Pro-Palestinian encampment sets up on UQAM lawn

A second pro-Palestinian encampment was set up by Montreal university students, this time at a Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) campus. 

Tents started going up by the science building downtown Montreal on Sunday afternoon — one day before the injunction request filed by McGill University to have the encampment on its lawn dismantled will be heard in court.

It also comes a few days before the 76th anniversary of Israel's declaration of independence — which Palestinians and their supporters refer to as the Nakba, which means "catastrophe" in Arabic. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were forced from their homes or fled in the ensuing 1948 war between Israel and its Arab neighbours.

By Sunday afternoon, about 40 people were at the encampment.

The group behind the encampment, Solidarité pour les droits Humains des Palestiniennes et Palestiniens (SDHPP-UQAM), demands the withdrawal of McGill's injunction request, an academic boycott against Israel from all Quebec universities, the public disclosure of all UQAM's collaborations and links with Israel, full divestment from companies with ties to Israel and the abolition of the Quebec-Israel office. 

Over the last week, Israel ramped up its military operations in Gaza's southern city of Rafah, considered the last refuge in Gaza for more than a million civilians. Some 300,000 people have fled the city following evacuation orders from Israel, which says it must invade to dismantle Hamas and return about 100 hostages taken on Oct. 7. More than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel's retaliatory strikes.

"As the occupying forces intensify their murderous aggression against Rafah, we, students and workers, refuse to remain silent in the face of the apartheid, genocide and colonial crimes of the State of Israel," said a spokesperson for the encampment in a news release.

"We are addressing UQAM, but also the Quebec state and the Canadian state to take action to end their collaboration and complicity with the rogue state."

Jenny Desrochers, an UQAM spokesperson, said the university is aware of the encampment but that the organizing group is not recognized by UQAM. She said security is keeping an eye on the encampment. 

"The safety of everyone is of paramount importance to the University. The community's free access to the UQAM pavilions must be preserved at all times," she said.
 
"UQAM wishes to point out that its Foundation has no investment in armaments, having adopted a responsible investment policy many years ago, nor does it have any mobility or framework agreements with Israeli universities."

On Friday Canada abstained from voting on a United Nations General Assembly motion granting new rights and privileges to Palestinian representatives. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the country refrained from voting because of its commitment to reaching a two-state solution — a Palestinian state in the occupied West Bank and in Gaza alongside Israel.

At least nine other pro-Palestinian camps have been set up on Canadian university campuses over the last two weeks, including the one at McGill, inspired by a similar movement in the United States.

WATCH | Montreal protesters mark Nakba anniversary: 

Pro-Palestinian protesters gather at Israeli Consulate in Montreal to mark Nakba anniversary

7 months ago

Duration 3:48

Pro-Palestinian protesters from across Quebec gathered on Saturday to show support for the ongoing encampment at McGill university and to mark Nakba Day, which is usually held on May 15. Nakba, the Arabic word for 'catastrophe,' is the term used by Palestinians and their supporters to describe Israel's declaration of independence in 1948, which led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people. Many Palestinians fled or were forced from their homes in the ensuing war between Israel and its Arab neighbours.