Organizers of the encampment set up at the University of Guelph’s Branion Plaza have accused the university of spreading “multiple lies,” and creating “a false sense of urgency” by setting deadlines to move its borders.
It is also calling out U of G for lying that it is being fined $20,000 a day for not complying with a fire code violation, which the university says is due to not having an unobstructed evacuation pathway.
The claims were made at a press conference held Tuesday by organizers of what is dubbed the People’s Plaza for Palestine.
Since that press conference, the university has confirmed it “has not received any fines to date” and late yesterday, it has been granted an extension by Guelph Fire to comply with fire regulations.
“Necessary to understanding the People’s Plaza’s hesitancy in moving the borders of the camp is that the university has created a fire hazard for us by encroaching and setting borders surrounding the camps for us to delay the move on our part,” said Firoza, one of the organizers who only revealed her first name, but did confirm she is a U of G student.
She said the group feels it is being “enclosed in, when we feel like we are being kettled into this encampment with no way out.”
She said the fire department told them the mesh fencing installed by the university was not needed, and that the fencing was built under the university’s “own volition.”
“The highly publicized lie about the encampment incurring huge fines for the university, combined with the lying in negotiations about compliance deadline extension and police involvement cast serious doubts on the administration’s ability to engage with the People’s Plaza in good faith,” Firoza said.
The $20,000 a day fine was noted in a statement posted to the university’s website by president and vice-chancellor Charlotte Yates Monday.
It also noted Zavitz Hall would be closed “to mitigate risk” until the evacuation route is no longer blocked.
Firoza said the “arbitrary deadline set by the university in this matter do not reflect our direct information from the fire department.”
She said the fire department told organizers “as long as the pathway is accessible, that is the only area that is necessary to clear up for an exit.”
Organizers directed media to the outside corner of the encampment, next to a raised flower bed, where it began taking down its own fencing.
Waida, another organizer, said it was moving part of the encampment about 10 feet to allow a passageway around to the front of Zavitz Hall.
She said the encampment’s negotiating team is aiming to have daily conversations with the university. It is also committed to having open discussions with the fire department and will address any fire safety concerns.
U of G didn’t mention how long the extension was, but Waida said the extension is two weeks.
But what will happen after those two weeks?
“We will see,” she said.
GuelphToday has also reached out to the Guelph Fire Department for comment.
After publishing, the University of Guelph posted a brief statement on its website that it will be reopening Zavitz Hall once approval comes from Guelph Fire.
"(We) will be communicating with those impacted by the temporary closure," said Sharmilla Rasheed, the vice president of finance and operations at U of G.
"We appreciate their patience and understanding as we navigate this situation. We will continue to provide updates as needed."
It confirms encampment members moved tents and personal belongings off the evacuation pathway, and expects the pathway will be kept unobstructed.
