Violence at Radboud: security brutilise protestors

Today, students marched to Berchmanianum, the building where the executive board works. Protesting loudly in spite of onlooking guards, they used temporary sidewalk chalk in front of the building to write slogans like “Cut the ties” and “Divest from apartheid”. Two students entered the building, simply to go to the bathroom. When they tried to leave the building, they were stopped by two Radboud security guards. The guards demanded that the students prove they were not part of the protest, while blocking the door. One student was then pushed to the ground by security, sustaining injuries that drew blood. The other (Black) student was then targeted by the guards, one grabbed by his arm, back, and shockingly by his neck, and he was held, pinned against a wall. The student even has marks on his neck where he was grabbed. He repeatedly told a guard not to touch him, but the guard responded only with “Yes, I can”. In the video footage, you can hear the guard say “I’m just holding you, I’m not doing anything wrong”. The student then replies with “no, it’s not lawful to hold me”. The student started running away from the security guard, seeking protection from other Radboud employees, but they failed to intervene. No one in the building tried to stop the security guard, or protect the students from this extreme violence. Without any legal right to touch students, these guards’ acts constitute assault (mishandeling) under law article 300 of Wetboek van Strafrecht. The rest of the students saw some of what was happening inside through a window, and entered the building to check on their fellow students. In the meantime, Radboud called the police. When the police arrived in 5 vehicles, staff members explained that the security guards had committed serious assault. The police listened to Radboud’s head of security but told student victims to file a complaint against the perpetrators.

Resilience Report in Violence at Radboud: Security Brutilise Protestors (Studentintifadarapport.substack.com)