Fifty University of Amsterdam alumni pledged to return their degrees this week to protest the institution’s decision to halt an exchange program with the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Fifty alumni plan to hand back their degrees during a meeting on Friday with Edith Hooge, the head of the Dutch university’s Executive Committee, which last week decided to suspend the exchange program indefinitely, the alumni wrote in a statement on Monday.
Among the protesting alumni are Uri Rosenthal, a former foreign minister of the Netherlands, and Ronny Naftaniel, a former leader of the country’s Central Jewish Board.
The boycott was due to “the false allegations made under pressure from activists, who last year caused €4 million ($4.31 million) in damages,” the alumni wrote, adding: “What is particularly reprehensible is that the University of Amsterdam took this step without asking the Hebrew University for a reaction.” The letter went on to state that, “Proper academic relations should be based on information exchange and truth-finding.”
In its decision to suspend the program, the Dutch university’s executive committee wrote that it “believes that entering or renewing a university-wide collaboration with HUJI would constitute an unwarranted stamp of approval of an institution that is implicated in gross and systematic violation of human rights in the region.”
The Hebrew University, or HUJI, offers programs that “involve collaboration with the Israeli Defense Industry and the Israeli army, the latter [of which] has been accused of involvement in gross and systematic human rights violations,” the statement continued. “There may be limitations to academic freedom at HUJI,” and the Dutch university is “concerned about the safety of students traveling to Israel,” it added.
The Executive Committee also reevaluated relations with Chinese and Hungarian institutions. It warned that “research collaboration under the China Scholarship Council funding scheme should be handled with the utmost care.” China’s government and academic institutions have been accused of industrial espionage.
In the Hungary review, the committee wrote that it “advises negatively about the continuation of the collaboration,” citing E.U. sanctions on Hungary. The European Union has sanctioned Hungary over its refusal to let in immigrants.
In an interview to the Het Parool newspaper, Netta Barak-Corren, a Hebrew University scholar, criticized the Dutch university’s decision. “Hebrew University is not involved in military decisions. The boycott is completely disconnected from reality,” she said.
Anti-Israel students at the University of Amsterdam have caused damages to the tune of $4.31 million since Oct. 7, 2023, when they began protesting against Israel. On that day, Hamas terrorists murdered 1,200 people and Israel and abducted another 251, plunging the region into war. Several assaults of Jews also occurred on the university’s campus.
