Spanish students have already camped out at ten universities in eight different autonomous regions to protest the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip. Currently, university students have been mobilized in the Community of Madrid, the Valencian Community, Galicia, the Basque Country, Catalonia, Andalusia, Aragon and Navarra.
The students expressed their regret for “the ongoing attacks against the Palestinian people,” which “escalated to the point where protests reached universities.”
A photo of a camper in Ciudad Universitaria at the Complutense University of Madrid in protest against the war on Gaza.
Complutense University of Madrid participates in the protests; University of Valencia; University of La Coruña; University of the Basque Country; University of Barcelona; To the University of Granada; University of Zaragoza. University of Alicante; and the University of Santiago de Compostela, which begins Friday; and the Public University of Navarra, where the camping trip is scheduled to end on Friday.
Ending cooperation with Israel
In this context, the Coordinator of Student Representatives at Public Universities (CREUP) urged the Minister of Science, Innovation and Universities, Diana Morant, to “take the necessary measures to improve the conditions of Palestinian university students.” Likewise, the association requested “an end to any kind of cooperation with Israel, especially in the Spanish university system.”
University Gaza Protests – Camping Association at the University of Valencia
However, CREUP defended the position of the Spanish Conference of University Rectors (CRUE), which pledged to review and suspend cooperation agreements with Israeli universities and research centers that “have not expressed their firm commitment to peace and compliance with international humanitarian law.” Law.
“We were able to learn about the measures that CRUE will implement in this regard thanks to the protests of the student body and their insistence on activity from the university system for this issue,” the student organization said.
Furthermore, CREUP expressed its support for all actions taken by the deans of Spanish universities and confirmed that it would accompany them in fulfilling these commitments.
On the other hand, the Student Union, which includes public university student councils, also defended the students’ actions in defending the rights of the Palestinian people.
Similar to the American example
The Spanish university protests follow the example of demonstrations that recently began on college campuses in the United States. In Spain, the first protests took place on April 29 at the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Valencia, organized by BDS País Valencià and Students for Palestine, which were very well received.
Students from the Public University of Navarra (UPNA) paint a mural calling for the freedom of Palestine and the boycott and destruction of the State of Israel, in Pamplona
On May 3, German Gutierrez, Vice President of Institutional Relations at CREUP, warned other media outlets that more student councils or student groups could join these protests throughout these days, as finally happened this week.
The student organization confirmed that “there are a small number” of universities in which no date has been set for organizing a camp or protest in favor of Palestine. Likewise, CREUP showed its support for all the demonstrations carried out by students at various universities in the region.
Previous student work
This is not the first time that Spanish students have carried out work for the benefit of Palestine. On 31 October 2023, the Student Council of the University of Extremadura held a minute of silence for the victims of the conflict.
Likewise, on November 6 of the same year, several students from the Public University of Navarra joined a platform in support of Palestine, calling for a partial academic strike at their university and demanding “an end to the massacre in Gaza.”
UB students will continue camping despite the election celebration
This Friday, the district’s electoral council urged the administration of the University of Barcelona (UB) and Mossos de Ecuadra not to camp college students in front of the historic building. This is because next Sunday, May 12, the property will host a polling station.
The apex body reminded the authorities that it is their duty to ensure that there is no election propaganda or coercion to vote during the election day on Sunday in the historic building of the university and in the surrounding area.
However, the students announced that they will continue camping at UB despite the 12th election celebration. Spokesmen for the Student Committee for Solidarity with the Palestinian People at Bridge University confirmed that they would not interfere in the development of the voting process.
Read also
“Unapologetic tv specialist. Hardcore zombie trailblazer. Infuriatingly humble problem solver.”