Anti-Israel lobby defaces Wits campus

JORDAN MOSHE

All instances of defacement were reported to the university executive. After holding a meeting on Tuesday afternoon, the executive stated that it does not condone vandalism or prejudicial statements against any student, staff or external stakeholder.

It informed students that investigations into this malicious case of vandalism had begun and disciplinary action would be taken against those found guilty of acting outside of the university’s rules.

While some of the graffiti was removed by university maintenance staff on Tuesday, much of it remains.

Wendy Kahn, national director of the SA Jewish Board of Deputies, said: “The fact that pro-BDS campaigners have resorted to using graffiti shows how desperate they are. Their frustration at being obliged to adhere to rules of engagement and at being unable to intimidate students has made them behave in this way, and it says more about their campaign than anything else.”

Kahn added that instead of resorting to acts of vandalism, these students would do better to engage in constructive dialogue. “Our response to these acts of vandalism is ‘debate, don’t deface’.”

The board has commended the Wits executive for the way in which it has dealt with the acts of vandalism.

Wits’ Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC) initially tried to launch its campaign for Israel Apartheid Week (IAW) a week early – a move in violation of an agreement with the university – but was stopped by the university. IAW then went ahead this week, with PSC and the SA Union of Jewish Students (SAUJS) setting up their respective installations on the university’s West Campus – at separate locations.

This is the first time that East Campus, the centre of student activity, has not been used for this event, and that a physical distance has been imposed between the two sides.

Despite this, a confrontation ensued on Monday afternoon, when members of the PSC attended a talk delivered by Israeli diplomat Ishmael Khaldi at the SAUJS installation, sporting keffiyehs and waving placards. In doing so, they violated the rules of engagement agreed upon by both sides.

Despite the presence of security personnel and efforts to prevent the two sides from clashing, a heated exchange ensued. It was sparked by a representative of the Radical Equality Party, attending in support of SAUJS, who refused to allow proceedings to continue until the PSC left. He kept referring to the PSC as “Boko Haram”.

PSC members began heckling Khaldi and drawing SAUJS members into the arguments in the process.

Although Khaldi tried to engage them in constructive dialogue, his adamant stance that Israel cannot be compared with the apartheid regime drew strong criticism from the PSC representatives, many of whom became emotional and interrupted him at every turn in the conversation.

Despite the discovery of the vandalism on campus the following morning, Tuesday’s activities unfolded without incident.

The calm could perhaps be understood as a result of the loss of support the BDS has apparently experienced on campus.

Jamie Mighti, a student activist and former Students’ Representative Council leader, said: “The BDS has lost the support of black students. The most active members of the BDS on campus are perceived to be hypocritical as a bigger focus on IAW has come with less energy expended on other student issues.

“Although the BDS has organisational support, it has lost people willing to participate actively. There are also student complaints that the BDS is racist on campus because its members are not giving black students any leadership positions.

“Compared to previous years, the BDS’s installation is the same, but its interaction with students is significantly reduced. The campaign is weaker this year and Wits seems a saner environment for a discussion [to be held] now.”