In an open letter, dozens of employees support the planned occupation. They are not pleased with the “backdoor policy” at Ghent University and the “repressive threats” made against students who are planning an occupation. “The fact that the rector first ignores and then threatens these courageous students goes against everything our university should stand for,” it said.
The employees also say they are shocked that the board of directors and the rector ignored advice from the Human Rights Commission. She recommended that “given the current context of irrefutable war crimes and large-scale human rights violations, no further bilateral collaborations should be concluded with all Israeli universities,” the open letter states.
The signatories demand that Ghent University temporarily suspend all collaborations with Israeli universities and ask the university to call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. They also demand that “the safety of students who would occupy the university be made an absolute priority and that all threats be immediately withdrawn.”
The open letter was signed online on Sunday around 9 p.m. by about 130 employees and students, including more than ten professors.
Tags: UGent employees support students plan occupy university buildings open letter
