic moment, have been trying to set up a series of lectures on the context and history of the current situation in Palestine. Instead of receiving institutional support and encouragement, they have been told that their lectures are considered to be a security risk and cannot take place without registering and controlling all attendees, and security officers being present in the lecture theaters. The recent events at Wijnhaven demonstrate once again - if it was necessary to do so - how inappropriate such proposals are.

The truth is that the CvB has allowed the emergence of an atmosphere of fear and silencing on campus in which any discussions pertaining to Palestine are seen as dangerous, illegitimate, and in need of securitisation. It is not surprising that under such a framework the security office feels it appropriate to assault, harass, and defame members of our community for simply holding a public event on the topic and for exercising their constitutional right to freedom of speech. We call on the CvB: 

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to reverse its approach and to support our community efforts to freely discuss, debate, and disagree on issues related to Palestine without the threat of surveillance and repression. To immediately open an investigation into the conduct of its security office in the Wijnhaven building on Thursday 9th November, including by reviewing the extensive filmed footage of their actions. To recognise that a university campus is precisely the place where people should be allowed to gather - including outside of scheduled events - to put academic knowledge into dialogue with the world that surrounds us and to open a dialogue into re-assessing the logic behind these stringent house rules. To stop confusing ‘unsafety’ with ‘being made to feel uncomfortable’, and refrain from conflating uncomfortable discussions with the promotion of unsafe environments. The mere fact of having uncomfortable conversations and exchanging opposing views at the University is not the same as creating an unsafe university community. Confusing discomfort with unsafety generates a canceling culture that undermines the foundational principles of the University.

To sign this statement, click here. Signatures will be added below every 24 hours. (namen zijn geanonimiseerd voor de schriftelijke vragen) Staff 163 signatures Students 228 signatures