Adelaide Student Politics

Posted June 9th

The title is a direct quote from the reaction of an (international student) friend of mine to the article in this mornings Advertiser. What has been written, the validity of which has been confirmed to me by sources within the union, will no doubt cause much questioning on the topic amoung the 5000 international students at the University of Adelaide. It describes how the recently revitalized Australia First Party distributed leaflets outside the North Terrace campus calling for an end to the 'international student rort', the first stanza of which was printed in the Advertiser. I am told the second stanza (not printed in the 'tiser) blamed international students for the financial crisis, or something similarly farcical.

So, I'd like to know why the Australia First Party believed they could stand outside a Group of 8 university (a supposed seat of reason and enlightment?) and distribute this racist garbage. I'd like to know how this happened last month, and I'm only hearing about it now. I'd like to know why those who were distributing the leaflets were not either laughed off North Terrace, or set upon by an angry mob (not that I'm inciting violence, only speculating). I'd like to know whether or not their action qualifies as defamation, and the OSA/International Student Centre can take them to court on the matter (unlikely I know, but boy would it make me feel better).

Let me set a few facts straight (I hope very few of my readers will need to be told this). International students subsidize the education of local students. I do not see what commonly understood definition of a 'rort' one must employ in order to see the prescence of international students at our campus as one. To pay for our education, international student fees were increased at the beginning of this year. Issues with the integration of international students into the university (both academically and socially) was one of the few things the university was criticized on in the previous AUQA report. This suggests that far from getting an easy ride, international students are one of the groups most disadvantages within our university. The same issue of the Advertiser alledges that international students are more likely to be plagiarists (although the article is rather scant on evidence), and documents their issues with finding appropriate accomodation. Both articles suggest the current system of dealing with international students (whether the english requirements or with regards to avaliable accomodation) is not working.

To fit this into a broader national pattern, which the Australia First Party is no doubt wishing to capitalize on, Indian students in Victoria have been recently the targets of what appears to be race-related violence. Demonstrations by the state's several thousand students have taken place (see here for what NUS says on the issue). Julia Gillard has announced a roundtable on international student issues in response to the unrest, for which NUS already has a stack of (in my opinion optimistic) recommendations. This has recieved significant worldwide media attention, not only in India. See here for todays latest. Luckily, South Australia is not currently facing the same issues as Victoria (and New South Wales). No thanks to propoganda from fringe nationalist parties.

Here's to hoping the divisive campaign doesn't resurface.

*One more link (sorry, but it's good): International Students through the ages*