At 1pm on Tuesday May 14, students from the Gaza solidarity encampment marched down Eastern Avenue to the Australian Centre for Field Robotics (ACFR) in protest of a new engineering scholarship funded by weapons manufacturer Thales. Outside the ACFR, Deaglan Godwin and Jasmine Al-Rawi led students chanting their demands: “disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest”.
Al-Rawi declared, “we’re coming out to make sure no more research is done for military companies”. Godwin explained that research completed for Thales directly enables the manufacturing of underwater drones deployed against Palestinians, making the university’s program complicit in the war.
Earlier that morning, students maintained their station at the encampment on the Quadrangle lawns for the 22nd day despite minor disruptions from counter-protestors. Counter-protesters allegedly disrupted the camp at 3:50AM, however, the situation did not escalate. One student told Honi Soit’s reporters that tension did not build, as the counter-protestors’ main goal appeared to be disrupting the activists’ sleep.
Key speakers at the rally included SRC President Harrison Brennan, Jeremy Heathcote of the NTEU, the SRC’s Ethnocultural Officer, and Students for Palestine activist Eddie Stephenson. Heathcote discussed Indigenous connections between First Nations and Palestinian experiences of colonialism. “It’s really important that we address Palestine because it’s what happened here,” Heathcote stated.
Brennan noted that “what’s been so gratifying [and] nourishing to see, is the collective struggle that we are a part of right now. Students across the world, in Europe, in America, and beyond, have come together”.
After the rally, organiser with Students for Palestine Shovan Bhattarai, also commented on the uplifting atmosphere of collaboration and mateship at the encampment. “We started out the first night with 20-odd people and that has more than quadrupled,” Bhattarai said. She shared an anecdote about one former woman visiting the encampment who had been involved in Palestinian activism during her studies a decade earlier. Bhattarai explained the movement, “has brought together people from quite different walks of life to fight together for a common cause”.
Following a week of relentless rain, students welcomed the sunshine. A relaxed attitude emanated from the Quadrangle lawns, with many lazing in the sun, keffiyehs fluttering in the warm breeze. A buzz also lingered following a show of support from American rapper, Macklemore, appearing in an Instagram reel with Students for Palestine Sydney Uni.
Hiba Bennegadi, an Algerian student who has run free henna for the past three weeks explained her choice to get involved. “My ancestors and grandparents lived through the French occupation of Algeria… I support the Palestinian cause because I want to see Palestine liberated just as Algeria was liberated,” Bennegadi said. She said the henna has provided, “a beautiful bonding experience of people from all across the world and from different beliefs” and is creating “a safe space for people to share their stories”.
University professors have also urged any students at the encampment experiencing threats or Islamophobia to report the issue to Student Wellbeing services.
Follow updates on Honi’s Instagram and Twitter as well as Students for Palestine Sydney Uni.
