More than 6,600 academics, students and public figures have signed an open letter calling on Belgian universities to end their cooperation with Israel. These include the Flemish green deputy prime minister in Belgium’s outgoing federal government Petra De Sutter, the former VRT war correspondent Rudi Vranckx, the Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and the British film director Ken Loach.
More than 6,600 academics, students and public figures sign open letter calling on Belgian universities to end cooperation with Israel
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They say that “’Business as usual is tantamount to being complicant with the biggest violation of international law of our time.
The letter reads “As early as 15 October 2023, a week after the 7 October attacks, 800 scholars and experts in international law, conflict studies and genocide studies warned of the risk of genocide in a public statement. Today, more than a year later, are all witness to how their warning, based on deep academic expertise and historical knowledge, has become a reality.”
“As scientists, students and employees of Belgian universities, we share responsibility for the policies of our own institutions and are not dependent on the actions or inactions of our respective governments. It is crucial that we not only reflect and teach the principles of international law, but also take concrete action to defend and strengthen these principles.”
"Legal and moral duty"
The academics see a boycott of Israeli universities as being their legal and moral duty. They point to the court cases and rulings by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC), such as the ICJ genocide case brought by South Africa against Israel, the ICC arrest warrants issued against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, and the ICJ ruling confirming the illegality of the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.
The academics argue that not only the Belgian government, but also Belgian universities, as public institutions, have a legal obligation to end corporations that they say violate international law. “These include terminating agreements with Israeli institutions that are directly or indirectly connected to human rights violations, as well as suspending Israel's participation in European research and education programmes.”
“Universities have long positioned themselves as bastions of moral integrity and international cooperation. Now it is time to turn principles into deeds. By continuing to cooperate with Israeli institutions, we risk not only complicity in criminal acts, but also undermining the foundations of international law”, the letter reads.