McGill asks police for help as proPalestinian encampment enters fourth day
The president of McGill University says officials have called for police assis‐ tance after pro-Palestinian protesters refused to dis‐ mantle their encampment on the university's down‐ town Montreal campus.
In a statement sent to McGill staff and students Tuesday, McGill University president Deep Saini said the university is resorting to the police after officials "failed to reach a resolution" with pro‐ testers Monday.
"Encampments on cam‐ pus property are outside of protected parameters, espe‐ cially when they're presented as indefinite in term, and when many participants are not members of our univer‐ sity community," the state‐ ment reads.
Shortly before 4 p.m. Monday, a McGill security staff member gave a "final warning," to demonstrators who have been on the uni‐ versity's lower field since Sat‐ urday.
Protesters were asked to pack their belongings and that they "have no right to be here" and would have to leave the area. The McGill se‐ curity employee warned that if they didn't comply, Mon‐ treal police would be called.
Saini says the university has been in contact with the police since the onset of the encampment.
"Having to resort to police authority is a gut-wrenching decision for any university president," Saini said. "It is, by no means, a decision that I take lightly or quickly. In the present circumstances, how‐ ever, I judged it necessary."
Lawyer Neil Oberman, who said he represents two McGill students, is set to ask a judge for a provisional in‐ junction against the encamp‐ ment on Tuesday afternoon. The injunction request, ex‐ pected to be filed at the Mon‐ treal courthouse at 2 p.m., will target various people currently protesting on cam‐ pus, according to Oberman. McGill University is expected to be named as an interested party in the case.
A spokesperson for Mon‐ treal police said that "no crime is being committed" at the encampment and the sit‐ uation is a civil matter. The spokesperson said officers will continue to monitor the demonstration and are ready to enforce a court injunction if it is granted.