Police investigate new ‘banga list’, Utrecht corps denies involvement of members

NOS News•today, 2:40 PM

The Utrecht police are investigating a list containing names, photos and telephone numbers of Utrecht students that is being distributed en masse among students in the Netherlands. In the digital file, young female students are judged on their appearance and provided with sexist comments.

The creators of the file write in a foreword that they are “loyal members” of the Utrecht corps and see the distribution of this list “as a counterattack against the plebs”. They also state that this list is a response to the fuss after the previous ‘Grieten presentation’ by Utrecht corps members, which was circulated among students throughout the Netherlands earlier this month.

The Utrecht Student Corps (USC) states in a response that there are concrete indications “that the source lies outside our association” and that the senders are not members of the corps. The corps does not say what those indications are. The board calls for the list not to be distributed further and plans to press charges.

The management of the USC told NOS that it was extremely shocked by the emergence of this list of “reprehensible texts” and called the list offensive and harmful to the women involved. The NOS has spoken to some students who insist on it and they also react very shocked.

A police spokesperson confirms that the force contacted the Utrecht police this morning about this new list. “We will include this case in the investigation into the previous ‘banga list’.”

The makers of the .PDF file, who are not known, call on the women on the list to stay away from the media and to report to the Senate (the executive board of the corps). The media is asked to stop publishing (about these types of lists) and to put this matter to rest.

The file, which is frequently shared via WhatsApp, contains photos and mobile numbers of students. Short texts describe sexual experiences of male students with these women. It is not clear whether the lyrics are made up. The NOS has been able to link most of the names and photos on the list to existing women who live or have lived in Utrecht.