Vice-chancellors have rejected calls to shut down the pro-Palestine encampments at Australian universities, saying campuses don’t want to see an “escalation” of the kind that is happening in the US.
A snap meeting was held on Thursday between the Group of Eight (Go8) vice-chancellors, the Australasian Union of Jewish Students, the Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) and the secretary of the education department to discuss the safety of students and staff amid the protests.
Vicki Thomson, the Go8 chief executive, said it was a “very constructive” meeting that allowed universities to hear the concerns of representative bodies.
The ECAJ president, Daniel Aghion, has been calling on education ministers and vice-chancellors to dismantle the camps that have now been established in universities in every state, saying a failure to do so risked “permanently degrading” the reputation of Australian universities.
Thomson assured that any reports of unlawful incidents “have been and will continue to be dealt with swiftly”.
“None of us want to see an escalation like [what is occurring] in the US,” she said.
The US protests, which inspired the Australian wave of camps, have led to thousands of arrests and police violence despite students and faculties insisting the demonstrations have been peaceful.
Mark Scott, the vice-chancellor of the University of Sydney, attended Thursday’s meeting. A protest on the lawns of his university is now into its 11th day, the longest of any Australian camps.
Scott took to LinkedIn on Thursday to reject calls from shadow education minister Sarah Henderson for police intervention, maintaining the exercise of free speech could be “challenging and confronting”.
“I am not convinced what is happening on US campuses demonstrates a pathway to greater safety and security for any students or staff, nor helps to build a community committed to free speech and thoughtful exchanges of divergent views,” Scott wrote.
“Protests and vigorous debates have always been part of our culture of academic freedom … even when, as individuals, we may strongly disagree with things we hear said.”
On Friday, the University of Sydney camp was met with a counter-protest by the group Together with Israel, but the situation remained relatively peaceful. There was no apparent police presence.
Students at the University of Sydney have formed a line around the camp in support of Gaza pic.twitter.com/CG1KpZjWWI
— Jordyn Beazley (@jordynbeazley) May 3, 2024
Prof Alana Lentin, a Jewish woman and University of Western Sydney expert in social and cultural analysis, said she had come to “stand firm” with organisers of the encampment who were peacefully protesting “not only for a free Palestine but also for the University of Sydney and all universities to divest from any ties with the Zionist state of Israel”.
Ben, who did not provide his last name, was part of the counter-protest at the entrance to the campus. The group wore shirts that said “stop the hate mate” and waved Israeli and Australian flags.
He said he’d come to the rally “to show support for the entire university and public and Jewish population”.
Monash University’s vice-chancellor, Prof Sharon Pickering, was also in attendance at Thursday’s meeting, as was the University of Adelaide’s provost, Prof John Williams. Both universities have backed the lawful expression of peaceful protest on their campuses.
The University of Melbourne’s vice-chancellor, Duncan Maskell, wrote to his university’s community last week reiterating respect for peaceful protest was “core” to the university’s values.
The Jewish Council of Australia has condemned the wave of counter-protests, labelling one at the University of Melbourne on Thursday a “motley group of rightwing zionists”.
Its executive officer, Dr Max Kaiser, said students in the Gaza solidarity camps were taking a “brave and peaceful stand against genocide and should be heard”.
“We are deeply concerned that universities are not taking this far-right threat seriously,” he said. “Allowing attacks on peaceful protesters has a chilling effect on our right to free speech.”
On Friday, the Australia National University’s deputy vice-chancellor, Prof Grady Venville, addressed controversy over an ABC radio interview in which one ANU organiser offered “unconditional support” for Hamas and another refused to condemn the terrorist group.
In an email to employees, she reiterated staff and students were “free to express themselves” and ANU was proud of its long history of political engagement after boosting security at the university’s student-led camp.
“You may be aware of comments made in the media these last few days,” she wrote. “Appropriate action has been taken by the university.”
Henderson pushed back at ANU, urging vice-chancellors to expel students that spoke in support of Hamas.
“Like all universities, ANU must be transparent about what actions it is taking to combat antisemitism including against students who endorse a listed terrorist organisation,” Henderson said.
After a roundtable with Jewish university students and staff in Melbourne on Friday, Henderson called on universities to implement “time and place” rules governing when protests could go ahead.
A second roundtable of Jewish students, academics and community leaders will be held in Sydney on Monday.