A group of United Nations experts on Tuesday protested to Bern after students were sentenced for trespassing after taking part in pro-Palestinian protests at a Swiss-funded university.
“Peaceful student activism, on and off campus, is part of students’ rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, and must not be criminalized,” 10 independent UN experts said in a statement.
The experts pointed to criminal penalties sought by the publicly funded Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETHZ) as mass student protests over the Gaza war rocked universities in many countries in May 2024.
Around 70 students had staged sit-ins at ETHZ, demanding “a stance against genocide, an academic boycott of Israel and full transparency in terms of [the school’s] co-operation with Israeli institutions.”
Israel adamantly rejects accusations that it committed genocide in Gaza, and says it has made efforts to avoid killing civilians in its fight against Hamas, which it accuses of embedding among noncombatants.
The UN experts, including the special rapporteurs on the right to education, to free expression, and on the rights situation in the Palestinian territories, pointed out that police were reportedly called within minutes at the Swiss institution.
“A large security presence [was] deployed, and the sit-ins forcibly dispersed, despite no teaching being interrupted and no violence occurring,” the statement said.
Illustrative: Dutch Police officers try to stop demonstrators on the Rokin, who support pro-Palestinian students occupying the University of Amsterdam, as they continue their protest calling for the university to sever all ties with Israel because of the war against Hamas in Gaza, on May 8, 2024. (Ramon van Flymen/AFP)
A spokesperson for the Swiss Federal Ministry of Justice and Police did not immediately respond to a request for comment. An ETH Zurich spokesperson did not immediately respond either.
After the protests, 38 ETHZ students received “penal orders” — mainly fines of up to 2,700 Swiss francs ($3,500) — including 17 who opted to appeal, it said.
“Recent court decisions have upheld trespass convictions against five students, while acquitting two others on procedural grounds,” the statement said.
However, all students involved, including those acquitted, were required to bear court and administrative costs, amounting to at least 2,400 Swiss francs ($3,130) per person, a spokeswoman for the experts told AFP.
Decisions for the remaining 10 students are still pending.
The experts, who are mandated by the UN Human Rights Council but who do not speak on behalf of the United Nations, called on the Swiss authorities and judicial system to “take full account of Switzerland’s human rights obligations.”
“Universities and states must ensure that expressing solidarity with human rights causes and demanding accountability from state institutions, especially in relation to well-documented instances of international crimes, do not lead to intimidation, prosecution, or long-term harm to students’ futures,” they said.
Israel denies violating international law in the Gaza war.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
