|
|
Recent articles by comrades from Athens Indymedia
This author has not submitted any other articles.
Recent Articles about Greece / Turkey / Cyprus EducationΓια τις εκπαι&#... Jun 11 22 Άμεση απόσυρ ... Feb 25 21 Για την νέα εκ&... Feb 03 21 Solidarity with the Greek university students greece / turkey / cyprus |
education |
press release
 Wednesday June 07, 2006 12:59 by comrades from Athens Indymedia
 What's going on in the Greek univeristies This is a translated press release about the current univeristy occupation movement all acroos Greece. It doesn't reflect so much the anarchist ideas but is it out and beyond the control of left-stalinist or other parties. During the last 3 weeks there is quite some unrest in Greek universities. At the moment more than 180 university departments are occupied by the students. On Thursday 25/5 8.000 students demonstrated in a big protest march in the center of Athens. This unrest is triggered by the reform of higher education proposed by the Ministry of Education. The proposed reform of Greek higher education has 3 pillars: 1. The change in the legislation that regulates university education. This change serves the purpose of transforming the universities into profit-making institutions. The reformed universities will also be more authoritarian for students. According to the proposed changes every student will have the right to fail only up to 2 times in every course and to finish his studies within n+2 years of studying (until now it is unrestricted). Managing directors and financial managers will take over the administration of universities. Free supplying of compulsory course books will be abolished, social assistance to poor students will be cut down and the students¢ participation in the representative boards of the university will be restricted. A major consequence of this will be that young people from the low-income class will be practically excluded from university education. Moreover, the institution of "University Asylum" (the institution that establishes the right of unrestricted expression and exchange of political views and actions within the borders of the university campuses, including the restriction of police access to the Universities) will be practically abolished. 2. The revision of article 16 of the Greek Constitution that establishes the right of every citizen for free, public education. Therefore, private commercial universities will be established and private vocational training institutions will be officially recognized by the state. 3. The revitalization of previous legislation regarding ICTS and university evaluation credits in order to introduce the model of "life-learning". The introduction of ICTS as well as the recognition of the 3-year bachelors from abroad will abolish the universal character of university degrees (and the relevant universal employment qualifications). In this way, every graduate will have his own ?individualized? degree without any negotiable power in the labour market. To give you an idea of the current situation in Greek higher education: The entry into Universities is done by nation-wide exams in 8 common compulsory subjects (and for some departments in a few choice subjects). There are no time or exam restrictions in studying. Study programs last 4 or 5 years. Students are allowed to pass their courses in whatever year they want and to study for as many years as they want. In practice, however, it¢s not their fault when they delay to graduate as failure rates in many exams can reach 80%. Higher education is free of charge. Students pay no study fees and they enjoy free supply of compulsory course books. Again, in practice the situation is different. As Greek students get no kind of "studiefinanciering" they have to finance themselves housing and living expenses (that have particularly increased the last years) as well as supplementary course material (as the free course books are usually of low quality in many cases). There is no such thing as ICTS or study credits; students have just to pass a number of compulsory and choice courses. Degrees are "universally equivalent" in the sense that every graduate gets a degree in Mathematics/Medicine/Language etc with his general grade on it. Nothing more is mentioned on the degree and nothing more is valid in the labour market. Officially, all graduates from the same department have the same qualifications for the labour market, which is quite rigid. In practice, however, the unemployment rates are very high and young people have many difficulties in finding even a badly paid job. Moreover, in Greece there are hardly any high-paid jobs. Many governments have attempted to reform the educational system by incorporating the EU directives. All attempts have failed due to the strong opposition of the students movement. Occupations of Universities and huge demonstrations cancelled all government political efforts to reform higher education in 1991, 1992, 1995, 1998 and 2001. In the Greek Universities, there is a long tradition of the students movement. Though less than in the ¡70s and ¡80s, a large number of students is interested in politics. There are organized students elections every year and the participation rates reach 70-80%. There is one students union in every department and assemblies are held a few times every year. Thus, a picture of hundreds of students in a hall debating on local and political issues is not uncommon for Greece. Occupations of universities and protest marches of thousands of students are the most usual actions for the students movement. Furthermore, since the early ¡90s the horizontal organizing of the movement has become rather dominant. Despite the fact the groups and organizations of the radical left are powerful in the movement, the assemblies and the