The University Senate approves the motion in support of Palestine to be submitted to the University's governing team and the Governing Council
News
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Institutional
(08/05/2024)
The Senate of the University of Barcelona has approved the Motion in support of Palestine, presented by a group of 45 members of the Senate itself, to be submitted to the University's governing team and the Governing Council. There were 59 votes in favour, 23 against and 37 abstentions.
News
|
Institutional
08/05/2024
The Senate of the University of Barcelona has approved the Motion in support of Palestine, presented by a group of 45 members of the Senate itself, to be submitted to the University's governing team and the Governing Council. There were 59 votes in favour, 23 against and 37 abstentions.
The pre-doctoral researcher Adriana Nadal Matosas presented the text of the motion to the Senate. The document that has been approved denounces Israel's attacks against the Palestinian population in Gaza, including the academic community. It recalls that the principles of public universities include the defense of human rights, the culture of peace, the full development of the human being and education in values.
The motion raises six specific points: the demand for a ceasefire; the recognition that “the colonial occupation and apartheid practised by the State of Israel are the structural causes of the conflict”; the split of all institutional or academic relations with Israeli universities, research institutes, companies and other institutions; the University's commitment not to carry out any act or omission that contributes to the Israeli occupation; the creation of a commission of inquiry into possible institutional relations between the University and entities that do not comply with international humanitarian law; and the demand that the governments of Spain and the Catalonia split relations with the State of Israel.
As established in the regulatory framework of the LOSU, once the motion has been debated in the Senate, it is to be submitted to the management team and the Governing Council for consideration.
After the vote, the Rector of the University of Barcelona, Joan Guàrdia, stated that “the University of Barcelona cannot remain indifferent to what is happening in Palestine”, and reminded the attendees that the response must be both humanitarian and academically committed. Guàrdia emphasized the line of action that the governing team has followed since the beginning of the conflict: “Academic commitment to the Palestinian university community, total rejection and constant denunciation of the aggression, and maintenance of the support activities that the CRUE, the ACUP, the UB Solidarity Foundation and the University itself are carrying out in the area”. In this sense, he went a step further and, taking the precedence of the conflict in Iraq as a reference point, he placed the University at the service of students to raise awareness of the implications of this conflict. “We have the academic obligation, but also the commitment and the aim to help and provide more elements of judgment” in the face of such a challenge. “We will not be complicit in any violation of human rights,” the Rector concluded.
The motion raises six specific points: the demand for a ceasefire; the recognition that “the colonial occupation and apartheid practised by the State of Israel are the structural causes of the conflict”; the split of all institutional or academic relations with Israeli universities, research institutes, companies and other institutions; the University's commitment not to carry out any act or omission that contributes to the Israeli occupation; the creation of a commission of inquiry into possible institutional relations between the University and entities that do not comply with international humanitarian law; and the demand that the governments of Spain and the Catalonia split relations with the State of Israel.
As established in the regulatory framework of the LOSU, once the motion has been debated in the Senate, it is to be submitted to the management team and the Governing Council for consideration.
After the vote, the Rector of the University of Barcelona, Joan Guàrdia, stated that “the University of Barcelona cannot remain indifferent to what is happening in Palestine”, and reminded the attendees that the response must be both humanitarian and academically committed. Guàrdia emphasized the line of action that the governing team has followed since the beginning of the conflict: “Academic commitment to the Palestinian university community, total rejection and constant denunciation of the aggression, and maintenance of the support activities that the CRUE, the ACUP, the UB Solidarity Foundation and the University itself are carrying out in the area”. In this sense, he went a step further and, taking the precedence of the conflict in Iraq as a reference point, he placed the University at the service of students to raise awareness of the implications of this conflict. “We have the academic obligation, but also the commitment and the aim to help and provide more elements of judgment” in the face of such a challenge. “We will not be complicit in any violation of human rights,” the Rector concluded.