Jewish UvA alumni return diplomas symbolically out of anger
Several and well-known former UvA students have today announced via social media that they are ‘symbolically’ returning their UvA degrees in anger with the termination of UvA’s student exchanges with Hebrew University.
Yesterday, the UvA announced that it would stop student exchanges with Hebrew University (HU) in Jerusalem because, according to the university, there were “human rights violations” and “restrictions on academic freedom”. The UvA’s exchange agreement with HU is expiring and will not be renewed for that reason. A UvA spokesperson announced today that the exchange programme involves approximately ten exchanges per year to HU and ten from HU to the UvA.
Symbolic return
Several well-known UvA alumni are not happy with the UvA, as they have made known via social media. For example, UvA economics alumnus Ronny Naftaniel, former chairman of the Central Jewish Board and former director of the Israel information desk CIDI, says on LinkedIn that he is finished with the UvA. “I am symbolically returning my cum laude master’s degree in economics from 1976. A university that does not realise that scientific exchange contributes to a better society has the level of a village pub.”
Tel Aviv
The UvA also has a student exchange agreement with Tel Aviv University. That agreement runs until 2026. It is not known whether it will be extended. However, UvA students cannot go to Tel Aviv either, due to a negative travel advice (code red or orange) from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Tel Aviv University students who want to come to the UvA on exchange can still come here, the UvA spokesperson says.
Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and UvA alumnus Uri Rosenthal (VVD) also makes negative comments about the UvA’s decision on LinkedIn. “I left the UvA in 1973 because of the cowardly administrators in the Daudt affair. Now I am symbolically returning my cum laude doctoral degree from 1970. The same cowardly administrators can give it to one of their Samidoun students for proven services.”
