Pro-Palestinian activists at the Pierre-Dansereau Science Complex will dismantle their encampment themselves by June 6. This decision follows a position taken by the UQAM Board of Directors (CA) which satisfied the demonstrators with their demands.
“This resolution and its provisions constitute a small step in the right direction and a rather symbolic step forward,” states on its Instagram page the group Solidarity for the Human Rights of Palestinians at UQAM (SDHPP-UQAM), which is considered as the organizing group of the camp.
The two main requests to the university administration were the “public disclosure of any collaboration” between UQAM and Israel as well as the adoption of “a policy of [boycottage] academic”.
UQAM is committed to asking its foundation “not to have any direct investment in funds or companies that profit from armaments” and to publishing the list of its investments each year.
The UQAM resolution
In its resolution, UQAM calls for an immediate ceasefire, “commits to facilitating the reception of academics” of Palestinian origin and to provide a budget in this regard and “condemns any act which violates the fundamental human rights”.
UQAM also promises that its academic agreements respect international humanitarian law and academic freedom.
The SDHPP-UQAM group considers that the resolution “seems to lead towards a [boycottage] academic”, but nevertheless deplores a “lack of courage to adopt a clear and real position”.
“A timid step forward”
Although the demonstrators “favourably” welcome the resolution of the UQAM CA, the SDHPP-UQAM group deplores “the inability of our academic institutions to name the genocide in progress”.
“This progress […] is far from meeting the demands of the student community,” affirms the group, which considers the resolution to be “a timid step forward by UQAM.”
As for him, the rector of UQAM, Stéphane Pallage, says he is proud of this resolution. “This declaration, which is in line with UQAM’s values, eloquently testifies to the fact that UQAM is a place of debate and that it is an avant-garde university,” he asserts. in an email sent to members of the Uqam community.
On May 12, pro-Palestinian demonstrators set up an encampment, named “Al-Aqsa Popular University of UQAM,” at the Pierre-Dansereau Science Complex. On May 27, a request for a provisional injunction filed by the UQAM administration aimed at imposing security measures on the pro-Palestinian encampment was partially granted by the Superior Court of Quebec.
This pro-Palestinian activist movement echoes what is happening in several other universities, such as the University of Sherbrooke, the University of Toronto and even certain American universities.
