He had already handed in his resignation, but when Tahir Abbas saw how the university responded to the demonstrators on 6 May, the professor of radicalisation studies felt compelled to write a letter to the rector.
 
In it, he accuses the university of not doing enough to protect students from police violence and to safeguard academic freedom by ensuring that students are able to voice their opinions. He also states that the lack of safety at the university has affected him personally.
 
In your letter to the rector, you write that you have to leave ‘your dream job’ due to an unsafe atmosphere. What did that mean for you in practice?
‘I spoke out about the situation in Gaza early on. Before I had even vaguely suggested that genocide might be taking place there, I was met with very strong pushback from people within the faculty. I was told to keep quiet about it. If you wanted to discuss it, you had to do it somewhere out of sight.

‘That made me feel very isolated, especially as a Brit among mainly Dutch people and as a person of colour with a Muslim name. When I walk into the faculty, it feels like I have a target on my back, especially with all the security at the entrance.

‘We have so many students here from all over the world who bring ideas and insights with them. They can help improve and shape the debate, but that debate is being stifled. That’s very frustrating and only made me feel even more isolated.

‘The idea behind the letter to the rector was to emphasise that everything could have been handled very differently. What’s happening now is that people are being pitted against each other and are made to feel unsafe.

‘I don’t think that was the university administration’s intention, but I do believe they’re listening to the wrong voices.’
 
You had already handed in your resignation by then. Why?
‘First of all, I should say that I’ve been offered a fantastic new opportunity at Aston University in Birmingham. It gives me a lot of space to build something, challenge myself and further develop my career.’

‘However, there was also a major push factor behind my decision to leave. After what happened on 7 October, the atmosphere on campus changed. I noticed that the university’s response was very different from when Russia attacked Ukraine. Back then, there was a sense that we had to bring everyone together to do something, or at least have a discussion about it.

‘The response to what is happening in Israel and Palestine right now is very different. All discussion is being stifled. We are an international university and should openly reflect on international issues. The name of my faculty even hints at that: global affairs. But that’s not what’s happening’

So what is going wrong?
‘The university had the opportunity to bridge differences between groups, but instead, those differences have been exacerbated through inaction and ignorance. And then they shift all the blame onto students who are angry, feel powerless, and are eager to engage in discussion about sensitive and topical issues.

‘As lecturers, it’s our job to ensure that those discussions take place, but it’s proving extremely difficult to create any space for that whatsoever within the university. People should be able to express their thoughts and feelings, but right now, we’re just throwing proverbial stones at each other.

‘Maybe I’ve been radicalised by what I’ve seen online, and as a researcher of racism, extremism and conflict, I’m very aware of my own bias, but I’ve never seen anything as horrific as what’s happening in Gaza right now. And then there’s the silence – the lack of action everywhere. No wonder our students are angry and want to be heard. They are our future. It’s only fitting that they speak out.’

What could the university administration do better?
‘I don’t personally know the administrators, but it seems like they’re stuck in a certain mindset and can’t break out of it. I don’t know if the university is brave enough to admit that mistakes were made, but we’re not at that point yet. The messaging is still very narrow; student protests are mainly seen as a security risk. But protest is very much part of university life. So I’d like to tell them that they should see students as added value, not as the enemy.’

How do you explain their response?
‘I think they don’t know what to do. So they’re just sitting on their hands and doing as little as possible. They see that as the safe option, but it’s the wrong one. The unrest is not going away.’

‘I’m not even asking the university to take a stand for or against anything, I just want them to acknowledge what’s happening, that there are different voices within the university and that we need to keep that discussion going.

‘It would be great if we could bring together critical voices in an academic, intellectual discussion focused on the community and policy. There are so many approaches you can take that there’s always some common ground to be found between groups. That would open up so many opportunities to build alliances between Jewish, Christian and Muslim communities, but that simply hasn’t happened.’

‘I understand that running this university is difficult. It’s a very old institution and with every decision, the Board has to consider 450 years of history. There are many voices vying for attention and many conflicting interests that must be carefully weighed. But in this case, there has clearly been a lack of authority and visibility from the top.’

Will you miss the university?
‘Absolutely, the university is a reputable institution with many good people. I’m going to miss my incredibly bright students who asked me the best questions. They made me think and pushed me to do research. I’m going to miss the excellent academics with whom I had many good conversations. They’re a real asset to the university. I hope my colleagues can carry on the fight. I wish them the best of luck and hope they can make the university proud. I always felt proud to say I worked at Leiden University. The university gave me a home and lots of opportunities. But I’m also glad that, after 15 months of feeling uncertain and unsafe, I’ve been given a new opportunity somewhere else.

‘There’s a lot to like about The Hague, and I’ve had a wonderful seven years here. The beach is close by, the food is good, and the public transport links are excellent. And for someone like me, who puts work above all else, being able to live just a five-minute walk from the university was great.

Did you receive a reply to your letter to the rector?
‘No. Do people usually get a reply? I would love to get one, or an opportunity to speak with the university administrators. I don’t even think they know I exist.’