Sivakumar went to get a salad on the Boulevard on Friday evening around half past 8, and then went into the weekend. He biked past the Drienerburght and saw a group of young people – all dressed in black with hoods on – trying to break down a pole. He didn't respond and passed the group, but out of nowhere he got an arm to his head. The scientist narrowly avoided the blow and cycled on, startled. 'Another boy started calling me a Hindu. I didn't understand what was happening at all.'
Dangerous
A little further on, Sivakumar decides to stop and film the boys with his mobile phone. The video shows someone throwing an object in the direction of Drienerburght. After four seconds, Sivakumar stops filming. 'It was actually quite dangerous what I did, should they start chasing me. If I had stayed put, or said something about it, I would undoubtedly have been hit, so I decided to cycle away.'
It wasn't until the next day that the lecturer noticed that the incident had had an impact on him, even though no one didn't actually touch him. 'Rationally, I thought: it's not that bad, let's not make this bigger than it is, but of course it's not normal. It is not the first time that I have been racially abused in Enschede. This already happened to me once at the Rutbeek and in a catering business – where I indicated that I preferred chicken instead of pork or beef – I was reproached 'that of course I had to have chicken again'.
Political climate
Despite the above, Sivakumar never felt that he was different from the rest in Twente, but Friday's incident changed that. 'That may also have something to do with the current political climate. Those guys probably feel free to behave that way these days. They're young and don't know what they're doing. Someone has to tell them that this is not normal.'
Sivakumar reported Friday's incident to the UT security and also provided the footage, even though no one can be seen in it. He didn't even report it so much for himself, but mainly to create awareness among other members of the UT community. 'It was dark and their goal was probably to scare me. This can also happen to other colleagues or students. I hope it will be resolved soon.'
Multiple incidents in a short period of time
UT security indicates that the above incident is not an isolated incident and speaks of a problem with a group of young people who are causing unrest on and around campus. 'There have been three to four similar incidents in recent weeks,' says Jan Willem Bruins, head of security.
Bruins says that the UT is in close contact with the police, the municipality and housing association Veste Wonen. 'This has our attention. We call on UT people who are experiencing something similar to report it to us immediately via 053 489 2222 and not to wait or ignore it. The group that causes these problems must be tackled and we are working on that together.'
Caption: illustrative picture of the bike lane where the group was active last Friday.
