SRC President’s Report

SRC PRESIDENT’S REPORT. SRC PRESIDENT’S REPORT.

From climate change, inflation, a global pandemic and war, the world is in crisis. And the halls of power, from parliament or the university council that rules UoA, are so alienated from ordinary people’s control it’s no surprise that workers and students feel impotent to change things.

But we know from history that organising collectively is how we build our power, and begin to push back against an appalling status quo.

At UoA, socialists in the SRC were elected to kick up a fuss against undemocratic cuts on campus and build a campaign to challenge management’s power. A key plank of our fightback was organising a student general meeting for all affected to have their say and directly vote on motions important to them – a welcome alternative to the closeddoor, unaccountable decision making of the Adelaide Uni council.

Last Thursday, the Adelaide Uni’s first official student general meeting in approximately 25 years took place.

Meeting on the Barr Smith Lawns, angry and passionate students voted on motions ranging from condemnation of faculty mergers, to demands for immediate divestment from

fossil fuels by uni administration.

We achieved the 150 student quorum for the meeting to be considered “official” and binding on the SRC. A huge congratulations to all 169 students who participated in this brilliant, democratic intervention into the way campus run.

Motions passed unanimously are below. I think they show that ordinary people could run the university and right-wing Adelaide University Union in a more just and righteous way than the corporate heads and conservatives in control today.

Students unanimously voted to:

1) Express opposition to university management’s proposed faculty mergers, staff sackings, and course cuts.

2) Pass a motion of no confidence in ViceChancellor Peter Høj and the University Council.

3) Defend student democracy: demand direct funding for the democratically-elected Student Representative Council.

WORDS BY ANA OBRADOVIC SRC PRESIDENT

occult club at the next clubs committee meeting and,

4b) Censure the AUU for exploiting the power of the Union to restrict student democracy & censor views opposing that of the governing progress-liberal coalition, as it has done by:

- refusing to affiliate the Women’s Collective - defunding the SRC - prohibiting On Dit from criticising the AUU - refusing to affiliate the pro-choice club; and - not re-affiliating the Occult Club

5a) The AUU give back the funding it has stripped off On Dit for printing and social events including rejecting the requested honorarium of $6000 which is still below average for student press director instead of reducing the already set amount of $5000 to $4500.

5b) The AUU reverse their amendment in the student media rules of clause 10.4 which enables the ‘Independent Committee’ to employ any methods of inflicting punishments on the On Dit editors outside of official jurisdiction. with sanctions anymore just for practicing basic rights of any and all media institutions for simply practicing a media release.

5d) AUU Board President Oscar Ong takes a class on how to respect women.

6) Denounce the University management’s casual wage theft and demanding making the processes that make this possible publicly accountable.

7) Demand the university divest immediately from the fossil fuel industry.