Rector of Ku Leuven Luke Sels intends to send an e-mail to all students enrolled in the new academic year.
It will invite them to indicate incidents of racism to the university authorities. This is one of three policies decided by the university after the controversy relating to the extreme right organization, Schild & Vrienden.
Students may denounce such incidents at the point of contact for transgressive behaviour. Luc Sels explains, “This platform not only covers incidents of a sexual nature, but also racist and hateful messages, threatening the integrity of other people.”
Since the report by the Pano broadcast on VRT, the point of contact has already received messages concerning students involved in the organization Schild & Vrienden.
The Rector further details, “Students affected by such complaints will be invited for an in-depth discussion.” He goes on, “We wish to detect the nature of the problem and see whether it is possible to find a solution for it.” However, at this stage, it is not yet an issue of activating a disciplinary procedure.
Collaborating with the local police, KU Leuven also wishes to sign a charter with student clubs active in Leuven. Signatory organizations must commit to respecting the values championed by the university.
