Quebec Superior Court judge grants partial injunction against pro-Palestinian encampment at UQAM
Judge orders protesters to keep encampment at least 2 metres away from campus buildings
A Quebec Superior Court judge has partially granted an injunction request by Université du Quebec à Montréal (UQAM) to prohibit pro-Palestinian protesters from setting up tents and other material within two metres of campus buildings.
Justice Louis Joseph Gouin said in his decision issued Monday morning that putting in place security measures — valid until June 6 — would reduce the surface area of the encampment without harming protesters' right to freedom of expression.
UQAM filed for an injunction last Thursday against pro-Palestinian protesters who set up an encampment on its downtown campus on May 12.
The university said protesters are posing a safety risk by blocking an emergency exit, being in possession of gasoline canisters and iron bars, and potentially "overloading" the university's electrical network with unauthorized extension cords.
Christophe Reutenauer, a professor at UQAM's department of mathematics, was at the court hearing on Friday. He says that though some of the judge's demands are reasonable, he's worried that asking protesters to distance themselves from campus buildings will expose them to violence.
"Two metres could be dangerous for the campers because then everybody can come and throw [things] and attack them," he said.
"These security matters are so [trivial] when you think about the cause they're defending" he said. "Gaza would like security also."
The judge has also ordered protesters to refrain from blocking access to buildings and to remove cardboard obstructing cameras. Protesters must also allow representatives of UQAM and the Montreal fire department to visit the camp to ensure that the site is safe.
UQAM rector Stéphane Pallage said the university never asked for the complete dismantling of the encampment, but that some security measures were non-negotiable. He adds that dialogue with the protesters was never broken.
"I've met with the students myself and I plan on doing so again," he said. "The security concerns prevented us from exploring the matter of funds in a serene matter."
He says that negotiations with the students is now entirely appropriate.
Organizers of the encampment, the Solidarité pour les droits humains des Palestiniennes et Palestiniens (SDHPP) UQAM, said in a statement published Tuesday that the "provisional injunction imposes restrictive measures that amount to a 'disguised' dismantling."
The group says it will do its best to comply with the orders, but that "certain factors are beyond our control."
"We also demand that attention be refocused on the ongoing genocide in Palestine and on the camp's real demands, including the adoption of a policy of academic boycott against any present or future collaboration with Israeli universities," the statement reads.
The Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) said in a statement it has taken note of the decision and will continue to follow the situation as it evolves. The SPVM added that the police's role is to ensure peace, order and the safety of those involved, all while respecting people's rights and freedoms.
Another mathematics professor, Hugh Thomas, says the encampment hasn't posed a problem to him when it comes to accessing campus buildings. He said the university's decision to go through the courts was "unfortunate" and that it would have been better to work with the students and come to an agreement with them directly.
Pro-Palestinian encampments have been set up across Canadian campuses following a similar trend in the United States. The encampment at McGill University was erected on April 27 by students demanding the institution divest from companies with ties to Israel. The encampment at UQAM was set up in solidarity with the McGill encampment and is calling for broad divestment from Israel by Quebec institutions.
"I think discussing with them, seeing what their actual demands are — I think their demands are not unreasonable and I think the university can work with those," said Thomas.
Pallage told CBC News that UQAM has no financial or academic ties to Israel.
Two provisional injunction requests were filed to have student activists removed from the McGill campus, both of which were rejected by Quebec Superior Court justices. McGill will return to court to again request the encampment be dismantled this summer.
Written by Cassandra Yanez-Leyton with files from Verity Stevenson, Kwabena Oduro and Rowan Kennedy