Hazing of Utrecht Univ. students likened to Guantanamo Bay torture

By Janene Pieters on September 30, 2016 - 09:53

Hazing at student association Veritas in Utrecht reach such proportions that students fainted, according to AD. They also got too little sleep and sustained erysipelas infections. "It was Guantanamo-like scenes", an anonymous source said to the newspaper.

"Slurring guests were screaming in the face of prospective members that they were too ugly to fuck, while getting beer over them. They also had to incessantly perform fitness exercises", the source said.

According to him, this "morning exercise" is to separate the what fro the chaff. Only the strongest remain and become members. The rest were woken the next morning after only three hours sleep to do it again.

The prospective members are also not allowed to shower during the hazing period, according to the source. One picked up erysipelas, a serious skin infection, which quickly spread among the new members.

According to the newspaper, these incidents are in violation of the code of conduct drawn up by the student association, Utrecht University (UU) and Hogeschool Utrecht. Among other things, it states that students should be able to wash every day and get a certain number of hours of sleep.

The UU called in the Veritas management for an explanation, UU spokesperson Inge Noordijk said to AD. The university already received an anonymous report about an incident at Veritas. "This was very similar to what the newspaper reports. That is why we summoned the Veritas board immediately."

Veritas president Floris Foekens told the newspaper that no one "really fainted" during the hazing process. "There were prospective members who felt faint. They were taken apart and given glucose and a glass of water if they wanted." he said. He added that students could wash whenever they wanted.

In Groningen a prospective member of Vindicat students association ended up in hospital with a brain injury sustained during hazing earlier this week. The municipality, University of Groningen and Hanze University Groningen want to ban hazing in the city.