MMU Stop The War Update  (February 09)

On the 22nd of January 2008 a coalition of Greater Manchester students liberated a space on the campus of the Manchester Metropolitan University, this was done in conjunction with the student national day of action as a display of solidarity with the oppressed peoples of Palestine. After the breakout of action at Soas University, students have followed suit across the country demanding that their universities make a statement condemning the actions of the Israeli government. As students of MMU we tried to act in the tradition set by former student Tom Hurndall who was murdered by an Israeli sharp shooter whilst serving with the International Solidarity Movement in Gaza. We ask that a permanent memorial be created in his memory.

The Occupation

Our action began with a protest at All Saints Park which included UCU members. Our numbers eventually rose to 60 and the decision was made to occupy the Geoffrey Manton building. Once inside we unfurled a Palestinian flag and 3 speakers from a Q&A session on Palestine at Man Uni were brought down to address us. We agreed on a list of demands, received our first messages of support from MMU staff and then decided to enter lecture theatre 7. A delegation was sent off to hand in our demands to the Vice-Chancellor but he was in London at the time. A group of us went outside to flyer and recruit more people to get involved with the occupation. It was at this time that security prevented people and food from entering the building, however we managed to force our way back in. That evening, Mark Krantz, convener of Manchester Stop The War gave a talk on Zionism and the history of Palestine. 19 of us decided to stay the night.

Friday morning saw Geoff Brown, Secretary of the Manchester Trades Union Council address the students on his recent experiences at The Beirut Conference and discuss with students a whole host of other topics including the significance of student protest, Barack Obama, Hamas and Israel, this was attended by 35 students and 15 members of staff. At around 5pm we agreed to meet the vice-chancellor and we discussed our demands before we decided to end our occupation in fear that we would be denied food over the weekend.

We believe unequivocally that every person has the right to an education. Throughout our occupation of the lecture theatre in the Geoffrey Manton building we continued to uphold this belief. At no point during the period of our occupation did we seek to disrupt the education of any students at our University. Regrettably the University did not share our desires and without consultation with our group decided to rearrange all lectures within the occupied theatre. This course of action was never our intent. In response to the Universities decision to cancel all University led teaching within the lecture theatre for the period of the occupation we actively sought to promote the space as a platform for free debate and education on issues related to Palestine and the Middle East.

We and the many students, lectures and trade-unionists who supported our actions recognise that this was an important move in providing a platform for open debate on this issue within this University.

As part of a group of over 20 universities who have taken similar action we have been part of the greatest student action of the past decade and a half and have successfully shown solidarity with the people of Palestine, creating the beginnings of a radical movement at MMU, unlike at other universities our actions were the beginning of a movement on campus, not the result of one. Following from our success we have held a subsequent meeting with the vice-chancellor since the occupation. In agreement with one of our main demands, he has decided to reiterate the Universities UK statement concerning the universities policies on the situation in Gaza. He has also said in writing that he supports student action within the university and also that there would be no repercussions for any students involved in the occupation, which we regard as a major achievement. The student union has agreed to allow us to advertise political activities and the vice-chancellor has also agreed that, if it is approved by Tom Hurndall's parents, he would be more than happy to create a memorial to him and has told us that if we can find a company which provide ethical vending machines he will immediately replace the coca-cola company vendors with them. Finally, he has assured as that the university has no financial links with any Israeli organisations and has provided us with a full list of the universities investments that we are in the process of researching. Although the VC responded reluctantly to our demands concerning specific scholarships for Palestinians and on building links in Palestine, after our actions we have received a message of appreciation from a student in the West Bank. Therefore, there these demands will have to be realised through our own actions. Finally, John Brooke, our VC, demonstrated his solidarity with the Palestinians by accompanying our group on a nightly vigil to remember the dead of Gaza.

Following from our actions, staff organised an anti-war teach in which took place a few weeks later, seminars on NATO and Western sponsored wars in Africa are in the planning stages.

For more information and list of demands visit: http://mmuoccupation.blogspot.com/