138 students suspended within a week – Stop government’s repression of students immediately – SSU
SUNDAY, 16 JUNE 2013
The government that has made slashing of free education its policy has intensified repression of students’ unions and student activists. By now about 260 students have been suspended and six students’ councils have been banned. During last week alone 138 students were suspended states the National Organizer of Socialist Students Union (SSU) Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa.
In a statement released to the media the National Organizer of SSU states, “Students who are already in universities engage in agitations and demonstrations not for themselves but to hand down the right of free education for future generations. Minister S.B. Dissanayake who used free education to climb up, made money entering politics and sent his children to foreign universities sees students of state universities as adversaries. He unleashes his wrathful politics on students.”
The complete statement issues by eh National Organizer of SSU:
The government that has made slashing of free education its policy has intensified repression of students’ unions and student activists. By now about 260 students have been suspended and six students’ councils have been banned. During last week alone 138 students were suspended. The government is denying maintaining students’ councils which is a democratic right students have been granted through Universities Act No. 16 of 1978. The establishment of students’ councils at Sri Jayawardenepura, Keliniya, Colombo, Buddhist and Pali universities has been arbitrarily delayed by their administrations.
On 1st June the government deployed police, Army and STF to carry out a savage attack on students of Sabaragamuwa University. More than 60 students were injured while 27 of them had to be admitted to hospital. Ten students, two villagers and a non-academic employee of the University were arrested. The students carried out the agitation demanding the withdrawal of suspensions handed down to students and withdraw the bans on students’ councils. Agitations based on 12 academic and welfare issues including slashing of the number of students admitted to the university by 35%, increasing registration fees by 500% and leasing out the swimming pool to a private company were continuing from January this year at Sabaragamuwa University.
Students boycotted a fraudulent opening ceremony the administration that was mum regarding students grievances attempted to hold with the participation of Minister S.B. Dissanayake. After the incident five students were suspended to pave the way for privatization of education and to give vent to Minister Dissanayake’s wrath. Government’s response for the students who asked the right of these students to sit for the examination was to suspend 47 more students.
The situation that cropped up at the Faculty of Medicine at Sri Jayawardenepua University is similar. The government has begun selling the degree of this Faculty for Rs.7.5 million. 25% of the total number of students in the Faculty is to be filled with fee levying students. The students of the Faculty of Medicine held an agitation on 5th June against selling the medial degree when there are thousands of students in the island who have not been able to enter the Faculties of Medicine merely for not getting 1 or 2 more marks at the examination.
Minister S.B. Dissanayake who had seen the agitation while he was on his way on a private matter had got infuriated and got his rump washing vice-chancellor to scold the students in foul language. Later 21 students including 13 student representatives were suspended to pave the way for the degree selling programme of the university and to give vent to the fury of the minister. This is the first time students were suspended from the Faculty of Medicine founded in 1991.
Both these incidents indicate that the government has intensified its exercise of destabilizing the state university system. The active steps of this exercise are selling degrees of state universities, leasing out its assets, slashing the number of the intake allowing admittance to fee levying students.
The students who are already in universities engage in agitations and demonstrations not for themselves but to hand down the right of free education for future generations. Minister S.B. Dissanayake who used free education to climb up, made money entering politics and sent his children to foreign universities sees students of state universities as adversaries. He unleashes his wrathful politics on students.
We call upon all to come forward to protect what is left of free education from the government that destroys state universities and Minister S.B. Dissanayake who has been assigned with this sordid move. Isolating the student movement at this juncture would be a crime history would never pardon.
