This report investigates the establishment of pro-Palestinian protest encampments at 36 UK universities during the 2023/24 academic year, analysing their motivations, structure and impact and the responses to them by institutions and students’ unions. It provides a detailed framework for managing such protests in future, balancing freedom of speech, student wellbeing and the well-functioning of institutions.
I am writing to formally express my concern and disappointment regarding your recent report, “New HEPI Report Tells the Inside Story of the Pro-Palestine Encampments on UK Campuses”, published on 30 January 2025. It has come to light that the original author withdrew from the project due to the report being manipulated to align with a biased, pro-Zionist agenda. Despite this, the report continues to circulate, perpetuating harmful inaccuracies and undermining legitimate Palestinian activism.
The report is deeply flawed for several reasons:
1. Conflation of Anti-Zionism with Antisemitism: The report erases the crucial distinction between criticism of the state of Israel and discrimination against Jewish people. This conflation stifles legitimate discourse and unjustly discredits Palestinian solidarity movements.
2. Misrepresentation of “From the River to the Sea”: The phrase, which is rooted in the Palestinian struggle for freedom and equality, is inaccurately framed as antisemitic. This misrepresentation marginalises Palestinian voices and mischaracterises their calls for justice.
3. Unsubstantiated Claims of Antisemitism: The report includes allegations of antisemitism that lack credible evidence. Such claims inflame tensions and risk discrediting peaceful activism without justification.
4. Failure to Address Institutional Complicity: The report neglects to hold UK universities accountable for their role in supporting Israel’s ongoing violence and genocide against Palestinians. This omission reflects a glaring lack of accountability and a refusal to address systemic injustices.
By publishing this report, HEPI has set a dangerous precedent that equates Palestinian activism with antisemitism. This not only threatens academic freedom and the right to protest but also undermines efforts to address the very real issues of oppression and apartheid faced by Palestinians.
I urge HEPI to:
– Retract the report and issue a public apology for its biased and misleading content.
– Commit to publishing a fair and balanced analysis of the pro-Palestine encampments, ensuring that Palestinian voices are centred and respected.
– Acknowledge the complicity of UK institutions in enabling Israel’s violence against Palestinians and take a stand against such injustices.
The weaponisation of antisemitism to silence dissent is unacceptable. It is imperative that HEPI upholds its commitment to academic integrity and social justice by rectifying these errors and ensuring that future publications are free from bias and misinformation.
I look forward to your prompt response and action on this matter.
Thank you for your comments, which raise important issues that we spent lots of time discussing as a team and way beyond HEPI before publication. I disagree with your arguments but I’m grateful to you for making them. I would urge people to read both the whole report, which went through a peer-review process before publication (as all full-length HEPI reports do), as well as these comments and to make their own minds up accordingly. HEPI has never and will never retract a publication just because someone disagrees with it, as our role is to stimulate informed debate, but we remain open to publishing alternative views on the protests.