Posted on 04/14/2010 6:24:48 AM PDT by Ebenezer
A student assembly of the University of Puerto Rico Río Piedras campus approved Tuesday a 48 hour stoppage that will evolve into a full blown student strike “if no progress is made” in the negotiations between the University’s Board of Trustees and the appointed students’ negotiating committee.
After a heated but orderly debate over the actions the student body should take regarding the budget cuts, the elimination and/or limitation of the tuition waiver program and the possibility of service privatization, the more than 2,100 student assembly decided to stop university operations for two consecutive days — April 21-22.
“I’m hopeful that negotiations will be fruitful so the strike won’t be necessary. But if that is not the case, we will be at the [University’s] gates,” said General Student Council (GSC) president Gabriel Laborde. Even though the students’ resolution for the stoppage was approved by the assembly in a three to one proportion, the stoppage, as well as the strike, was conditioned. To guarantee a successful interruption of all university activities the students conditioned the continuation of the stoppage by requiring a minimum number of people blocking the entrances to the campus during the two day event.
“If we want to be effective and successful with this stoppage we have to guarantee that at least 30 students will be at each gate,” argued one of the students in favor of the stoppage.
“It’s easy to say ‘let’s go and stop the University.’ It’s a different story when you are actually trying to stop everybody from going in,” she added.
Another of the students’ concerns was the date the stoppage must be scheduled. Initially, the stoppage had been proposed Wednesday (today) and Thursday this week. But a majority of the students argued in favor of changing the date for the same two days next week to avoid being accused of using the stoppage as an excuse to go partying this next weekend since the Inter Collegiate Athletic Competitions – Puerto Rico’s biggest athletic competition – are taking place.
After hearing arguments in favor of and against the amendments to the stoppage resolution, the amendments were included as part of the resolution and it was finally approved around 4:15 p.m. Tuesday — almost five hours after the assembly had been called to order. On the other hand, while the student strike was presented as a mechanism to guarantee some leverage to the students’ negotiating committee — some argued that the Board of Trustees would merely hear the students’ demands and take no action without the possibility of a strike affecting the end of the semester — many considered it be the ultimate purpose, with the stoppage being its preamble. The strike is to take place only if there is no progress in the negotiations between the students and the Board of Trustees. What would be considered as “progress” was not defined or included in the students’ resolution.
Luis Marrero, a pedagogy student running for the Academic Senate, explained that after the negotiations, which are expected to culminate during the two day stoppage, the committee will convene and determine if any progress was made.
“If the committee decides there was no progress, then the strike will be declared,” Marrero said.
“There will be no need to call for a confirmation vote on the strike,” he added.
Even though the resolution approved calls for an immediate indefinite strike, almost every student questioned on the subject anticipated the strike would be call for Monday, April 26.
Mixed signs from UPR president
UPR president José Ramón De la Torre, for his part, reiterated he is open for dialogue.
“I’ve always been open for dialogue with the students and any other member of the University,” said De la Torre in a press conference Tuesday afternoon.
“I only oppose confrontation because it leads to violence, and violence is harmful to the academic environment,” he added while lauding the students’ assembly as an example of democracy and true academic discipline.
Still, De la Torre did not commit to the students’ demands saying it is the Board of Trustees who has the final word in the matter.
“I can only present our recommendations, as well as the students concerns, to the Board but it is their prerogative to accept them or not,” he said.
“Whatever they decide, will be,” succinctly said the UPR president.
De la Torre also expressed his hopes in a change of heart in the students.
“I hope there will be a change of opinion by next week, so this situation is avoided … To prevent some 61,000 students from going to class because a few hundred people don’t want to, it doesn’t seem right to me,” he said.
About the measures the university administration will be taking to guarantee the Río Piedras campus will not be affected by the stoppage Interim Chancellor Ana Guadalupe said she will begin negotiations with the students to guarantee that all essential operations will continue.
“Our campus has a series of commitments in research that must not be interrupted because third party persons would be affected,” Guadalupe said.
“We receive more than $30 million in federal funding for this research … We certainly have to comply with the schedule for this research because it was a condition at the moment we accepted the funds,” she added.
Guadalupe also noted that in order for the institution to keep its funding from the Pell Grant program it has to comply with a specific number of credit/hours of education. A strike at this point in the semester not only would affect the University but also several students.
“We will not close the University gates. That is my position,” Guadalupe said.
The Chancellor reiterated she is not planning on asking for reinforcements from the Police Department because “so far we have been able to deal with the situation with the University Guard.”
Early Tuesday afternoon a number of vans from the Police Tactical Operations Unit arrived at the Reserve Officers Training Corps facility on Barbosa Avenue, right across the street from the UPR campus. Police agents were called back shortly after their arrival.
Guadalupe assured she had no knowledge of the incident. The UPR’s Law states that the Police cannot enter any of its campuses unless requested by university administration officials — the president and/or the chancellors. In the few instances when the Police have entered the University, conflict and confrontation has erupted.
ping
It’s always been the same thing. This tiny minority of leftist agitators at UPR Río Piedras knows the vast majority of the student body does not support a strike, so the only way to disrupt academic activities is to force that majority to not enter the campus.
I certainly would like the UPR administration to make an unequivocal statement that the blocking of access to the Río Piedras campus will not be allowed, and those trying to do so will be arrested, come what may.
Is it just me, or is there something very “Far Side” about college students’ going on “strike”?
Yeah, lets strike. That’ll help the budget problems the university is facing. Good grief, the mentality of the “gimmes”.
To radical leftists, it is a perfectly normal thing to pull that type of stunt in the name of all students (just as Communists always claim to speak “for the people”).
No, you are not alone.
If they’re unhappy with the university, couldn’t they just leave and get jobs?
I realize that using common sense with leftists is a losing battle, but I can’t help it ...
Given the politics among UPR students, this has really nothing to do with “gimme” issues as it is for the leftist fringe to find a perfect excuse to disrupt academic activities and wreak havoc against the UPR administration.
Decades ago, it was the ROTC’s presence on campus. Years later, it was an increase in tuition. You get the picture.
Honestly, how can you tell the difference between that and any other day?
A “student strike” eh?
They quit drinking beer?
With the warmer weather, I'd say the "striking" has reached a quarter of my students, and they don't even have anything to complain about.
I’m losing students here at my homeschool, too. If I go to change the baby’s diaper, they all disappear.
Wrong answer. The right answer should be that if you use force to stop someone from entering the university, that is assault and you'll be charged. No one forces you to come to university, and no one is going to be allowed to use force against any student.
I notice that the newsie never gets around to explaining what the strike is about. What are the negotiations about with the university leadership. Bad writing.
Whatever its about, the threat to resort to physical force should end the discussions. There is now nothing to discuss, kids, you've stepped in it and the discussions are over. Whichever student actually called for the use of force should be expelled immediately. I wouldn't mess with jerks.
Take it from a UPRRP alumnus who has seen this happen before.
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