Message from the Executive Board following the shootings incident in Rotterdam
We have all been deeply affected by the events that took place in Rotterdam on Thursday evening. Our colleagues at Erasmus Medical Center and Erasmus University have lost a valued colleague and have been involved in a very serious incident, which will undoubtedly leave deep scars. The witnesses to this tragic incident and all other staff and students at the Rotterdam university are left with feelings of anxiety, disbelief and insecurity. We empathise intensely with them. .
This is, of course, also a tragic event for the whole of the Dutch academic community. Leiden University has close ties with Erasmus University and the Erasmus Medical Center (EMC). As a result, Leiden students and staff are regularly in the EMC, as well as on the Woudenstein and Hoboken campuses. Several of our students were present there yesterday at the time of the shooting. They have since been contacted and offered support. Naturally, this brings such an incident very close by for our community too.
We can well imagine that what happened in Rotterdam is also having an impact on our staff and students. We, too, are similarly affected. Any members of staff who feel the need to talk about yesterday's events can approach their supervisor, and support is available to students from the psychological counsellors. Both staff and students can also contact Slachtofferhulp (Victim Support Netherlands). In addition to these possibilities, it is always good to talk to and support one another. Together we are always stronger.
The flags at the Academy Building and the University Library will hang at half mast on Friday.
Annetje Ottow, Hester Bijl and Martijn Ridderbos,
Executive Board