Emma Burnett
The 24/25 Student Union Election results night was held in Mooch on the 15th March, where the results of two referenda were announced.
The first referendum was ‘Should the Students’ Union implement the motion ‘Cops off campus’?’.
Turnout: 1,416 voters
Yes – 690
No – 642
With a majority ‘Yes’ outcome the referendum passed. The motion opposed the University’s recruitment of one police officer and one police community support officer to work on the University Park campus.
It declared that there was a lack of consultation of students and consideration of the impact on marginalized groups, and stated that having police on campus ‘contradicts the SU’s stances to protect and stand for marginalized students more likely to be the targets of police violence and discrimination, including students of colour, working-class students, and female students.’
It also stated that ‘the Students’ Union must make a statement to oppose University neglect and the deliberate disregard of our consultation’ and ‘should actively be anti-police and armed-forces bigotry and actively show support and solidarity for minorities affected by police violence, armed forces and oppression’.
The next referendum was ‘Should the Students’ Union implement the motion ‘End University of Nottingham Complicity in Israeli War Crimes’?’.
Turnout: 2,392 voters
Yes – 1,940
No – 340
Spoilt -112
With 1,940 votes for ‘Yes’ the motion passed. With a voter turnout of 2,392 voters, this motion had the highest number of votes in the entire election, surpassing the total votes for each of the candidates.
The motion proposes that, as an educational institution, the University of Nottingham has a responsibility to speak out against the actions of Israel against Palestine.
It also states that ‘the UK government continues to support Israel and the University continues to take a ‘neutral stance’, but there is no real neutrality; remaining complacent has already enabled the latest explosions of prolific killings and bombings that will inevitably end in an erasure of Palestine.’
The motion calls for the dropping of all investments linked to Israel within the University and the Students’ Union. It also calls for the provision of ‘meaningful support’ to Palestinian students, including the Students’ Union campaign funding and support to groups organising around the cause for Palestinian liberation.
The motion lobbies for UoN to drop partners such as Rolls Royce and BAE Systems, stating that they are ‘actively enabling Israel to commit war crime’. The motion was signed by Left Society, Marxists Society, Jordanian Society, Students for Palestine and People of Colour in Engineering.
Emma Burnett
Featured image courtesy of Benjamin Cheng via Unsplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.
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