Our Demands to the University of Heidelberg

We, the students of the academic institutions in Heidelberg, demand:

1. Public Statement

A public statement that recognises and condemns the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people by the Israeli government and the Israeli occupation of Palestine, and that calls for an immediate and permanent ceasefire.

2. Issuing an Apology

Issuing an Apology to current and past students, faculty and staff for the flawed, insufficient and unethical response of the University up until now and for the active and passive actions silencing Pro-Palestinian voices.

3. Measures to Stop Complicity in the Genocide

3.1

Full and comprehensive disclosure of the funding partners of all educational, research institutions in Heidelberg (including philanthropic funding) along with all technological and knowledge transfers to Israeli universities and the Israeli Government. Examples of known complicity of Heidelberg University with Israeli Institutions that promote militarization and actively support the war machine:

a. Weizmann Institute of Science which offers a pre-military programme;

b. Hebrew University which offers Havatzalot Programmes and has allowed the building of a military camp on their campus;

c. Technion “Advanced Defence Research Institute/Center for Security Science and Technology that claims to “bridge between the needs and gaps of defence authorities, governmental institutions, defence and security industry and academy researchers”.

3.2.

Immediate termination of cooperation between all educational and research institutions in Heidelberg and Israeli academic institutions that silence, suppress and their complicity in ethnic cleansing namely,

a. Weizmann Institute at Rehovot was constructed upon destroyed Palestinian villages Kiryat Duran, Zarnuqa, and ‘Aqir.

b. Ben Gurion University actively silences academic criticism of Israeli governmental actions, by defaming its own staff and students and threatening to close its department. Scholars were suspended and later reinstated only after a forced “apology”.

c. Weizmann Institute and Technion “proudly” display their active participation in the Nakba of 1948.

3.3

Heidelberg University must end fostering military collaborations regarding Israeli Defence Forces, an institution that got blacklisted by United Nations Secretary General for grave violations against children, as many collaborators have direct links to the Israeli Army, namely:

a. Weizmann Institute which directly works with large military companies (especially Rafael and Elbit) in developing (many internationally illegal) weapons, surveillance systems used against Palestinians and dissident Israelis, as well as exporting these weapons branded as “battle-proven” to internationally sanctioned groups;

b. Hebrew University and Ben Gurion University, which have tech transfer company, Yissum and BGN Technologies that cooperate with Rafael, Elbit and the IDF directly;

c. Technion, Hebrew University, Ben Gurion University, Tel Aviv University and Weizmann Institute are all involved in various AI projects that directly participate in the ongoing genocide in Gaza, surveillance in the West Bank and Israel, as well as media manipulation. 3.4. Establish a committee to review these funding partners with regard to compliance with human rights and international law and immediate cessation of cooperation due to the persistent violations of human rights and international law.

3.4.

Establish a student committee that monitors Heidelberg University’s financial complicity in the genocide, which should monitor the transparency and the commitments to the promises of Heidelberg University. This committee should include representatives from Student for Palestine - Heidelberg.

3.5.

Stop giving any platform for Zionist voices that are actively promoting a genocidal regime, such as inviting the Israeli Ambassador to Germany Ron Prosor, to Alte Aula on 6th of November 2024. Refuse to accept any honorary degrees, awards, prizes, or distinctions from Israeli universities and academic institutions complicit in the genocide, as well as reject any offers for visiting fellowships, honorary professorships, or distinguished chair positions from Israeli Universities, and refuse to participate in any award ceremonies hosted by Israeli institutions.

3.6.

Heidelberg University must fulfill its philosophy and principal guide by urging Chancellor Friedrich Merz to end all trade, military and diplomatic agreements with Israel.

4. Solidarity with Palestine

4.1

We call on Heidelberg University to establish immediate measures to support Palestinian students and staff in being admitted, as well as create a safe space for Palestinian academics, artists, students, staff, as well as Pro-Palestine voices within the university by means of;

a. Creating research collaborations, exchange and scholarship programmes that establish and enlarge academic cooperation between educational and research institutions in Heidelberg and Palestine;

b. Establish a support programme for Palestinian students and academic staff whose universities were destroyed, offering assistance such as reducing the costs for applying, expedited admission review, and additional resources that help them continue their education or academic career.

c. Creating a quota for Palestinian academics and students that helps to equalize expenses such as accommodation and tuition imposed by Baden-Württemberg and Heidelberg University;

d. Collaborating with the city to establish cultural platforms for Palestinian musicians, painters, artists, etc. in the city or university premises to promote their work and fight back against the silencing of Palestinian voices.

5. Free Academic Discourse on Antisemitism and Anti-Muslim Racism

5.1.

Free and scientific discussion about antisemitism, anti-Muslim racism, and colonialism at Heidelberg University and Hochschule für Jüdische Studien as well as continuous interdisciplinary seminars on Palestine research and the (historical) realities of Palestinian life, as well as more space in curriculums of faculties regarding Anti-Muslim Racism, Antisemitism, and critique of any religious fundamentalist ideologies (e.g Zionism).

5.2.

Rejection of the instrumentalisation and abuse of the term antisemitism through the use of the IHRA working definition (in particular by equating anti-Zionism and criticism of Israel with antisemitism), taking critical stances to RIAS (Recherche- und Informationsstelle Antisemitismus) according to the newest report by the Israeli journalists and international scholars.

5.3.

Review and structurally reform the University’s measures against discrimination at educational and research institutions in Heidelberg. 5.4. As free academics and students of Heidelberg University, there is a need for:

a. The protection and safeguard for Pro-Palestine movements within the Heidelberg University,

b. ending the suppression campaigns towards Pro-Palestine academics and scholars,

c. space for Pro-Palestine movements in the Heidelberg University to organize, spread information and have open discussions regarding the ongoing genocide.

Closing statement

According to Heidelberg University’s own stated philosophy and principles, the institution is committed to upholding freedom of research and education and stresses “its responsibility to humanity, society, and nature”. It proudly declares its mission to expand knowledge “for the benefit of today’s and future generations”.

Heidelberg University’s philosophy and principles stand for academic freedom with the responsibility that comes with it. It promises an academic space of open and free dissemination, and emphasises its own duty as an institution to be fair and ethical. We would like to see our university uphold these promises in the context of the ongoing, internationally decried occupation and genocide of Palestinian civilians. We urge Heidelberg University to take a strong stance against the displacement, starvation, and murdering of Palestinian civilians.

As tuition-paying students, we do not want to see our university be complicit in genocide. We demand that it stand up and ensure that it does not in any way legitimize or cooperate with any institutions or corporations actively participating in what the International Court of Justice has recognized as genocide and what the International Criminal Court has deemed war crimes and crimes against humanity.

When our university promises “to create and safeguard the conditions for comprehensive, interdisciplinary collaboration that will make possible essential contributions toward the solution of major issues facing humanity, society, and government in an increasingly changing world”, we want to see these commitments put in practice. We want a university that does not have blood on its walls to maintain its funding and research.

Our encampment at Universitätsplatz stands as a protest against Heidelberg University’s involvement in Palestinian suffering, and a call to action towards the rectorate, the teaching staff, and the student body to keep our institution fair and accountable.