Anna Malkenes has realized that the consequences for showing support for Palestine can be greater abroad than at home. Ho and eight other students on the campus in Menton in France risk losing their right to study at the prestigious Sciences Po university, after demonstrating in support of Palestine. – I feel that my freedom of expression has been violated, and that these sanctions against us are scare tactics, says Malkenes to news. Gaza protests at Sciences Po’s campus in the coastal town of Menton in April. This is where Anna Malkenes studies. To Klassekampen, which mentioned the matter first, Sciences Po says that the students have broken internal rules by preventing the operation of the university. Specifically by disrupting the exams this spring. – Because of this, the case has been taken on to the university’s disciplinary section. This is in line with the French Education Act, which prohibits blockades, they write further. news has contacted the university repeatedly without receiving a reply. – Discrimination Malkenes explains to news that they were forced to make themselves known during the exam period, because the management at the university waited until the end of the semester to reject the demands the students had made. One of the demands was that the management cut ties with Israel, and that the university use “correct language” about the war, such as calling the war in Gaza a genocide, says Malkenes. She says that the students then “improvised their own dialogue”, because the university refused the demand and did not want to talk to them. They set up a tent camp inside the university, organized a student meeting, made signs, played music and had an open library. In the autumn, it will be decided whether Malkenes and the others will be kicked out of the university for failing the exam. Malkenes believes the management cracks down harder on pro-Palestinian demonstrations, than demonstrations against the pension reform or a former headmaster, because of prestige and fear of losing financial means. – There is clear discrimination, says Malkenes. The student union at the university is now calling on all students at the university to support the 25 students who are at risk of being expelled this autumn. – Sanctioning students for participating in blockades and occupation will be unprecedented in Sciences Po’s history, write the student association. Students occupy the streets with tents in front of Sciences Po in Paris in May, in support of the Palestinians in Gaza. Photo: Reuters Political pressure from the highest levels Several French politicians have put pressure on the university to crack down harder on pro-Palestinian demonstrations. In the spring, the capital region of Île-de-France provided financial support to Sciences Po’s campus in Paris until “peace and security” was fixed at the school. The president of the region also claimed that a group spread anti-Semitism, writes NTB. The Franco-Jewish Union of Students claimed that a member was denied access to an auditorium occupied by pro-Palestinian students during a solidarity event in Paris in March. The protesting students rejected that, writes Politico. French President Emmanuel Macron called it “indescribable and completely unacceptable statements”. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal met the management at the school and demanded measures to counter “an active and dangerous minority”. French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Gabriel Attal during the opening ceremony of the Olympics in Paris 2024. Photo: Kai Pfaffenbach / Reuters Amnesty: – Disturbing This spring, Amnesty International said that the way governments in Europe crack down on pro-Palestinian demonstrations is disturbing. At least 12 EU countries have used excessive measures, says a report from the European civic forum. In the United States, 3,100 people have been arrested or detained by the police after taking part in such demonstrations at universities and colleges since mid-April, writes the New York Times. Reactions to Gaza protests in Europe The European Civic Forum, a network of almost 100 organizations in 29 European countries, produced a report in April on the sanctions against pro-Palestinian demonstrators. In at least 12 EU member states, the authorities have taken disproportionate measures against pro-Palestinian demonstrators, including preventive bans on demonstrations based on apparent risks to “public order” and “security”, the report states. Such cases have been documented in Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Poland and Sweden. In several member states, the courts have later lifted bans on demonstrations. Reactions against pro-Palestinian protesters have also included the use of excessive force in at least seven member states, including the use of pepper spray, police dogs, physical violence and confinement, which help maintain a climate of fear and intimidation, and which violate international human rights standards, says the report. France more pro-Israel The French public administration is much more pro-Israel than the Norwegian, according to Kristin Skare Orgeret, professor at the Department of Journalism and Media Studies at Oslo Met. After Hamas’s terrorist attack on Israel on 7 October, France banned demonstrations in support of Palestine. In several cases, the ban has been interpreted so strictly that French police have fined the use of “Palestinian scarves”, says Orgeret. Al Jazeera has published a video of a woman being fined. Orgeret emphasizes that the Minister of the Interior later said that the ban must be assessed on a case-by-case basis, but that there are still very strict rules. Professor Kristin Skare Orgeret at the Department of Journalism and Media Studies at Oslo Met. Photo: Sonja Balci / OsloMet One reason why France cracks down harder on pro-Palestinian expressions (and clothing) than Norway is that there is a lot of Jew-hatred in France, the researcher believes. The country is also on the highest level of terror preparedness. – There have been several direct attacks on Jews. We remember the terrorist attack on the Jewish supermarket in Paris a few years ago. That is part of the background here, she says. Orgeret adds that France is the homeland of the largest Muslim and Jewish minorities in Europe. And that the authorities do not want conflict on French soil. – At the same time, it is a paradox that the space for pro-Palestinian actions is narrowed so much, she says. Is freedom of speech threatened? Freedom of expression expert Anine Kierulf believes that the conditions for pro-Palestinian expressions are clearly worse than they should be in “a good number of places”. In any case, it is disturbing that people get the impression that pro-Palestinian statements are treated differently from other messages, Kierulf believes. – Among some of those who support the Palestinians’ cause, there are elements who are willing to use violence. It can lead to a different security focus than in other demonstrations, but does not justify cracking down on peaceful demonstrations, Kierulf believes. Anine Kierulf, associate professor of public law at the University of Oslo Photo: Kristin Sverre Østensvik / news Kierulf says the sum of the reactions against pro-Palestinian statements is a disturbing trend, because freedom of expression and demonstration are fundamental democratic rights, which must be safeguarded by all European countries. – Do the reactions have a cooling effect on the will to speak out or to demonstrate? – Some will refrain from saying things they would otherwise say, or participate in demonstrations they would otherwise participate in. Others can become even angrier because of this, Kierulf answers. Regardless of whether she gets to keep her place at her university or not, Anna Malkenes will continue to demonstrate and speak out about the war in Gaza. – I see it as very important to be involved in what is happening now, she says. Published 26/08/2024, at 18.16
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Anna Malkenes may lose her study place at Sciences Po in France after Gaza demonstrations – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
