On Wednesday September 25, Students Against War (SAW) held a snap rally on the New Law Lawns condemning Israel’s attacks on Lebanon as well as the University’s ties to Israeli institutions and weapons manufacturers involved in the genocide in Gaza.
On Tuesday night, University management had sent a letter to the protest organisers warning that the “posters may indicate an intention for Students Against War to conduct a demonstration on University lands, contrary to the Campus Access Policy”.
The University stated that “no notification had been received” regarding the speak out, nor if any equipment or stalls will be used. It determined that the letter “may be relied on” in the case of disciplinary action.”
The snap rally was led by Angus Dermody who reiterated throughout the rally that the “draconian” Campus Access Policy must be “defied en masse and overturned”.
Current SRC Presidential candidate and Women’s Officer Rand Khatib left campaigning and spoke first, calling for justice “from Bidjigal to Beirut, from Gadigal to Gaza”, reminding attendees that there are over “200 000 martyrs in Gaza” half of which are children.
Political Economy lecturer Claire Parfitt then spoke to the necessity of freedom of speech and the right to assemble, specifically with regard to the threats the University had made against protest organisers and participants. These rights, Parfitt stated, “are especially important when we are witnessing a protest live.” Regarding the simultaneous attacks on Lebanon and Gaza, Parfitt stated that “there appears to be no limit to the war crimes committed by the State of Israel.”
Vieve from SAW and Solidarity, speaking next, criticised the University’s response to the protest, which stated that “Arabic text on the posters includes language that could be interpreted to constitute violent and hateful rhetoric.” Vieve stated that this was a “racist smear from University management” and that the text of the poster was “not inciting any type of violence”.
Dermody also spoke to Management’s concern over the Arabic text on the poster which read “Between us and them, a mountain of corpses, tears of hate, blood and a long vengeance”, declaring that “it is not violent to accurately describe Israel’s violence…in any language.”
Nick Riemer reiterated the commitment of the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) to “defy” the Campus Access Policy “until it is defeated”. Riemer said that the University knew the protest was happening and yet claimed they were not notified, going on to claim that the policy was being used “to suppress and intimidate [protest] organisers … this is about political and bureaucratic control”. Riemer also went on to criticise the threats University had made towards protesters due to the poster.
“It was a poem for God’s sake!” he emphasised, directing attendees attention to a poster produced in response that stated “Thales is violent, poetry is not.” Riemer concluded by criticising the University for not specifying what it thought to be “problematic” about the poster, claiming that “no justification was needed for the University to crack down on the anti-war movement”.
University security was present during the speakout before accompanying protestors as they marched to the F23 building. Protestors continued to chant, “Mark Scott, you can’t hide, you’re supporting genocide” and “Stop bombing Lebanon, cut the ties with Technion”.
At the conclusion of the rally, one member of the community — allegedly a PhD student — came out to berate protesters. One protester could be heard responding, “there is no justification for genocide” as the PhD student said “this is not a genocide”. Security was seen talking to the student, before they left the vicinity of the protest.
A University spokesperson told Honi Soit, “We have a duty to protect the safety of our community and to support the ability of our staff and students to express their opinions in a safe and legal way that is consistent with our policies, Student Charter and our codes of conduct.”
“Yesterday we wrote to Students Against War to remind them of our community’s obligations under relevant policies, to support appropriate behavior and a safe environment. We don’t intend to implement disciplinary action against students solely due to their attendance at the demonstration, but would consider relevant behaviour by attendees that does not meet the expectations set out in our Student Charter.”
As such, the spokesperson explained that the “protective services team undertakes risk assessments and subsequently makes decisions based on available information”, and security “maintained an appropriate presence on campus today”.
When asked about support for Lebanese students, the University spokesperson reiterated “ongoing support” for students “affected by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East” and that students and staff with “Lebanese citizenship or country of residence” can access “available support options”.
The spokesperson concluded by saying that the University is “dismayed by the ongoing conflict and loss of life in the Middle East and extend our deepest sympathies to all those affected”.
The day prior, SAW took to social media to state that “It is outrageous that while Israel is murdering hundreds of civilians in Lebanon, continuing its genocide in Gaza, and threatening all-out war in the region, USyd is threatening us for speaking out.”
“USyd will not stop us from organising against their complicity in genocide.”
