Court upholds Vancouver Island University suspension of pro-Palestinian student

A Vancouver Island University (VIU) student who was suspended for two years over her involvement in a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus has lost her court challenge against the disciplinary decision.

Sara Kishawi was suspended in October 2024 after VIU found she had committed multiple breaches of the university’s student conduct code connected to protest activity. The encampment, which lasted more than 100 days, was ultimately dismantled after the B.C. Supreme Court granted the university an injunction.

Kishawi was among dozens of students who took part in the protest, which called on the university to acknowledge what participants described as the genocide of Palestinians and to disclose investments they alleged were linked to human rights violations.

Following her suspension, Kishawi filed a court petition arguing that the university violated her Charter rights to political expression and failed to provide procedural fairness.

In a ruling released Monday, Justice Barbara Young rejected those arguments and upheld the university’s decision.

“The actions which were subject to the disciplinary process related to the use of the university premises, which the university has independence to regulate,” Young wrote. “Therefore, I find that the Charter is not engaged in this respect.”

The allegations leading to Kishawi’s suspension were outlined in an independent investigation commissioned by the university. Among the findings, the court noted that Kishawi helped adjust a protest banner hung from the roof of a campus building — an action the judge said posed a serious safety risk.

“A fall from the roof could have resulted in significant injury to students or passersby,” Young wrote.

The investigation also found that Kishawi attended a sit-in protest at the university’s Centre for International Education on June 28, 2024. Protesters reportedly used megaphones, waved flags and chanted slogans while student exams were taking place in the building, disrupting the learning environment.

Kishawi did not deny the factual allegations but challenged how the university assessed the seriousness of her conduct. She argued the decision lacked justification and transparency.

The court disagreed, finding it reasonable for the university to conclude that she “engaged in a pattern of wilful disregard” for the standards set out in the student conduct code.

The case drew interventions from civil liberties and student organizations, which argued that universities should be subject to Charter scrutiny because of their public role and the serious consequences disciplinary decisions can have for students.

Justice Young acknowledged those concerns but relied on existing legal precedent, concluding that universities operate with autonomy over student discipline.

“I find that VIU has full autonomy to make policies about student conduct without the intervention of government,” she wrote. “This autonomous function does not attract Charter scrutiny.”

As a result, Kishawi’s suspension remains in place.