open coordination meetings "calls the shots" in the movement. And these groups and organizations of the radical left have strongly supported this development and they take credit for it. This month, the government launched a campaign in order to promote the reform in higher education. Thus, specialized committees of "independent experts" published reports about the need for a reform in higher education. These reports, all of a sudden, coincide remarkably with the ideas of the Ministry of Education. As a reaction to this, student assemblies in most of the universities were called and occupations of most of the Greek universities were decided. The protest march of last Thursday was the second big students¢ demonstration in Athens. During the first one, about 10 days ago, clashes between the demonstrators and the riot police broke out. Further demos took place in several other Greek cities. After the last protest march about 1.000 students from all over the country met in a plenary coordination meeting in Athens and called for a continuation of the actions against the government policy. Contrary to the way the official workers trade unions handle the movement, the students do not get into any kind of bargaining or negotiations with the ministry of education. They demand the full withdrawal of all governmental proposals for higher education. They demand free public education for all young people. They also demand the government to secure the universal character of the degrees and take action to reduce unemployment for young people. It is important to stress that both the conservative government (party of "New Democracy") and the opposition party of the social-democrats (PASOK) support the proposed reforms. The actions of the students are not even supported by the Communist Party, which gets around 14% in the students¢ elections. The Communist Party is in favor of less radical actions (it¢s against occupations of universities and calls separate demos from the rest of the students). Politically-wise the driving force of the movement is the grass-roots radical left groups. However, there is such unrest among the students that even in departments where there is no radical left group (or it exists but it is powerless) the student assemblies vote in favor of the actions against the government. The next step in the movement is the protest marches on June 1rst in all the main cities of Greece. Moreover, the union of the scientific personnel of the Universities has called for an unlimited period strike as from June 1rst.
|
Front pageSupport Sudanese anarchists in exile Joint Statement of European Anarchist Organizations International anarchist call for solidarity: Earthquake in Turkey, Syria and Kurdistan Elements of Anarchist Theory and Strategy 19 de Julio: Cuando el pueblo se levanta, escribe la historia International anarchist solidarity against Turkish state repression Declaración Anarquista Internacional por el Primero de Mayo, 2022 Le vieux monde opprime les femmes et les minorités de genre. Leur force le détruira ! Against Militarism and War: For self-organised struggle and social revolution Declaração anarquista internacional sobre a pandemia da Covid-19 Anarchist Theory and History in Global Perspective Capitalism, Anti-Capitalism and Popular Organisation [Booklet] Reflexiones sobre la situación de Afganistán South Africa: Historic rupture or warring brothers again? Death or Renewal: Is the Climate Crisis the Final Crisis? Gleichheit und Freiheit stehen nicht zur Debatte! Contre la guerre au Kurdistan irakien, contre la traîtrise du PDK Meurtre de Clément Méric : l’enjeu politique du procès en appel |
make this your Anarkismo.net front page
printable version
Digg this
del.icio.us
Furl
Reddit
Technorati
Facebook
Twitter
|
View Comments Titles Only
save preference
Comments (2 of 2)
Jump To Comment: 1 2Hello,
there are two questions here: 1) Should the Greek State provide high quality university education for free to all?, [I think: YES] and 2) Should the Greek state forbid non-state institutions to offer high quality university education? [I think NO]
I presume we want some state control (even for Anarchists), but why total state control over everything??
Links for information on the page mentioned.
Dan Glass
USSU President
University of Sussex Student Union
Room 261
Falmer House
Falmer
Brighton
East Sussex
BN1 9QF
Email: president@ussu.sussex.ac.uk
Tel: 0044 (0) 1273 87 3350
Mobile: 0044 (0) 7717 811 747
05.09.2006
Dear comrades,
We hope you are well. We are writing from the University of Sussex Student Union, UK, to extend an invitation to work together on the ‘International Solidarity Federation.’ All the information is outlined below on the origins to the Federation and what it consists.
The main purpose of this letter is to ask for your involvement on the event as outlined below, on October the 4th 2006. It is a live video link up with students across the world who re fighting the evils in our society, war, privatization and capitalism. We are not looking to link with any particular regions, we have written to you for your involvment in the international solidarity movement. We would be extremely excited if you would like to take part in this revolutionary project.
On a technical note, the equipment you would need for the project launch on October the 4th is to have IP-capable videoconferencing. If this is not possible we can set up ISDN networking. We would also appreciate the time zone differences so that we can coordinate the event. As soon as we know the technical details and have a contact we can start organizing. If a live video link is not a possibility a pre-recorded message of solidarity would be extremely appreciated.
We greatly look forward to hearing from you; please do not hesitate to get in touch anytime.
