SEVERAL universities were being occupied yesterday, on the eve of today’s National Day of Action against the introduction of £9,000-a-year tuition fees and the abolition of Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA).
Hundreds of thousands of students are expected to take part in today’s action, with demonstrations, walk-outs, rallies and pickets in towns and cities across the country.
Students at SOAS (the School of Oriental and African Studies) in central London began an occupation on Monday.
At a lunchtime rally yesterday, Sandy Nicholl from Unison said that staff were ‘100 per cent’ behind the students.
He said: ‘Money is being fed to bankers left, right and centre.
‘Education should be for everyone. Enough is enough!’
Clare Solomon, University of London Union, said students, lecturers and support staff would not put up with the ‘atrocious attacks’ on education.
She said young people were being constantly hounded and told ‘don’t wear hoods’ and ‘don’t play music’.
She added that ‘tomorrow, they are going to be walking out of their schools’ to defend education.
‘We don’t want an education system just for the needs of the market. Education is a benefit to the whole of society,’ said Solomon.
‘Millions and millions of people are behind us.’
Another student addressed the rally, saying: ‘Through this occupation we’re sending out a message that education is a right, not a privilege.
‘Other universities have started to occupy and this is happening all over the UK and this movement is going to grow and grow.’
Omar Zaki told News Line: ‘I support the occupation. We believe it can be an example and then a driving force to show our management that we are against these cuts and we won’t accept these cuts.
‘Education should be free, just like health care. In the words of Nelson Mandela, education is the most powerful weapon we have.’
Walaa Quisay said: ‘I definitely support abolishing all fees.
‘I’m an international student and we have to pay £12,600 a year.
‘I think the occupation in itself is a good thing because it’s part of a whole movement.’
Rose Wilde said: ‘We’re occupying because we’ve been involved with the fight against cuts and there’s a strong feeling of frustration that it’s hitting our school so hard in particular, because we will be seeing 100 per cent of our teaching budget cut.
‘And what is happening for the next generation of students is even worse.’
Greg Sanders said: ‘I don’t agree at all with taking away funding for arts and humanities.
‘It means only things they think are going to be profitable will get funded.
‘It would mean that SOAS and institutions like it would die, which would be a tragedy.
‘I think that the NUS should be fighting for the abolition of fees and the return of grants. All of that would be brilliant.’
‘I think students want to be seen and be active,’ said Maria-Andrea Garcia. ‘They want to demand their rights.’
Students campaigning outside nearby King’s College said they were also opposed to fees and education cuts.