Hashemite University students protest classmate’s suspension

AMMAN — Hashemite University (HU) students on Thursday protested the suspension of fourth-year undergraduate Ibrahim Obeidat, as he met with university officials and MPs to discuss his case, activists said. 

On Monday, the university’s deanship of student affairs suspended Obeidat for four academic semesters over his activities on campus during the last four years, the dean of student affairs, Mustafa Khawaldeh, told The Jordan Times.

Students organised a demonstration in front of the administration building to demand the reversal of the decision. 

“We came together here today to bring Ibrahim back. He’s an engineering student in his fourth year. He stood up for our rights as students and now it is time for us to pay him back,” a protester said.

The electrical engineering student, according to Khawaldeh, violated a number of university regulations and was suspended accordingly.

Khawaldeh said Obeidat violated HU regulations by organising events on campus without the administration’s approval and insulting university staff. 

According to the Student Disciplinary System at HU, if violations occur, students may be asked to leave the classroom, banned from attending classes, or suspended from scholarship programmes.

Khawaldeh said Obeidat could appeal the decision with the university’s administration office, or the judicial system.

On Thursday, Obeidat made an appeal to the deanship of student affairs, which the council of deans will discuss on Monday, the student said. 

“The university president will be our ambassador in spreading the word… MPs and the university administration, and the council of deans promised that our voices will be heard, to give way to legal procedures on campus,” he added.

MPs Faisal Aawar, Mutaz Abu Rumman and Khaled Ramadan met with HU President Kamal Bani Hani and officials to find a solution that “serves all parties”. 

At the protest, Ramadan said officials would discuss the student’s case and respond to the demands of protesters by Monday. 

“We will be all taking part in this… We stand with students and we will be with the youths, since they are the future. On Monday, we will attend the meeting of the council of deans, aiming to bring Ibrahim back with no restrictions,” he told students.

Students warned that if Obeidat is not allowed to enter the university after Monday’s meeting with the deans, there will be an open-ended protest on campus until their demands are met.

“Education is not a joke. It’s not something we can take for granted, it’s when you lose something that you realise its importance,” activist Samir Salameh said.

HU’s president was not available to comment despite several attempts by The Jordan Times.