Overview

• The Catalan government’s Department of Research and Universities has provisionally suspended the Serra Húnter prize awarded to CREA director Marta Soler due to emerging abuse allegations.
• The UB rectorate says it cannot launch a formal inquiry because the complaints are anonymous, the alleged incidents have expired under a statute of limitations, and CREA has been independent from the university since 2020.
• More than 30 feminist and academic collectives, alongside over 250 university professors, have petitioned the UB rectorate to suspend CREA’s leadership and commission an independent, guaranteed investigation.
• Anonymous banners and demonstrations have appeared across the Universitat de Barcelona campus denouncing CREA’s practices and demanding justice for those who came forward.
• Fourteen former CREA members have accused emeritus professor Ramón Flecha of decades-old sexual coercion, abuse of power and emotional manipulation during their time as students and researchers.