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Salient. Victoria University Student Newspaper. Vol. 37, No. 7. April, 17 1974

Student politics alive and well at AGM

page 5

Student politics alive and well at AGM

About 90 people turned up to the Students' Association A.G.M. on Tuesday April 9th. The report of last year's treasurer, Byron Cullen, stirred the meeting into life. The fact that neither Cullen nor the accounts were present produced general hostility. Various methods were put forward of making sure that treasurers were in future present at the A.G.M. with the accounts. Eventually it was decided that a motion of no confidence would be passed and something would be done to ensure that the treasurer would be present at the next A.G.M. Local Aesop Mike Law told the meeting that there was a moral to this story—"this is what to expect if you elect right-wing Christians to positions of office."

Office Boy to Life Member.....

Gyles Beckford presented a petition with seventy-five signatures requesting that Graeme Collins be made a life member at the Association. This was passed unanimously by the meeting with sustained applause. Graeme, who arrived at Vic sometime in the middle nineteen sixties, started on his path to glory by being Salient office boy. Since then at one time or another he has done every other job on Salient, even editing a few issues. He has held a number of Exec. positions and was president in 1971. While in these positions, he actually worked! Graeme has also worked on just about every committee around the place and has given years of service as a student rep on Prof. Board and Council. In addition to his positive contribution to student welfare, Graeme has worked tirelessly in a wide range of progressive political organisations. All this (and more) while completing a law degree.

Change in Constitution

A number of constitutional changes were put forward. The first was proposed by David Cunningham and asked that his Executive position, N.Z.U.S.A. liason officer, be abolished. This was eventually passed with the amendment that this motion come into effect in 1975. David also proposed that an accomodation officer be added to the Exec.; this was carried. Thirdly, he proposed that a new position be created to co-ordinate S.R.C. representatives. He thought that the present S.R.C. system was useless and that an appointment of someone responsible for making it work would be a great step forward. Objections to this were that the new officer would have no power and would be an unnecessary member of Exec. However, the motion was eventually carried.

Graeme Collins trying to think of something to say

Graeme Collins trying to think of something to say

The aim of constitutional changes in election procedure was to make student elections less of a farce than they have been in past years. Before this A.G.M. if there was only one candidate for an Executive position that person was declared elected and there was no ballot. This situation in no way gauged student feeling for the candidate and produced a mandate by default. A motion was passed which now requires every candidate to be included in the ballot. This means that if unopposed candidates receive more than 50% 'no' votes they do not get in.

Abolish Capping?

One issue close to the hearts of the silent majority is capping. A motion which would have re-allocated the budgeted money for capping was withdrawn after a speaker asked the meeting to consider the need for a balance between political and social aims of the Association. By abolishing capping week, he said, a further distance would result between the main student body and their representatives. Executive members said that no interest in running capping was shown at the last SRC. The people who had been shouting that capping week should go ahead eventually formed a committee and mumbled 'well, at least we might have a look and see what could be done'. $300 has been allocated for capping.

Solidarity—Pensioners and Students

The trend towards students showing responsibility for other sections of the community was seen at the AGM. A motion from Colin Feslier 'that VUWSA donate $200 to the Wellington Pensioners and Beneficiaries Association and write to them assuring them of our support' was passed unanimously.

Unhealthy, Fatty....

What else but cafe food! Again the complaints about the lack of variety, the absence of nutritional value and the high prices were voiced and each time louder. However, the situation is not simple exploitation of the poor student by the capitalist caterers, as various members of the catering committee explained. There are high labour costs, made even higher by the need to employ labour to clear away the filthy mess left by the students. Full staff numbers have to be kept up even during the stack periods.

Although vegetarian meals have been clamoured for, when they were actually provided, they proved to be one of the slowest moving items. It was agreed that some balance must be maintained and that less pastry and cakes be supplied to allow for more fruit and vegetables.

No-confidence Vote

Last of the formal motions was a vote of no confidence in the position of Deputy Managing Secretary of the V.U. Building. This motion was carried.

Privileges for Some

Don Carson, the Association's Sports Officer moved that the Association should make a definite stand over the proposed leasing of the new cricket pavilion. At the moment $22,000 of student and university money has been lent to the cricket, soccer and hockey clubs to enable them to have the right to lease the top half of the pavilion. The terms of the lease, according to the Wellington City Council, are that only club members and no others,—student or non-student, can use the facilities. The situation is especially strained because the student membership in this year's cricket club is twenty. The motion was passed which prohibits any lease being signed which allows only hockey and cricket club members the use of the facilities.

