Over 400 Signatories Express Outrage Over Silencing of Talks on Palestine on Indian Campuses
01 December 2023 | The Wire
New Delhi: More than 400 signatories, including sociologists, political scientists, academicians, researchers, and journalists, have expressed outrage against at the manner in which discussions on the ongoing war against Palestine are being silenced on Indian campuses.
“We are issuing this statement to call upon university administrators and the government to respect our academic freedom. We would also like to remind everyone of India’s own long history of anti-colonial struggle which has historically provided the lens through which the Palestinian struggle for self-determination, equality and human rights has been viewed in India,” they said in a statement.
“We object to the way in which any discussion of the historical context of the occupation of Palestine and the barbaric Israeli assault on Gaza, along with the denial of food, fuel and water, since October 7, 2023, is being projected as support for the brutal terror attack on civilians in Israel by Hamas on October 7,” read the statement.
“We object to the Israeli ambassador’s interference with academic freedom on Indian campuses. This disrespects the competence of Indian scholars to analyse historical and political situations