The need for student autonomy
Universities should be a safe place to exercise important critical thinking rather than simply accepting ideas.
WHILE pursuing my higher education here at Newcastle University, United Kingdom, I also won the elected role of Ethnic Diversity Officer at the Students’ Union, an equivalent of Malaysia’s student representative body (MPP, Majlis Perwakilan Pelajar).
I was responsible for representing the interests of all ethnically diverse students at Newcastle University for the past year, ranging from organising community events to holding roundtable discussions on opposing racism.
With an impending mayoral election for the surrounding region, my union joined hands with other nearby universities’ students’ unions to host a student manifesto debate among the candidates.
Newcastle University’s Students’ Union also participated in the mayoral hustings, organised by an alliance of churches, mosques, schools, charities and trade union branches.
These recent activities have left me frustrated at the hindrance placed on students’ potential by Malaysia’s Universities and University College Act 1971 (Auku), particularly on community organising. Auku was introduced to provide a legal framework for regulating student activities and organisations within higher education institutions.
Despite seven amendments since its inception, the Act has consistently vested authoritative powers in the university’s governing body which restricts activities.
Take for example the most recent amendment passed on April 2, which allows MPPS to open bank accounts. However, they are still required to obtain a letter from the university to do so.
This creates uncertainty as the university management has the power to deny providing such a letter or can create unfair rules which infringe on students’ ability to manage the account.
I recall when Universiti Malaya had allegedly frustrated attempts by its student union, Mahasiswa Universiti Malaya (KMUM), to organise a debate between then-opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and now former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak in 2022. Anwar was also barred from entering UM to speak at an event and students were warned against attending the event, with the administration threatening disciplinary action.
Students have truly missed out on an opportunity to engage with their representatives.
At the student manifesto debate organised by us at Newcastle, all unions had the opportunity to bring forward key student concerns to the mayoral election candidates in front of around 100 students.
The key concerns identified were a result of campaign priorities and months of engagement with students, and had been narrowed down to the cost of living, transport, and housing.
We also secured commitments from the mayoral candidates that they will work on specific aspects of each issue if elected into office.
Universities should be a safe place to exercise important critical thinking rather than simply accepting ideas, and engagement activities with policymakers like the one we had exemplify that.
They also allow a student union to be truly of the students, by the students and for the students, securing commitments that will contribute to the betterment of student welfare.
Some will point out that Section 15(2)(c) of Auku, which had previously banned students from taking part in activities organised by political parties within the grounds of universities and colleges, was removed in 2018.
However, as noted by multiple student organisations, the amendment still maintains the power of the vice-chancellor to suspend or dissolve any group conducting affairs that may “jeopardise” the university’s interests and harmony.
This harks back to the point that most, if not all amendments thus far still allow room for universities’ administrations to swoop in with an iron fist and curtail political engagement.
Further exacerbating this is the fact that political appointments to university boards are extremely common. As recently as 2021, the then-perikatan Nasional government appointed at least 13 individuals linked to the coalition to the boards of directors or the boards of governors of public universities.
As long as repressive laws exist, distrust towards university students will remain. We need to move towards the total abolishment of Auku.
There will be detractors who say that granting university students, particularly MPPS, autonomy will be disastrous.
Despite no equivalent of Auku here in the UK, are student unions like the one I am at completely independent and free to cause havoc? Hardly, as we operate as a charity guarded by charity laws.
Our work requires a huge amount of synergy between the Officer and the University, and I believe that has been essential in building my leadership experience.
For example, I pushed for my student union to call for a ceasefire in Gaza, a term the UK government has refused to use till today. It was a test of diplomacy and tact to realise this, requiring engagements with key union stakeholders and several rounds of rewording.
Providing autonomy to students can serve to rejuvenate interest in political discussions among students. According to a study conducted in 2022 by the Institute for Youth Research Malaysia, discussions on politics, nationhood and democracy fell from 47.63 to 47.34.
After the mayoral debate on the student manifesto, I reflected that the best way to make politics less boring is to translate it into daily issues. But first, a proper platform needs to be accorded.
Pockets of the public have recently expressed distrust towards national higher education institutions, with many regarding students as neither critical nor clear thinkers.
I believe that the current environment has not allowed students to bloom to their full potential.
We cannot blame students for being apathetic to politics when they have never been given the space to engage with politics. The more restrictions are placed on political activities, the more students are convinced politics is dirty and merely a power play.
I call for members of the Pakatan Harapan-led government who were victims of Auku, directly (like Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Adam Adli) or indirectly (Anwar) to work towards the abolishment of Auku during their tenure.
We should also ask politicians to commit to not interfering in the administration of universities and ensure meritocracy prevails by appointing competent and visionary academics to top university positions.
As a “foreigner” in a student union role here in the UK, I would like to encourage students to be political and care about policies as we are a social force that brings about tangible changes, and it will surely enrich your university life.
We need to restore trust towards university students and their leadership.