September 20, 2025 | 09:36 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - University of Indonesia (Universitas Indonesia, UI) has established the UI-Palestine Center to advocate for the struggle of the Palestinian people. Heri Hermansyah, the university rector, said the institution will conduct studies as part of advocating for Palestinian independence. "The establishment of the UI-Palestine Center shows that UI not only provides verbal support, but also concrete actions and activities," he said in an official statement on Friday, September 19, 2025.
The UI-Palestine Center will be managed by UI Students for Justice in Palestine (UI SJP) along with lecturers specializing in Middle Eastern studies, geopolitics, geoeconomics, and relevant fields. This institution will serve as a platform to orchestrate various educational activities, research, community service, and other studies.
"This includes problem-solving of strategic issues related to Palestine by various experts, both within and outside of UI, both nationally and internationally," he said. The results of these studies will be disseminated in the form of scholarly publications and seminars featuring various experts. Recommendations from the findings will be presented to stakeholders if there are issues that requires further examination.
Heri explained that the funding comes from two sources, both internal and external to the campus. "We want the funding for infrastructure and management to be well-supported," said Heri.
In addition to establishing the UI-Palestine Center, UI's commitment to supporting Palestinian independence is also demonstrated through providing scholarships to Palestinian students studying at UI.
This year, there are three students enrolled in the specialized education program at the Faculty of Medicine, UI. During the soft launching event, hundreds of professors from various universities in Indonesia also expressed their support for Indonesia's foreign policy towards Palestinian independence.
This comes against the backdrop of a "Zionist" controversy involving the UI rector during the UI graduation ceremony for the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Law, and Humanities and the welcoming of new students at Balairung Hall on Thursday, September 11, 2025.
The moment was brief but was captured in a live video of the graduation ceremony on the university's YouTube channel. Students shouted the word after Heri invited a researcher from The Hoover Institution, Stanford University and a pro-Israel activist, Peter Berkowitz, to the university's postgraduate academic system introduction (PSAU) event in 2025.
Prior to being called a Zionist by the graduates, the event's presenter requested financial contributions from the graduates, alumni, and parents.
The presenter then asked Heri Hermansyah to also encourage officials and graduates to contribute to the perpetual funds of UI. Heri then said that UI officials should set an example by contributing to the perpetual funds of UI.
It was during this moment that Heri was called a Zionist. However, he seemed to disregard the chant and continued to encourage UI alumni to contribute to the perpetual funds of the university.
Andi Adam Faturrahman, Hendrik Yaputra, and Dede Leni Mardianti contributed to the writing of this article
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