Criticisms of propaganda that tries to delegitimize the student movement in solidarity with the Palestinian people
The University of Turin retired on 7 March from the Cooperation Agreement Industrial, scientific and technological between Italy and Israel. (Announcement Maeci)
In these days, the Normal of Pisa has also decided to retire.
The Rector of the University of Bari has withdrawn from the Scientific Council of the Med-OR Foundation (Leonardo). The rector declares: the goal is freeze research projects in collaboration with Israel " As we did with Russia in 2022 ”. “ I had a confrontation with the students, I wasn't surrounded by Sioux ". Editor's note
Own Following these first significant victories of the movement student against the current genocide, the Italian government of extreme right fears an "terrorist" and "brigatist" danger inside of the University. In many cities the student events in solidarity with Palestine have been attacked with sticks by police.
Several They are also the positions of many intellectuals (also self -styled "claims") against these struggles. Some examples:
· The “ Lugubre time in which professors were expelled from universities because Jews "(Fassino on the decision of the University of Turin)
· Tommaso Montanari: " Even in Israel the university is a place of dissent, it is wrong to interrupt relationships “
· “ There cooperation between universities is based precisely on the need for an exchange of knowledge, on the culture that unites beyond politics "Milena Santerini Vice President of the Memorial Foundation of the Shoah of Milan.
· Antonio Padellaro: " THE protesters have given up to articulate phrases of complete meaning, victims of some form of ideological aphasia. It could suspect that Pro Palestine and Pro Hamas disturbers reject the Dialogue offers because they don't know what to say and, above all, they don't know how to say it .”
Aware of how much cultural propaganda is one of the armed arms of the repression precisely for its ability to penetrate common sense of the people, let's start by responding to the last thesis we have reported, that of Padellaro.
There word aphasia in the Italian vocabulary is defined as follows: loss of the ability to understand and compose the language resulting from injury of the central nervous apparatus, partial impossibility or total of Remember the signs of the word.
Speaking of aphasia, here are some well -argued clarifications.
From years is reported within the universities to intensify of the movement of the centrality of knowledge as a place of peace to knowledge for war purposes. How many of us know that in addition to the PNRR Is there a PNRM (National Military Research Plan)?
The central role of the university system for strengthening the military sector is also emphasized in the programmatic document 2020-2022 of the Defense General Staff.
In this picture because never students and teachers denounce - how it was also made to Trento a month ago thanks to the generous commitment of the Trentidarity Assembly to the Palestinian Resistance - le Collaborations of the University with Leonardo and with its foundations Cultural as Med-OR? Antidemocratic arrogance?
Let's talk about Leonardo Spa, nothing to do with the Renaissance Alnilateral Man:
The company Italian, with its 15 billion in turnover (2022 data), is al thirteenth place in the world ranking of arms manufacturers, first society of the European Union.
In the last Budget of 2022 declares that it realizes 83% of the turnover in the sector Defense (war), having almost only government customers (88%). The same Leonardo who in July 2022 purchased the Israeli Rada company Electronic Industries, specialized in short defense radar radius and anti -droni.
There same Leonardo whose cannons 76 mm oto melara mounted on the corvette of the Israeli Navy participate in the bombings on Gaza.
Leonardo is the owner of 5 framework agreements with great Italian universities (Milan, Turin, Genoa, Bologna, Rome) and active collaborations with more than 90 university.
The Med-O cultural Foundation was founded by Leonardo in 2021.
Med-Or exhibits an incredible international board that spans everything From the former head of U.S. intelligence, John Negroponte, to the former head of U.S. intelligence, John Negroponte, to the former head of the U.S. intelligence community. Saudi intelligence officer Turkey al Faisal, Egyptian minister Rachid Mohamed Rachid, from Qatar's Khalid Al-Khater to Israel's David Meidan, the former Foreign Ministers of Spain and Germany, Ana Palacio and Sigmar Gabriel, up to the former head of British intelligence Sir Alex Younger.
The president is a certain Minniti, Italian, the creation of the agreements on the concentration camps in Libya for migrants.
There militarist vocation of the cultural foundation is also clear from the "prestigious conferences" that organizes. The last on March 13th together At the center high studies for the defense entitled " Italy, Europe, born and the future of the Mediterranean ",, Present Marco Peronaci, Italian representative at NATO, The US ambassador Jack Markell, the future commander of the Born states, the Italian Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, with intervention conclusive of Minister Crosetto.
In June 2023 Med -or consolidated his collaboration with the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) of Tel Aviv
Which It will never be the meaning of the activity of the cultural foundation of the most large EU military industry? Cultural propaganda to form the developers and sellers of its products (weapons), which sooner or later they must be used.
I am 16 the Italian rectors present in the Scientific Council, among which Also Deflorian, the rector of our University of Trento.
Denouncing, criticizing these collaborations with precision and wealth of arguments the result of collective and dialogical research and one vision of knowledge at the service of humanity that suffers and not of the rich arms merchants, we are beating for a future that for ours children and for the planet earth does not foresee the war, massacre of peoples and the environment and profits for millionaires.
Other that "terrorists", we are the most sincere interpreters of a Constitution which with its Article 11 repudiates war, a Constitution born from the Resistance and the struggle against the Nazi-Fascist occupation.
When The so -called intellectuals speak of research ethics, of the neutrality, autonomy, democratic freedom (therefore to service of the people) of the University, as they may think that the war culture propagated by these foundations and practiced by reported agreements has nothing to do with the massacres of Gaza and With the winds of world war?
As We can not think of the dead children in Gaza, who in just 5 months are more than all those who died in all wars in the world in 4 years (from 2018 to 2022)?
We remember that Italy has sold armaments to Israel between 2013 and 2022 for 120 million euros which are now used in the genocide of Palestinians. Collaborations with universities, foundations cultural of the large arms industries have not played any role in their development?
In letter signed by almost 2000 Italian professors and researchers and sent to Minister Tajani on 29 February, calling for a stop to the collaborations with Israel it is said that " the financing could be used to develop 'dual use' technology, or employment both civil and military, and the third line of financing of Optical technologies could be used to develop devices of latest generation surveillance, also for war use. The request of the letter is to suspend the agreements until the fire of Israel. ”
The Appeal calls for a freeze on relations between universities and the two countries' research in order to put pressure on Israel, such as it was done against Apartheid South Africa. This kind of struggle is clearly incomparable to fascism, to the " Lugubre time in which professors were expelled from universities because Jews "As the well -known Fassino declared.
About Israeli universities such as " place of dissent ”, taking into account the exemplary exceptions that often happen to us tell and enhance, we ask ourselves some questions about the structures General: Are Israeli universities fully free? Neutral places of democratic comparison, of critical thinking?
A First example: the well-known Palestinian Prof Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian (expert of feminisimi and gender violence) has just been suspended for Order of Hebrew University and detained for hours at the airport Ben Gurion. In October he had signed a letter with 1000 academics internationals who asked for the ceasefire and the end of the regime of Apartheid.
We will deepen these questions in the next episode.
Meanwhile, one "one" Scholastic" : over 4 thousand students, 231 teachers and school workers were killed. The universities of Gaza are destroyed.
The Maeci call was published on November 21st and expires on April 10th.
Let's continue to fight, to extend, make the struggles, with the strength of our in -depth reasons by a dialogue of continuous research and our great feelings.
We do not leave the Palestinians alone. Let's stop the genocide!
We thank The Assembly of Trento in solidarity with the Palestinian resistance to the which we participate for the many ideas of deepening we have developed together in a commitment of common struggle.
We invite All and all to participate in the assembly that is found every Monday (not what comes) to Sociology in Trento at 18.00.