A protest led by pro-Palestinian activists has been taking place at the Institute of Social Sciences at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (HU) since 4pm on Wednesday. Since then the building has been occupied.
The Presidential Board of the HU responded quickly to an email from the activists and sought dialog. A dialogue offer was accepted by the activists and after intensive discussion with student speakers, the following agreement was reached:
The occupation will be tolerated until Thursday, May 23 at 6 p.m..
On May 23, from 3 to 5 p.m., there will be a discussion in the institute building with the participation of the Presidential Board and professors of the HU.
It has been agreed that no other people will have access to the institute overnight and that there will be no further damage to property. The security guards will carry out patrols.
There will be no normal teaching in the Institute of Social Sciences on May 23. Teaching will take place digitally instead.
The police were on site from the start and assigned the meeting to another location on the public street shortly before 8 p.m.
"Universities are places of dialogue, which is why it was important to us as the presidential board to start a conversation with the protesting students. After intensive negotiations, we have reached an agreement to conduct this dialogue. As the presidential board, we have expressed the clear expectation that the occupiers will leave the building peacefully after the toleration has ended," says Professor Julia von Blumenthal, President of Humboldt-Universität.