Update: In an article in the Algemeen Dagblad, Leiden University admits to employing external security personnel in plain clothes and using students to spy on their own students.
During a meeting on June 12, 2024, between various student organizations and the university itself, the university admitted to hiring an external agency that sends staff who pose as students. These employees are reportedly present on both the The Hague and Leiden campuses to gather information about students. The Haagse Stadspartij ( The Hague city party ) has received reports that these individuals also take photographs, eavesdrop, and even look into students’ bags when they are not paying attention. The university claims that it took these measures following pressure from the government and the municipality. Additionally, the university is said to hire students to monitor demonstrations, and we have heard from several students that they are personally being monitored by these hired students on behalf of the university. It is unclear what happens with the collected information.
Response from Amnesty International in AD: Amnesty International is surprised. “If the university deploys ‘observers’ to monitor students, this is tantamount to spying,” said a spokesperson. “This would not only indicate a great deal of mistrust from the university toward its students, but could also affect how free and safe students feel. It would be good if this were thoroughly investigated.”
The Haaagse Stadspartij has submitted written questions to the mayor and aldermen of The Hague regarding the disturbing reports that Leiden University is spying on its own students, both on the campuses in The Hague and Leiden. The Hague City Party now wants to know which government agencies are involved in these actions, what happens to the collected data on students, and why and how long these practices have been taking place. They also ask whether there has been consultation with privacy officers and whether the legal basis for these actions has been examined and whether it exists at all.
Michel Vermeer, policy advisor for The Hague City Party and himself a student at Leiden University, drafted the questions and is deeply shocked: “When I first heard this, I thought I was in some sort of Cold War film. A university secretly spying on, photographing, and eavesdropping on its own students is not only legally highly questionable but also morally completely reprehensible. It causes a great deal of distrust among students, a significant sense of insecurity, and is a serious violation of students’ freedom.”
Response from Privacy First in AD: “This is a very extreme measure at a university where people should be able to develop and grow in complete freedom. Such things were once unthinkable.”
Fatima Faïd, the chair of the Hague City Party, shares these concerns: “It is terrifying that a university violates the privacy of its students and treats them as suspects while they are there to study. Both Leiden University and the municipality of The Hague need to provide very good answers to justify these practices; otherwise, there must be consequences.”
Besides the written questions for the municipality the Haagse Stadspartij also did multiple freedom of information requests.
Written Questions: Leiden University Spies on Its Own Students Submitted by: Fatima Faïd, Hague City Party
Date: August 19, 2024
To the chairman of the city council,
From conversations between students and representatives of the administration of Leiden University on June 12, 2024, it has become clear that the university employs undercover security personnel, also known as ‘profilers’ or sometimes ‘observers,’ in plain clothes to monitor, observe, and spy on students on both the Leiden and The Hague campuses. These ‘observers’ are authorized to look into bags and make video and audio recordings of students. According to the university, this choice was made under pressure from the government and municipality. Additionally, students are being paid to gather information about their fellow students. In response to the outcomes of this conversation, the Hague City Party has some questions regarding the deployment of these so-called ‘observers.’
In accordance with Article 30 of the Rules of Procedure, council member Fatima Faïd poses the following written questions:
- Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate whether it is aware of the deployment of undercover security personnel on the Hague campus of Leiden University? If so, since when has this personnel been deployed, and since when has the board of mayor and aldermen been aware of this? If not, is the council willing to discuss this with Leiden University and inform the council about the outcomes of this discussion?
- Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate whether it is aware of the deployment of students on the Hague campus of Leiden University to (paid) gather intelligence? If so, since when has this been the case, and is the board of mayor and aldermen aware of this? If not, is the board willing to discuss this with Leiden University?
- Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate whether, during the conversation between the university, the mayor, and the alderman of Education, following the written questions from the Hague City Party about the pursuit of students through the city (RIS317099), this subject was also discussed? If so, how did that conversation go? If not, how can that be the case, given that the subject then related to the university security’s improper conduct?
- Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate how many students and/or undercover security personnel the university deploys? Who pays for this deployment?
- The university states in conversations with students that these steps were taken at the behest of the authorities, including the municipality. Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate whether it has exerted pressure or otherwise encouraged Leiden University to spy on and/or observe its own students?
- Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate which government agencies are involved in the deployment of these ‘observers’? Can the council indicate what happens to the data (photos and other information) that the ‘observers’ collect about the students? With whom is this data shared? How long is this data retained?
- Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate whether the university or the municipality has sought advice from a privacy officer about the deployment of this personnel and the processing of the collected data? If so, what was the advice? If not, why not?
- Does the board of mayor and aldermen agree with the Hague City Party that spying on students does not contribute to the trust between students and the university and may even be illegal? If not, why not?
- Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate what matters the observers are required to observe and report on? Are specific subjects, individuals, or faculties being specifically monitored?
- Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate whether other colleges in The Hague (such as KABK, The Hague University of Applied Sciences, and the Conservatory) deploy undercover personnel to monitor their students?
- Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate how many Public Order Intelligence Team (TOOI) reports have been made about students at Leiden University or about possible actions in The Hague or on the Hague campus? Can the council share these reports with the council?
- Can the board of mayor and aldermen indicate whether TOOI reports have been shared with Leiden University? If so, on what legal basis?
- Does the board of mayor and aldermen agree with the Hague City Party that it is undesirable to deploy undercover security personnel within The Hague?
- Does the board of mayor and aldermen agree with the Hague City Party that this is a violation of students’ privacy? If so, can the council ensure that this practice is immediately stopped?
Dutch version here: https://haagsestadspartij.nl/universiteit-leiden-bespioneert-eigen-studenten/
For contact on this subject: reach out to Michel Vermeer (+31 6 38706957) (michel.vermeer@denhaag.nl)