Student guide gets another rocket
By ILYA GRIDNEFF
Instructions on how to make a bomb to protest against the Sydney
Olympics have been scrapped, but how to write a computer virus remains.
Multinational corporations are defamed, as are politicians, religious
leaders and SOCOG officials.
Editors of the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) Orientation
Handbook have sparked controversy for the second year running, with UTS
administration refusing to publish and distribute their guide.
The free handbook for UTS students is edited and published by the
Students' Association, elected representatives of the student body.
But this year's guide is said to include breaches of copyright, material
deemed to incite violence, and to defame individuals and major
corporations such as Coca-Cola and Shell.
Information on how to write a computer virus is included, as is
information on sex and drug use.
The university administration has refused to print and distribute this
year's guide at official UTS events, including Orientation Week (O-week.)
Last year, anti-drug campaigners labelled the 1999 UTS handbook a
"do-it-yourself guide to drug abuse", with graphic depictions of
intravenous drug use being displayed in the book.
While students say it is political satire and good fun highlighting
social justice issues, university officials are not laughing.
The UTS registrar, Dr Jeffrey Fitzgerald, said the university did not
intend to censor the handbook.
"We acted on legal advice," he said. "Our lawyers went through the
content and their advice was that we would be crazy to print and publish it.
"We informed the Students' Association that, on legal grounds, we would
not be publishing the guide.
"As a university we have to respect the law, we don't want libel or
defamation suits," he said.
Dr Fitzgerald said the university would not publish or distribute the handbook.
"I do not know what course of action the university would take if
students were handing out the guide," he said, but he did not rule out
police involvement.
"Students bear the responsibility as publishers and distributors," he said.
But student representatives are defying the calls and say they will
print the handbook from their own budget and distribute it on campus in
O-week and on enrolment days.
The UTS student president, Mr Ryan Heath, said the university's actions
were selfish and weak.
"The reason why we want to push the limit on issues we raise in the
handbook, such as the Olympics, is because people are dying on hospital
waiting lists," Mr Heath said.
"Thousands are likely to be thrown out of their homes because they can't
pay the rent, and the rights of indigenous people of Australia are once
again being ignored. Billions of public money is being spent on an elite
and corrupt sporting event.
"People entering university are at least 17 years old and some as old as
70. They are mature and capable of analysing information and determining
what ideas they wish to take on and what they wish to reject."
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