Students, lecturers urge Radboud University to act against controversial lecturer
A group of 113 students, alumni, lecturers, professors, and staff signed an open letter asking Radboud University in Nijmegen to take action against Assistant Professor Harry Pettit, who has sparked controversy because of his posts on social media about Hamas, the Palestinian Territories, Zionism, and Israel. This is the second open letter about Pettit. Late last month, over 400 people affiliated with various universities also urged Radboud University to protect Pettit.
In the new document, reviewed by Dutch broadcaster NOS, the signatories cite several of Pettit’s posts on X as a reason to call on Radboud University to take action. For example, Pettit called the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023 “a legitimate act of resistance” and “in some respects, brilliant.” He also referred to Israel as “Zionist demons” and called the leader of Hamas a “hero.”
“I want to raise awareness that Palestinians, as an oppressed people, have the right to armed resistance,” Pettit told the Volkskrant last week. “Calling October 7th a legitimate resistance operation doesn’t mean I condone everything that happened that day. But Israel wants us to see Hamas as barbarians who hate Jews. That’s a racist frame that serves to legitimize the genocide. It also obscures decades of oppression.”
The signatories of the open letter called on the university’s Executive Board to file charges against Pettit “so that his statements can be assessed for criminal offenses.” They also want the lecturer to be prosecuted under employment law.
“There’s a clear pattern: he recently applauded the occupation of a building with life-threatening substances and the disruption of an academic debate,” student and initiator Milos Boksan, who is also a VVD municipal councilor in Waalwijk, told NOS. “Enough is enough.”
The signatories include 39 named people and 74 who signed anonymously. “There are also people with peaceful pro-Palestinian views who feel hampered by his behavior,” Boksan said. “That speaks volumes about the broad support for this appeal.”
Late in September, the Radboud University executive board received another open letter about Pettit. In that letter, signed by over 400 people from Radboud University and other universities, the writers plead with Radboud University to protect Pettit.
“All that Dr. Pettit has done, together with many other concerned colleagues at Radboud University, is take a clear stance against genocide, and campaign for Radboud to cut its ties with institutions that are complicit in genocide,” that letter states. “By not providing any support or protection, and instead actively repressing and harassing Dr. Pettit, the NSM Faculty Board and the Executive Board of Radboud University are neglecting their moral duty to uphold academic freedom.”
Caretaker Education Minister Gouke Moes (BBB) also gave an opinion on the matter over a week ago. In the WNL talk show Café Kockelmann last week, Moes said that the university should press charges against Pettit and, if the university didn’t act, the Minister said he would consider taking steps up the “escalation ladder.”
Pettit responded by filing a complaint against the Minister, accusing him of abusing his power. “It is unacceptable for a Minister to publicly pressure the university to file a complaint and thus indirectly pressure the Public Prosecution Service (OM) to prosecute,” said Adem Çatbaş, the lawyer representing Pettit. “This not only undermines the rule of law, academic freedom, and freedom of expression, but is also a misdemeanor.”
