London (Parliament Politics Magzine) – The London School of Economics has been slammed by a UN rapporteur and blamed for Islamophobia after presenting an allegation that students behind a pro-Palestine demonstration in July had stirred fears of a repeat of the 7/7 terrorist aggression.
Seven students, four of them female, have been placed under “precautionary measures”, limiting their access to the university’s campus, over allegations linking to a noisy demonstration on 7 July in the atrium of the LSE student services centre.
What prompted the university to impose precautionary measures?
In letters telling the group of the action and the potential for further disciplinary actions, the university stated that “several witnesses, including security guards, and members of staff, voiced concerns, fear and distress” over their behaviour.
One staff member cited by the university claimed that the protest had led “many in the room” to fear a “physical attack”. This feeling was stated to have been “heightened” by its accompanying timing on the 19th anniversary of the 2005 bombings. The pupils, who had been calling for the LSE to divest from institutions that work with the Israeli military, deny the suits, which they say have been employed to stifle free expression.
What concerns did the UN rapporteur express about LSE?
Gina Romero, the UN special rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, has penned to the university asking it to review the decision to open the disciplinary procedure. She stated:
“I am concerned about information I received regarding stigmatisation and reprisals that some students of the London School of Economics are facing for their participation in peaceful protests challenging the university’s investments that they believe are against [international human rights].”
How have students responded to the allegations made?
One of the blamed protesters, Emily, 24, a postgraduate student from France who paid £26,000 for a one-year humanities course, claimed that the linking of a peaceful pro-Palestine protest to the 7/7 attacks had been “racist and Islamophobic”. She said:
“I was four when the London bombing occurred. I wasn’t even in the country, and I had never attended the London bombing until I received my letter. It was expressed that people were running away. But we’ve been given CCTV proof from the day that shows that no one ran away.”
The pupils were told initially they would be blocked from access to any LSE buildings, but the university expressed the students had been permitted access to the library where online material was not adequate for them to complete their studies. It is understood that the students who have yet to present their dissertations have also been granted access to the library from Monday to Friday, between 9 am and 5 pm.