The Function of a Students' Association

I find myself in the position of dubious honour of agreeing with our president up to a point. The motions such as the German industrialist one or the Cambodia/Vietnam one which are passed with regular monotony at SRCs are not the sort of thing a Students' association should have any policy on. Tees is on the right track but, as usual, he gets his argument all mixed up.

What is this associaiton? Is it a political party? Or a Ministry of Foreign Affairs? Or a trade union? Or a Ministry of Energy. It is none of these things, rather it is (or should be) a welfare organization looking after the interests of students As Students. Such things as bursaries library problems, lecturer training. Not which side is right in some far away war, or whether the Government should be looking at the use of illegal drugs to solve our energy problems. I fail to see the connection between China's invasion of Vietnam and New Zealand university students.

Another head-in-the-sand type I hear [unclear: you] On the contrary, we should all be interested is going on in the world around us, and [unclear: theity] of ways the association can stimulate [unclear: int] out going to the unnecessary step of having these matters. I believe forums are a very [unclear: g] and we should have more of them, with say of association members with strong view [unclear: on ticular] subject putting both sides of the [unclear: ar] and then anyone having the right to [unclear: qucst] have his say on the matter.

This newspaper is a very good way to [unclear: stil] interest and discussion on what is [unclear: happenitf] world. We get some good articles in these [unclear: fl] and I would hope that if the editor recieved [unclear: cles] offering differing points of [unclear: vievy], [unclear: blish] them both. I would also have hoped [unclear: thre] tides expressing a different opinion to that [unclear: a] editor would recieve better treatment than Telford's article on punk did. It is the [unclear: edial] to make sure that stories that art printed [unclear: hv] grammatical mistakes in them, and not just [unclear: C] them there to make the author look stupid, [unclear: I] letters column of Salient also provides an [unclear: are] discussion, of course.

If you really have some misguided idea [unclear: the] Germans are taking over, join an environment or form an Anti German Industrialist Action [unclear: a] (as long as it does not receive any funds association) and organize protests through [unclear: tin] those really worried will still take part in the but there is no need for the association to [unclear: has licy].

This type of motion is a complete waste [unclear: o] anyway, aside from being a waste of money [unclear: he] asked in one SRC, who is going to convey [unclear: our licies] to the world? I am sure Jua Guofeng [unclear: as] Xiaoping did not have an emergency meeting out their next step after being condemned by to withdraw rather than incur the wrath of [unclear: V] They probably have not even heard of [unclear: Victo][unclear: versity].

I think it is worth repeating Aesop's little that I told in a letter last year. It is called "[unclear: TI] and the Bull".

One day a fly landed on the horn of a bull rested there for a while and then said to the [unclear: be] "Do you mind if I leave now?" The bull [unclear: repfi] "It's all the same to me. I didn't see you [unclear: co] I won't know when you leave."

The moral is that we are sometimes more [unclear: important] in our own eyes, than in the eyes of [unclear: the] This is certainly true of those who like to play time politicians and insist on these motions.

And now to the question of SRC. Is it [unclear: realy] democratic that 100 or 50 people should [unclear: decided] policy for 6000 students? Is the result really [unclear: representative]? I doubt it. Students have shown they don't want this type of motion by [unclear: elecar] Tees President. They would have read his [unclear: mfffesto] (this name is part of the game of big time politics — it makes me laugh) and, not knowing what he is like, voted for him. I am sure that [unclear: it] a suitable referendum question could be [unclear: work] out, there would be a massive rejection of this sort of policy at SRC.

It is argued that the fault in SRCs can be [unclear: sily] fixed by having everyone come along. The very reason they do not come is because of [unclear: tfl] type of motions at SRC wastes most of its [unclear: tnfl] on. They cannot be bothered listening to the [unclear: politicos] arguing it out. To boost attendences at SCR we have got to discuss things that are [unclear: more] relevant to the students' association.

Is SRC really democratic when the vote [unclear: ai] be changed, as it was last year, by people moving out of the room, and some more coming in? I say no, and I think this incident is a good illustration of the undemocratic nature of SRC No, I would not wish to see the Executive making policy, I would simply like us not to have this sort of policy in the first place.