Students occupying several university buildings to condemn the war in Gaza issued a united statement last weekend.
The universities include UGent, ULiège, KU Leuven, ULB, VUB, UCLouvain, and UAntwerpen. For at least a week, students from each institution have been camping in specific buildings on campus as a protest against the Gaza conflict. Daily activities are organised and nights are spent in tents.
In their joint statement, the students presented a list of demands addressed to the universities. They are calling for a comprehensive "total" academic boycott of institutions and businesses "complicit in perpetuating the apartheid state." They also ask that the universities call for a "permanent ceasefire" in Gaza and commit to meeting the educational needs of Palestinians in Belgium.
They are further demanding "full transparency" from universities regarding collaborations with Israeli institutions, and recognition of the "colonialist nature of the Zionist state of Israel." They further write, "It is a state that practices apartheid and commits genocide against the Palestinian people."
The students expressed determination to continue their occupation and take further actions until their demands are met and the "universities’ complicity in this genocide ends."
