The print version of Observant was already outdated by the time it hit the university newspaper racks last Thursday 23 May around 9 AM.
We knew we were taking a gamble. On Wednesday 22 May, behind-the-scenes discussions were taking place between university administrators and representatives of the students who had occupied the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences on Grote Gracht that morning. The outcome was uncertain. Would the encampment in the FASoS garden be allowed to remain, or had the protestors well and truly crossed the line by interrupting education and research in the building? By 5 PM on Wednesday, we still didn’t know the answer. We sent the newspaper to the printer right on the deadline, with the latest news – university building occupied, negotiations ongoing.
Frustration
So you can imagine our frustration when, later in the evening, we found out that the encampment had been cleared out and all protestors had left campus. “Voluntarily”, or so the Executive Board claimed that same Wednesday evening. This seemed highly unlikely to us; the students had been determined and unyielding for days. From other sources that evening, we heard the students had left under the threat of police intervention. They later confirmed this on their Instagram page. On Thursday, however, UM President Rianne Letschert called their account of the matter “not factual”. What did she mean by “voluntarily”, then? “I meant that they left at our request, but without any force being used.”
Patience tested
Our patience has been sorely tested lately. The past few weeks were characterised by waiting, waiting and more waiting. From the moment the first tent was pitched, the question each day was whether the student protestors would be allowed to stay in the FASoS garden another night. The answer usually didn’t come until evening. On Friday 17 May, we were about to head to the University Council meeting that would discuss the protestors’ demands when the meeting suddenly turned out to be held online and closed to the press and public. It was frustrating. Instead of reporting on the meeting, we again found ourselves waiting for news. It finally came around 8.30 PM: the students would be allowed to stay over Pentecost weekend. We posted an update on our live blog.
Slogans
Today, Tuesday 28 May, we were able to spring into action when we learnt that nearly all of the university buildings in the city centre had been defaced with pro-Palestinian slogans overnight. Journalists don’t like waiting. Who does? We prefer to dig into things ourselves. To ask questions, make phone calls, interview sources, go to the scene, ask some more questions and then write up an article.
There’s something else I need to get off my chest. Observant is free to read, but non-university newspapers aren’t. They’re in for a rough time with the plans of the new Dutch government to raise VAT on books and newspapers from 9 to 21 per cent. A terrible idea, in my opinion. If you agree, you can sign this petition to stop the government from increasing VAT on books on Petities.nl.