Greens lash ‘McCarthyist’ uni crackdown as activist students expelled

Two University of Melbourne students have been expelled, and two suspended, after storming the office of a Jewish academic, prompting criticism from Greens deputy Mehreen Faruqi.

Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi. Picture: Luis Enrique Ascui/NewsWire

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Greens deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi has accused Melbourne University of launching a “McCarthyist crackdown” on pro-Palestinian activists, with two students expelled and two suspended for staging a protest that targeted a Jewish professor last year.

With the disciplinary recommendations upheld on Monday night, the students became the first in Australia to be suspended or expelled for pro-Palestinian ­activism since the wave of university protests erupted in 2023 in ­response to Israel’s war on Gaza.

University administrators ruled the quartet guilty of “serious misconduct” for a sit-in at the Parkville office of physicist Steven Prawer on October 9.

Two were permanently expelled and two suspended for an unspecified period.

Steven Prawer appears before the second inquiry into anti-Semitism at universities at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: Martin Ollman/NewsWire

At the time, protesters placed stickers in the office labelling Professor Prawer a “war criminal” and declaring “Zionists are genocidal maniacs”.

Footage posted online showed more than a dozen students draped in keffiyehs and masks chanting anti-Israel slogans, playing music and demanding the university cut ties with Israeli universities. The protest ended when police were called to remove the group.

While the students claim their actions were peaceful and politically motivated, the university has found them to have engaged in misconduct, including harassment, intimidation and damage to property.

Professor Prawer had his office raided and occupied by a group of pro-Palestinian students.

The disciplinary action comes after a months-long internal investigation and a formal misconduct process, with the final decision being made by vice-chancellor Emma Johnston, who signed off on the recommendations on Monday.

Senator Faruqi has publicly condemned the university’s response, accusing the Melbourne institution of “shamefully” aiming to restrict protests on campus by using targeted “witch hunts”.

“The tide is finally shifting inch by inch, with France, the UK and Canada all threatening sanctions on Israel due to the escalating genocide in Gaza,” Senator Faruqi said.

“But Australia is going the opposite way, with universities shamefully doubling down against Palestine activists and insisting on being on the wrong side of history.”

She accused the university “using every trick in the book” to silence dissent through disciplinary “witch hunts”.

Senator Faruqi did not address the targeting of Professor Prawer, the inflammatory language used during the protest, or concerns raised by staff.

“Universities like the University of Melbourne should cease the disciplinary witch hunts on brave student activists and issue a public apology for the McCarthyist crackdown on staff and students speaking out for a free Palestine,” she said.

“From draconian anti-protest policies and police interventions to surveillance, suspensions and disciplinary actions, university management have used every trick in the book to stifle activism and they should unreservedly apologise for this.”

In a statement to The Australian, Professor Johnston said, although the right to protest had not changed, students and staff must be protected.

“The university respects the rights of individuals to protest – this has not changed. Universities are places where free and open debate must take place, but the safety of our students and staff must also be protected as this is integral to enabling free and open debate,” she said.

“It’s our responsibility to respond to any actions that may intimidate or threaten the safety of students and staff on our campuses. These matters are taken seriously and addressed under the appropriate policy, which may include disciplinary procedures.”

In a public plea for support, organisers of the protest published a social media post this week calling on students and staff to “urgently” email Professor Johnston’s office and ask for the disciplinary actions to be revoked.

The organisers alleged the university used students’ wi-fi connection data to identify them.

In May last year, Duncan Maskell, the vice-chancellor at the time, introduced new university policies prohibiting any protest deemed “not peaceful” and banning individuals who aren’t staff or students from participating in demonstrations on campus.

The changes came after the unauthorised occupation of the Arts West building on the Parkville campus resulted in the rescheduling of classes and disrupted more than 16,800 students.

Professor Johnston expanded the restrictions this year by introducing further measures that ban indoor protests, forbid demonstrations that block access to university buildings, and apply the same limitations to students and staff, including those acting alone.