ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Protesters returned to Memorial University in St. John’s, N.L., on Monday, days after police responded to a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus and charged three students.
University spokesman Chad Pelley says students held a protest in the morning but did not set up a new encampment, adding that no protesters have slept on campus since Friday, when the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary has said it assisted campus security in escorting three protesters from the Arts and Administration building.
Protesters had camped on campus for 45 days demanding Memorial disclose its divestment in “arms manufacturing, apartheid, and genocide.”
Memorial says its operation to remove protesters was informed by an Ontario Superior Court ruling on July 2 that ordered a pro-Palestinian encampment dismantled on the University of Toronto campus.
Memorial said in a news release that precedents by other Canadian courts “are relevant” and used when issues of law are the same.
In a statement, protesting students said the university’s actions to dismantle the camp last week were “chaotic, disorganized and showed a complete disregard for safety.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 8, 2024.
Note to readers: This is a corrected story. An earlier version said demonstrators were forcibly removed, which police have said they were not.
