The Acting Vice Chancellor told us in a meeting this morning that in order to set up scholarships for students in Gaza we would need to go to each department head and discuss the possibility with them as power is apparantely devolved to each department and out of the control of the VC and uni bureaucracy. Whether this is true, or an attempt to avoid being proactive over this issue is unknown. Either way the next stage of this process is underway and we will be engaging with each UEA department and aiming to gain more support from both students and staff. Rest assured, we will continue to try for options in order to gain at least partial success for our aims.
We were also told that the following statement, from Universities UK would be circulated:
“Universities UK supports calls for an end to the conflict in and beyond Gaza. We are particularly aware that many of the civilian casualties have occurred in educational establishments.
The UK’s universities are resolutely committed to the right to education, enshrined in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Higher education, in particular, is a global activity and we value our academic links with universities all over the world. The international nature of higher education means it is a force for understanding, tolerance and respect between peoples.”