In solidarity
Dan Glass
USSU President
Sophie Priestley
USSU Education Facilitator
The significance and magnitude of international student solidarityInternational solidarity is a critical part of our education. It bridges the gap between theory and reality and can benefit students in immeasurable ways, being able to apply some of what’s been learnt to a real situation, as opposed to it being left to fester somewhere between page and the imagination, ultimately being testament for people’s passion for proactiveness; not mere rhetoric. It distances ourselves from an education that actually makes people float even further away from the things they ought to know about. Today, armchair contemplation in Universities’ seems to actually obscure visions. We’ve perfected the art of getting it right on paper, but that has nothing to do with what is happening on the ground. The fact that today, millions of African youths still have no access to education. The fact that whilst students in Brighton drink bottled water in nice air-conditioned lecture halls, students in South Africa recover from the ravages of apartheid. The fact that 4000 miles across the world, not too far in our-ever compressed ‘global village’, hundreds of students in Iraq are being brutally beaten whilst protesting outside the British and American embassies at the destruction of their education opportunities, not to mention the brutal extinguishment of their families. The fact that whilst students sit here in England, in our comfortable, padded chairs, Palestinian students, young and old, have to battle through guns and checkpoints to even get to class- and once they are at school- not even knowing when they could leave. So, whether a student today is interested in international solidarity initiatives or not, whether you love multiculturalism or you hate it, one can never be blameless. We are already enmeshed in the process- we are not powerful enough or powerless enough to not be invested in the process. We are completely linked to how the world works. All our hands are dirty.Today, in 2006, the union is pioneering the importance of international solidarity. The situation for students in so many parts of the world is simply intolerable. Sussex students aim to forge links with students in many countries, including, South Africa, Palestine, Lebanon and Colombia, all facing oppression. However, this list is far from being comprehensive. Sussex aims to set the benchmark or international solidarity, by pushing the boat out and exposing its students to the actual realities such as the conflict in the Middle East and around the world that lurk behind the case studies we merely regurgitate in our written work. To move forward we must hone our devices and focus on real, practical strategies for change. The only concrete way that we can make sure that students across the world can maintain a decent education is by ventures such as the ‘International Solidarity Federation’ and the further initiatives aided by USSU workers. Through the birth of new national student networks, these links aim to translate to Universities all over the country- so others can forge links. Students must hold hands across the globe whilst governments spend millions and millions patrolling borders with nuclear weapons. Students must become impatient and reach for their alternatives, taking the situation of global education into student’s hands to determine their lives for themselves. It is ever more vital for local resistance movements to make international alliances; the significance and magnitude of globalizing resistance. It is now a time, more than ever, where our university really needs to be a microcosm of the world, which we are about to enter; for a challenging, inviting and socially and environmentally equitable society.
The International Solidarity FederationThe International Solidarity Federation is a grassroots initiative being established by the Student’s Union in 2006. It aims to pro-actively pioneer for student unions to give full support to the student liberation movement. The intention is to link with students resisting war and oppression all over the world. The Federation aims to be a profound and defiant move against the legacy of illegal wars that affect students in society today.The objective of the Federation is to raise awareness and provide practical support through financial aid, granted by the University. Financial aid would facilitate the higher education of students who may not otherwise have any such opportunity. As a classified ‘international’ university Sussex University should be proud to support practical international solidarity initiatives.Presently, several union workers are setting the groundwork for the Federation and are approaching the University proposing that both the Union and the University work strongly on such a project to set the national social agenda. The union workers are also co-ordinating with other student unions across the country to coordinate simultaneous campaigns.The union workers do not feel that it is our individual role to decide upon a particular University to partner with. That is for our members to decide, no one can claim to represent anyone else’ decision. We plan to have an open form within the first half of term where individuals and societies propose places upon which we can use any generous offers by the University to link with. This strategy can then be translated on a national level. Once concrete links are established between several Universities- the links can hopefully be readily translated. The strength of multiple institutions linking in solidarity and to provide alternative sources for education will be immense.The launch to the Federation is planned for October the 4th. The proposed structure is to have a live video link-up with students from Lebanon, Palestine, South Africa, Israel and Colombia. This would be a prime opportunity for real visible solidarity, for students to state the issues, which affect them in their respective countries and their proposals for solidarity and for change. The event would provide a launch pad for a working group to lay the groundwork with the University and campaign for support until the end of November. A motion will go to the Union General Meeting for the union to legitimately support the Federation both morally, through publicity and networking and if necessary, financially.Through mutual aid and cooperation we really can make a difference; both on a local level and through working as a collective for real, progressive social change. Students have been the nucleus for change; we have the consciousness and the energy for great things.