An Israeli court is considering preventing Palestinian students and their student groups from running in a university’s elections.
This is a move that could further set Palestinians back in representation in higher education.
In recent weeks, the Student Union at the University of Haifa in northern Israel has reportedly been attempting to obstruct nominations submitted by some of its representatives.
This is, particularly, to prevent dozens of student candidates from running in the upcoming union elections.
They are obstructing candidates from the University’s Student Assembly and the Student Front blocs from the elections.
They consist of representatives of the institution’s majority Palestinian student base.
The two student bodies aligned with the Palestinian-Israeli parties Balad and Hadash.
After the candidates and their legal representation issued an urgent request to postpone the University’s Student Union elections, a session was held at Haifa’s Central Court, on Tuesday.
The session met to consider preventing the blocs from submitting their lists of candidates.
This is with the isolated students represented by attorney, Susan Zaher, while some lawyers represented the University of Haifa.
Speaking to the news outlet, Arab48, Zaher said the session was held “after last week’s obstruction of students’ candidacy for the union council at the University.
“The obstruction was through procrastination by the union to prevent the nomination of candidates for the union”.
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The union aims to maintain its current members in the council “and thus control the council by the extreme right”.
According to the outlet, Yousef Taha, the Head of Students and Youth in the National Democratic Assembly (Balad), recalled that the student union did not want the election to hold.
“It is clear that the student union, through its lawyers and representatives, does not want to conduct the election.
“They want to continue with the same approach, which is stealing the elections,” Taha said.
According to him, the student union’s lawyer, in the court session, used gang tactics and insults.
“This union at the University of Haifa takes legitimacy and gets financial support from the University administration.
“I find it reprehensible what is happening, especially on a university campus, as nowhere in the world does such a union exist that represents students, academics and researchers. We only find this in Israeli society.”
Adi Ghanayem, the Secretary of the Student Front at the University of Haifa, also dismissed the current union as illegitimate.
“The current union is illegitimate because there has not been elections for many years.
“So, it is important for the Palestinian students to have strong and real representation in it,” Ghanayem said.
For now, according to the lawyer, Zaher, the case remains under consideration by the Haifa Central Court. The court will announce a decision soon this week. (MEMO)
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