Student Delegation for Gaza

On Monday May 25th, a group of students from Cairo attempted to enter
the Gaza border to deliver aid. Unfortunately, thus far, all of our efforts to enter have
been stopped by Egyptian authorities.

The student delegation from Cairo has been planning to meet with numerous
other delegations from around the globe. Each group has medical aid
and supplies, sports equipment for children and monetary donations.

The Egyptian authorities have been completely aware of everyone
attending and everything that we are carrying. All members attending
were told that they were given full clearance to enter Gaza. However,
now at the border, they suddenly refuse. We are being either blocked
from entering or even turned back at checkpoints before the border
itself.

Knowing that our efforts are supported worldwide, we are compelled to
reach out to all media outlets within and without Cairo, Egypt.

For more information
www.twitter.com/studentsforgaza

A Letter of Solidarty from Barcelona for April 6th

Dear Students in Egypt,

I am writing from the Barcelona student movement against the implementation of the Bologna Process, representing the International Commission of the CAE (Student Assembly Co-ordinator for the assemblies of the four Public Universities of Barcelona), to demonstrate our solidarity with your resistance and struggle.

We have received news of the arrests, violence and intimidation which have taken place in Egypt these last few days and we are disgusted with the actions of the undemocratic Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak and his government. In contrast, we can only be impressed by the organization and bravery of the student movements in the face of such desperate repression. We believe that, as students, whether in Ain Shams or the Universitat de Barcelona, we have the responsibility to act as a spearhead in the fight for social justice and true democracy and therefore we applaud the strength and optimism of your actions.

Although nowhere close to that seen in Egypt, we have recently also suffered police repression (despite the democratically elected leftist-coalition government of our country). Following four months of student occupation, the rectorate of the largest and oldest university in the city, Universitat de Barcelona, was evicted by riot police at 5.30am 18^th March 2009, with 53 people sleeping inside. That day there were different rallies and demonstrations of thousands in solidarity with the students, and a lot of conflict with the police who charged on students sitting in the road and, later, charged indiscriminately in the old town, beating students, clearly-marked journalists, tourists, the elderly and even a 10 year-old boy. Like you, we believe that this level of violence and intimidation on behalf of the government's mercenaries belies the state's fear of our growing strength and influence. Despite the brutality of the repression, we continue to organize and mobilize ourselves. Doing this we take inspiration, in part, from movements such as yours, where, despite the dangers, the pro-democratic movements persevere and don't retreat.

We wish to state our particular condemnation of the student arrests and we hope that those detained are freed as soon as possible. We too believe that the detention of activists and bloggers is a denial of our fundamental right to criticize government, not to mention that we believe the torture and violence which occurs inside Egyptian prisons and police stations should be condemned, not supported, by the state. We support the imprisoned students and we are willing to petition our embassy and/or diplomats regarding their release and safety, perhaps you could give us some useful information regarding carrying this out?

Finally, we wish to state that our movements, and those of other student groups worldwide, have many things in common, and therefore it is important for us to unite and strengthen our struggles. Therefore, we urge you to create an international commission as part of your movement to help us connect with your struggle and receive direct news of events in Egypt. You can view our webpage (with news in Catalan, Spanish and English) here:

http://interuni-bcn.blogspot.com/

Yours in solidarity,

Comisión Internacional de la CA

Students at the University of Barcelona

The 118 day occupation in Barcelona, fighting the Bologna process, was evicted last week.  Establishing their own "Comision Internacional" they are calling for more communication internationally, especially in Europe were these reforms are affecting academia, changing and cramming curricula in various ways.  The eviction was itself quite violent.  Unfortunately it's not the first time police brutality finds its point of application on students challenging the accords.  Nevertheless, the eviction can be witnessed here.  They are continuing their protests and as well are participating in the Global Week of Action. 

Algerian Students Fight For Their Future

For 24 hours a day, students have been camped outside of the Algerian Embassy for weeks. While some students do occasionally leave they always return. There is always a crowd sitting on the sidewalks.

Yesterday, I spoke with a few of them and they explained their strike to me. Shaharazad and a a of her friends conveyed their frustration. The Algerian government has decided that they will not accept the diplomas that they receive from their university, meaning that the diplomas will not be useful for them once they return to Algeria to find work. Shaharazad also shared that if the Algerian government does not accept the diplomas then none of the students will know what to do with their futures. We all continued to talk about education, problems of the government, and about ourselves. Tea was shared, music was played, and pictures were viewed. Some of the pictures were incredibly moving. Some of the demonstrators have gone on hunger strikes as well, incurring a few students to be rushed to hospitals. Nevertheless, those students currently recovering will be back demonstrating soon.

These students are determined to be heard by their government. To show your support, until their diplomas are recognized in Algeria, please go to the Algerian embassy (Ismail Mohammed, Zamalek). Our conversations were a mix of Arabic, English and French, so don’t worry about problems with communication. They can be overcome.

The Daily News Egypt has also written a piece on the struggle of the Algerian students. Read it for more information on what has previously happened.

Videos on the Vanguard

Student activists in Hamburg made a lovely video for the coming Global Week of Action. Please watch and spread the word.
Check it out on Youtube.

There is also a video of the recent protest in the Philippines and another video of the one in London.

The Global Struggle

"In light of global financial insecurity, more and more people ask themselves: Is the public education system still serving the interests of the public, or is the focus shifting to implement education systems that primarily serve
private and business interest? How will I afford college for my children? How will I ever pay off all the student loans? How much more will fees increase?

In continuation with the International Students Movement's November 5 day of action, countries around the globe are celebrating a week of action. During the week of April 20-29 students, teachers, and citizens around the world are uniting to reclaim education from the grip of commercialization and neoliberal policies.

For more information, check www.emancipating-education-for-all.org