Brisbane

The UQ Gaza Encampment has packed down.

But disclosure is not enough. The student rebellion continues.

["Students for Palestine UQ" written inside of a circle coloured like the Palestine flag, with a map showing the outline of the full Palestine & Israel area.]

The Gaza solidarity encampment at UQ has been a huge step forward for pro- palestine activism at UQ. Over one inspiring month we have drawn in hundreds of students to rallies, teach- ins, and organising meetings for the first time. This reached its peak at our triumphant Student General Meeting, when over 1500 students voted to call on the University to cut ties with weapons companies involved in the genocide in Gaza.

This flood of students determined to stand for justice filled the booked venue to capacity, as well as multiple overflow lecture theatres. This historic turnout is a testament to the power of the determined, democratic and unified movement we have built through our encampment.

But as the semester winds up, we believe there is no point in persisting with a physical camp on campus. During the uni break there is nothing much to disrupt, and there will be far fewer students on campus to draw into the movement. So we've decided, after the amazing success of the SGM, to end our encampment today.

At the same time, the university has presented the camp with a proposed agreement. They have said that in exchange for ending our camp by 5pm today, they will publicly disclose some details of the university's ties with weapons companies and companies operating in the West Bank. They have also offered to increase the number of scholarships available to students from Gaza by an undisclosed amount.

We want to state very clearly, for the benefit of our members and supporters, that Students for Palestine did not endorse this deal or sign it. We don't think the university should be working with or supporting arms companies in any way. If the university actually wants to provide 'transparency' and help desperate people from Gaza, they should do so. We will not sign any agreement which limits our ability to protest, especially not when the university continues to accept millions from weapons companies and the pentagon.

At the same time, we acknowledge that it is our encampment and the broader student Palestine movement that has forced the university to make this proposal. We recognise the scholarships as a step forward and call for them to be extended. However, we do not believe disclosure should be celebrated as a victory. Disclosure does nothing to structurally change UQ's links to these corporations, nor does it stop UQ's complicity in the genocide taking place in Gaza.

Our demands were clear from the start. We want the university to cut research ties with weapons companies that supply the IDF, shut down the Boeing centre, and financially divest from Israel. And now, thanks to our historic SGM, we know that the student body agrees.

Following on from the camp, we trust that everyone involved will continue in our fight for real change at UQ.

In coming days Students for Palestine will be calling open organising meetings for all students who want to join us.

We end with a message to Deborah Terry and the UQ administration - in next semester, the student rebellion will continue until you end your complicity in apartheid and genocide.

- Students for Palestine UQ

[Palestine flag]