Co-organiser of the Activist Introweek is collaborating with a controversial think tank
The Activist Introweek, which kicks off tomorrow, is organised in part by the Radical Organisation of Students in Amsterdam (ROSA). This group provides a home for radical left-wing students who feel their voices are not being heard at the University of Amsterdam (UvA), but to this end it is collaborating with the controversial think tank Tricontinental.
Tomorrow sees the start of the second edition of the Activist Introweek, of which the Radical Organisation of Students in Amsterdam (ROSA) is a co-organiser. ROSA regularly collaborates with the Tricontinental Institute, a controversial think tank which, according to The New York Times, dances to Beijing’s tune.
What exactly is ROSA? And how does the group view this collaboration?
A haven for frustrated students
The name, a reference to the Polish-German socialist Rosa Luxemburg, speaks volumes: ROSA is a key player within the Marxist-oriented student scene. The organisation is closely linked to the Activists’ Party and De Vonk, but sets itself apart with its emphasis on ‘radical learning’. In other words, teaching students the basics of Marxism.
‘ROSA was founded about five years ago by students that felt there was a lack of student organizations that let them express their views’ explains student Alex*. He is a member of ROSA’s Central Committee, named after the main governing body of communist parties worldwide. According to Alex, in recent years the group has grown into a community for ‘frustrated students’ who want to bring about change at the UvA on both a local and international scale: from affordable food in the canteens to severing ties with Israeli institutions.
ROSA’s most distinctive activity is the K.A.R.L. lectures, says Alex: ‘K.A.R.L. stands for Kitchen Arts and Crafts and Radical Learning, as well as having the obvious connotation with Karl Marx’. During the lectures, participants can enjoy an affordable meal, cooked by ROSA members themselves. They usually work with external speakers: ‘We invite people who know more than we do, because at the end of the day we’re just students. We often don’t feel qualified to speak about our very nuanced and important topics, but we know people who are. They’re always willing to help us’.
Collaboration with Tricontinental
From the conversation with Alex emerged that these speakers sometimes come from the American think tank Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research. A curious choice: investigative journalists from The New York Times discovered that Tricontinental is part of a network of organisations spreading pro-Chinese propaganda, funded by the communist millionaire Neville Roy Singham.
Furthermore, as recently as last April, Tricontinental’s director, Vijay Prashad, downplayed the oppression of the Uyghur population under Xi Jinping’s regime in a socialist magazine. According to Prashad, the Uyghurs are not treated badly at all, and are even reaping the benefits of the anti-poverty campaign in the region. According to sinologist David Brophy, Prashad put forward a narrative that bears strong similarities to Beijing’s version of events, and is moreover partly based on AI-generated sources.
ROSA sees no problem with the collaboration. ‘We get a lot of material from the Tricontinental Institute. Last year, we were doing a panel on militarisation at Crea, to which we also invited people from Tricontinental. These people are more experienced than we are in discussing sensitive topics.’ According to Alex, dealings with Tricontinental were ‘always very positive’.
‘Not an opponent of the Chinese government’
Alex dismisses the Times’ accusations, arguing that it is a ‘heavily pro-Israeli newspaper’ (a view which, incidentally, has also been expressed on Tricontinental’s website). Nor does he believe that ROSA runs the risk of spreading Chinese propaganda through this collaboration. ‘It’s not as if we uncritically accept whatever the organisation sends us. We always do our research.’ Nevertheless, he was ‘unfamiliar with the allegations against the Tricontinental Institute’.
Alex emphasises that ROSA is a ‘Marxist-feminist organisation’. Ergo: ‘A communist organisation. So we are not against to the Chinese government in general.’ He sidesteps the question of whether that statement also applies to China’s policy towards the Uyghur population: ‘As far as I know, the UvA has nothing to do with that. And we focus on the UvA mostly.’
After the interview, Alex asked Folia to emphasise that there are no financial ties between ROSA and Tricontinental.
ROSA’s Activist Introweek 2026 will take place from 23–26 September. Among other things, the collective will be giving ‘Marxism 101’ lectures. This year’s theme is ‘fight militarisation’.
*At Alex’s request, his name has been changed. His real name is known to the editors.
