Pro-Palestinian encampment at U of W disbands

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This article was published 24/06/2024 (516 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A pro-Palestinian encampment on the University of Winnipeg campus has been dismantled more than a month after it was erected by protesters.

In an email statement, the university confirmed the encampment was voluntarily removed Monday afternoon in a move that was not communicated to administrators in advance.

“Today, we took down the camp,” a statement posted on behalf of encampment organizers said.

“The camp wasn’t perfect, but we’re proud of what we accomplished here.”

The encampment consisted of more than a dozen tents and a makeshift wooden barricade. It was formed May 10, following similar protests on university campuses throughout Canada and the United States.

Protesters left the encampment without dismantling the barricade, because they “couldn’t risk the time it would take to deconstruct,” the statement said.

“We would have removed the barricades but (the U of W) did not engage in any of our demands — including the demand that they not persecute us for protesting — so we had no assurances of safety,” it said.

Protesters previously told the Free Press they intended to remain on school grounds until the university administration agreed to comply with a list of their demands.

Those demands included financial transparency, divestment from “companies complicit in Israeli apartheid and illegal occupation” and a public condemnation of Israel.

The university previously met with protesters to discuss the encampment and later issued a statement saying it does not hold such investments.

A protester who spoke to the Free Press anonymously said the group will explore new ways to put pressure on the university administration.