TU Delft passed the name of a lecturer to the police after he wrote a column about climate protests in 2022. In the university magazine Delta, lecturer Bob van Vliet wondered why students were not protesting more radically against the influence of the fossil fuel industry at the university. “How is it possible that among all those tens of thousands of students at TU Delft not one has attached themselves to something or smeared the statue of Prometheus on campus and demanded the defossilization of the curriculum?” he wrote.

Two years later, his name appeared on a list of activists that the university shared with the police in the run-up to a demonstration in 2024. Van Vliet was not involved in that particular demonstration. However, he is known to be a climate activist, Delta reports.

Chilling effect

It had previously emerged that the names of student activists had also been shared, after which the Dutch Data Protection Authority requested clarification.

The journalists’ union NVJ and Amnesty International warn of a so-called chilling effect, in which people become less likely to participate in public debate.

Discussions about activism and safety are also taking place at other universities. Demonstrations occur regularly at TU/e. For example, activists protested last week during the Career Expo against the presence of companies active in the fossil fuel industry, such as Shell. Pro-Palestinian activists also occupied the roof of the Matrix building, and the Auditorium was damaged.

This article was translated using AI-assisted tools and reviewed by an editor.