Lawyers for Montreal’s McGill University are in court seeking an injunction to dismantle the pro-Palestinian encampment that has been on its downtown campus since last month.
In a judicial application dated Friday, McGill says the encampment is a “security, safety and public health risk” that has escalated tensions on campus.
McGill cites the “fierce verbal exchanges” between protesters and counter-protesters earlier this month, barrels of possible “human waste” on site, possible fire code breaches and the encampment’s potential as a “magnet” for further clashes.
The university on Monday asked a judge to order the protesters to stop camping on or occupying its grounds and to authorize Montreal police to assist the school in dismantling the encampment.
Julius Grey, a lawyer representing some of the encampment members, said it will be up to McGill’s lawyers to prove the university’s claims that the encampment is dangerous. “Demonstrations are a way of informing the public and we have affidavits that show that this demonstration is completely peaceful,” he told reporters outside the courtroom, adding that the encampment is not permanent.
Grey, who represents a group called Palestinians and Jews United, said an injunction is an “exceptional” remedy. “I will listen to the proof that they bring to show the allegations of danger,” he said.
The first hours of the hearing were largely taken up with procedural matters, which included establishing who will be allowed to represent the defendants, who were listed in McGill’s court filing as “John Doe and Jane Doe.”
Superior Court Justice Marc St-Pierre is expected to hear arguments on the substance of the request Monday afternoon.
The protesters are demanding the university divest from companies that are “complicit” in Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories, and cut ties with Israeli institutions.
Scott Weinstein, with Independent Jewish Voices Canada, told reporters at the courthouse Monday that doctors and nurses have been present at the encampment and reject the university’s claim that it is unsafe. McGill is hypocritical by using sanitation issues as a reason to eject the protesters because the university has refused to allow portable toilets to be installed at the encampment, Weinstein said.
The protesters fenced off an area containing dozens of tents on McGill’s lower field on April 27, following a wave of similar campus protests in the United States.
McGill president Deep Saini issued a statement on Friday saying the university is committed to discussing the protesters’ concerns in good faith, even if a court order is granted to remove them.
Two McGill students had sought an injunction to force protesters to move at least 100 metres from the university’s buildings, but their request was denied on May 1.
On April 30 McGill requested “police assistance” to dismantle the encampment but has not yet received it. According to the court filing, Montreal police told McGill earlier this month that their “criteria for police intervention were not met” and suggested the school try to resolve the matter through dialogue.
— This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 13, 2024.