We are aware that the violence in the Middle East has a big impact here as well, for students and colleagues who have family or friends in the area, and for everyone else involved. We understand their despair, consternation, anger, and grief.
Artevelde UAS wants to be a beacon of peace and tolerance for them. Within our UAS, we want everyone to feel safe and welcome. Therefore, we want to offer a warm environment with room for dialogue and connection, far from polarisation.
That is why we condemn any form of hatred, which may be fuelled by this war, such as antisemitism or Islamophobia.
Room for initiatives
As a UAS, we also condemn any form of violence. From a humanitarian view, we are supportive of initiatives that want to help the victims of violence. Within our UAS, there is room for bottom-up initiatives from various perspectives, depending on the specific nature of the department or expertise network where they initiated – as long as those initiatives do not have a political connotation, and as long as everyone continues to feel welcome here.
Call for peace
We support the international call to all parties to find a peaceful solution, to abide by the law of war and the international humanitarian law, to ensure that there are no more victims resulting from the violence of war, and to come to a political solution soon.
We are committed to all our students and colleagues, and we offer support and help to everyone who is struggling. The staff members of our Office of Student Support and HR are there for them, as always. We are also sharing tips for lecturers and other staff members on how to deal with the questions and concerns from students about this very complex and heavy subject.
We are deeply moved by the violence in the Middle East. We hope that reason will soon lead to peace.