The student council also stands for a non-violent line of action. While it is now the student's choice whether to attend classes or not - in contrast with the first Intifada when the Israeli military physically closed the campus for four years, some find this practice jeopardizes academic continuity. We sometimes convince the students not to strike, but we can only give advice since they are independent, says student affairs dean, Abdel Kareem Barghouti. In this aspect, Birzeit University is unique. Muddar Kassis, professor in the philosophy and cultural studies department sees that the student movement may even have a chance of changing the character of the Intifada.
Nobody expects students to run around with Kalashnikovs.
If they took part in greater numbers, the Intifada would become both more popular and at the same time even more non-violent. Nonetheless, taking part in the resistance against Israeli occupation and brutality is one thing while trying to survive and lead a life as normal as possible under the current circumstances is just as difficult a task. University students suffer from the current economic and social hardship just as much as other sectors of Palestinian society. Most universities are trying to help their students by allowing them to pay their fees later. In Birzeit, as in other universities as well, direct aid to students threatened by poverty due to the loss of their own parent's jobs, has been a focus of student council action.