Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Canberra Times
The Canberra Times
Steve Evans

ANU takes action against student after media appearance

The Australian National University has taken action against one of its students after a controversial media appearance.

It is not naming the student but on Tuesday students Beatrice Tucker and Luke Manning gave a controversial interview on ABC radio.

Among other comments, Beatrice Tucker said: "Hamas deserves our unconditional support." Mr Manning was later reported to have withdrawn his own comments.

A statement on Friday from ANU Deputy Vice-Chancellor Grady Venville said: "If any speech or actions discriminate or violate our code of conduct or Australian laws, we will take disciplinary action.

"You may be aware of comments made in the media these last few days. Appropriate action has been taken by the university. We do not comment on the details of individual matters."

Professor Venville said the university had "high expectations that all members of our community will ensure our campus remains an inclusive and safe space by behaving in a respectful manner, even when members of our community have different views on matters such as the conflict in Gaza.

ANU students Luke Manning and Beatrice Tucker. Picture by Keegan Carroll

"This includes allowing ANU to deal with matters via our usual processes and refraining from engaging in any discriminatory or bullying behaviour - online, on or off campus."

Beatrice Tucker did not return calls seeking comment.

Jewish students had said that the camp at the centre of the campus made them feel "intimidated and isolated".

"We want to be proud about our Jewish identity, yet this camp and the general atmosphere around the university often force us to hide that part of ourselves in fear of our safety," a statement from the ACT branch of the Australasian Union of Jewish Students said.

Hamas perpetrated the massacre of more than a thousand Israelis on October 7. A UN report accused its fighters of multiple rapes. The Australian government (along with many others) deems it a terrorist organisation and it is a criminal offence to support it financially.

There is no suggestion Beatrice Tucker gave anything more than verbal support on the radio.

But after the remark, the country's leading Jewish body called on the ANU to "expel the students who supported Hamas and for them to face the law for doing so".

"This is a chilling insight into the minds of supposedly pro-Palestine activists and the failures of leadership and education that have enabled this," the ECAJ's chief executive, Alex Ryvchin, said.

The ANU has since beefed up security on the site, particularly when Jewish students and pro-Palestine students confront each other at a distance in what seems like a bid to out-chant each other. Police were also present.

The pro-Palestinian camp was set up in the wake of the similar but much larger camp at Columbia University in New York.

Camps at American universities have been demolished by police and students removed but there is no indication of this happening in Australia.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.