Support for Kindergarten Teachers

The final motion from the floor called for students to support the claim by Kindergarten Trainee Teachers for an allowance equal to Primary School Trainees. It was carried unanimously.

Will you fight now or wait for this

Will you fight now or wait for this

One year after

Last week we commemorated the anniversary of Lenin's birth. But we neglected another important anniversary. The date of the calling off of the 1973 Springbok Rugby tour of New Zealand. Here is the text of a pamphlet prepared by the National Anti-Apartheid Committee for the occasion.

On April 10, 1973—a year ago today—the Government informed the New Zealand Rugby Football Union that the scheduled 1973 springboks tour would have to be abandoned until such time as the South Africans were able to select their team on merit

What has happened in the year since the Springboks tour was cancelled?

Government

Government for its part has been consistent in upholding the Olympic principles of non-discrimination in sport. As a result no racially selected team has been allowed Into New Zealand over the past year. But while Government will not permit racially selected teams to enter New Zealand and flaunt apartheid under our noses, Mr Kirk has made it clear that Government is not prepared to prevent New Zealand teams travelling abroad to compete against South African teams. Government is however firmly opposed to this contact, and invariably communicates its opposition and its concern to the sporting bodies concerned.

Sports Bodies

In the past year a number of New Zealand sporting bodies have sent teams to compete in South Africa. These include squash, surf lifesaving, womens hockey, trampoline and a club rugby team. In the coming three years a large number of New Zealand sporting bodies will seriously consider competing against South Africa. These include womens hockey, squash, rugby, Softball (mens and womens), golf, bowls, netball, tennis and others. By going to South Africa, these teams are helping to undo much of the good work achieved by the abandonment of the Springboks rugby tour.

By competing against South Africa these sports bodies are defying both international opinion and their own Government. They are behaving in an arrogant and a selfish manner. They are taking decisions which will reflect badly upon their own nation, and which will give aid and support to those attempting to ensure the continuation of white domination and control in South Africa.

Before deciding against racist South African teams. New Zealand sporting bodies should look carefully at the behaviour of their Australian counterparts. Faced with similar situations, in the past few weeks two Australian sporting bodies (tennis and squash) have decided against touring South Africa because of the opposition of the Australian Government.

Racists desperate for NZ support

Our sporting bodies should realise that white South Africa is looking to them for their aid and support now more than ever before. It is no good our sporting administrators saying "we are not important sports", or "we will only send a club team" South African racists need them all. Take the recent Petone club tour for example: Their baggage manager, Mr Johannes du Plessis summed it up when he said (Dominion 2.3.74): "South Africans feel very badly about the cancellation of last year's tour. Petone's tour is more than just a club tour. We must, and do, treat them as internationals. They are making up for the loss of the Springboks rugby tour of New Zealand."

Heart shaped graphic

Oppression in South Africa increasing

Some people maintain that the situation is improving in South Africa. Take Andy Leslie; he was captain of the Petone rugby team on their recent South African tour. When he arrived back in New Zealand he told reporters (Dominion 28.3.74):

"I was surprised at the lack of apartheid in South Africa. We were told it was everywhere. We saw virtually none of it."

Apparently he failed to notice, among other things, that every team he played against had been selected according to the principles of apartheid!

Oppression inside South Africa is increasing, not diminishing. Just consider the following:

Under new legislation introduced this year it will be possible for the South African authorities to punish non-racial sports body who make representations to international sports bodies for membership.

Last year Mr Hassa Howa, Chairman of the non-racial cricket body had his passport removed in order to prevent him from travelling to London to put the case of his association before the Imperial Cricket Conference. Furthermore, Mr Morgan Naidoo, Secretary of the non-racial swimming association was slapped with a banning order after the racist swimming body had been expelled from the international swimming body.

Even Graeme Thorne, the ex-All Black who has recently returned from South Africa had to admit that "It is going to take an awful lot to persuade South African whites to pack down in the same scrum with blacks."

No one should believe that by playing non-White South African sides any improvements are likely to come about. Hassa Howa is very clear on this:

"Matches between visiting sports teams and non-white South African sides are a lot of rubbish and nothing but window dressing. That sort of thing does not help non-white sportsmen, When people understand about apartheid, and what is happening in this country, they won't play sport against South Africa. It only condones apartheid. I agree with the stand taken by Hart and Care. We sing the same song.