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KNDU protestors not appeased by President’s solution

18 Jul 2021

  • Point out non-existence of a ‘UGC Act’ Continue demand for withdrawal of KDNU Bill President had promised amendment to Act
By Pamodi Waravita Despite President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s statement that the “obstacles” in the “University Grants Commission Act” will be removed to accommodate the Kotelawala Defence National University (KDNU) under its purview, protestors have not been appeased by this solution, and continue to demand a complete withdrawal of the proposed KDNU Bill. Addressing the Maha Sangha on 17 Saturday, President Rajapaksa said that “the obstacles that existed in the University Grants Commission (UGC) Act will be removed and the Kotelawala Defence University will be brought under its purview.” However, the Federation of University Teachers’ Association (FUTA) pointed out in a statement yesterday (18) that there is no “UGC Act”, per se, to amend. “As far as we know, there is no ‘UGC Act’. However, we are assuming that the President meant the ‘Universities Act, No. 16 of 1978.’ We urge the Government to not interfere with the Act without proper advice from those in the field. We also urge the Government to not mix civilians with military education. The Kotelawala University was established to provide those in the military with education and training. We ask that the civil students who are currently in it be brought under the existing university system, outside of militarised education.” Similarly, in a statement on 17 Saturday, the Inter-University Student Federation (IUSF) said that if the Government is attempting to amend the Universities Act to enable private universities to function under it, this constitutes a highly threatening move against free education. “We strongly oppose the Government's frantic attempt to amend the University Act to pass the Kotelawala Act in this manner, and the only solution to this problem is to immediately withdraw the proposed Kotelawala Private University Act,” stressed the IUSF. Academic and National People’s Power (NPP) MP Dr. Harini Amarasuriya told The Morning yesterday (18) that any amendment to the Act should only serve the purpose of strengthening academic freedom and democratising education. “We are unclear on what the President means. What is the ‘UGC Act’? If he means that the Government wants to amend the ‘Universities Act, No. 16 of 1978’ to remove its obstacles to the militarisation and privatisation of education, then it should not be amended. If the Universities Act is going to be amended, then it should be done to strengthen academic freedom and further democratise education.” Dr. Amarasuriya added that the existing KDNU Bill, which was presented in Parliament earlier this month, cannot be accepted, even with amendments, and must be withdrawn. “If the Ministry of Defence (MOD) wants to have a higher education institute for the military, then by all means, have it under the MOD and limit it to the military. We are in this mess now because the KDNU accepted students outside of the military in an ad hoc manner. There is an increasing demand for places in universities, and if the need is to expand the higher education sector, then it should be taken up as a separate issue. It cannot happen through the privatisation of the State education sector, or the militarisation of education,” added Dr. Amarasuriya.  At a protest held yesterday, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake accused the Government of attempting to make the KDNU the country’s primary education institute. “A child’s education should not be determined by the wealth they have. The Kotelawala University was built to cater to the needs of the military. By making the KDNU the country’s primary education institute, it would militarise the country’s education sector. They are merely attempting to privatise education. What should be done right now is expanding free education opportunities for all students. Instead of doing that, the Government is only trying to give education to those who can afford it,” said Dissanayake. The KDNU Bill has come under criticism from various quarters for its alleged threats to free education and the militarisation of education. A range of demonstrations occurred throughout Colombo over the last two weeks in protest of the Bill – tabled in Parliament on 7 July – where over 31 arrests were made, including Ceylon Teachers’ Union (CTU) General Secretary Joseph Stalin. Although they were granted bail later on 8 July, they were forcefully led to quarantine centres and released over the weekend, following heavy criticism both locally and internationally.  


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