LankaWeb Weekly Editorial

March 29th. 2011

Viewed from any rational perspective the Minister of Higher Education S.B. Dissanayake has every right in his official capacity to stand up to the rabble rousing factions of university students the Nation over and admonish them that the Government will not bow to their whims and fancies over issues not in their control nor jurisdiction as the pre-ponderance of the Ministry relative to what is expected of the students as opposed to their shamefully aggressive behaviour at times, by far outweighs what has come to be a menace within the higher education system of Sri Lanka today.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Hon. Minister has said that ” his ministry under no circumstance will surrender to the whims and fancies of the students of the Sabaragamuwa university or any other for that matter as there is an imperative felt need within the land towards dealing with many reprehensible activities on the part of certain students under the guise of student union activity when the truth screams out that it is indeed a coercion motivated by certain unscrupulous opposition parties towards ursurpance of the Government and causing unrest within the land. No rocket science is needed to infer this as the pattern of incidents in recent times points irrefutably to the known culprits amongst whom the JVP surely sticks out like a sore thumb as does their rhetoric at times where there are others involved in the skulduggery too which it invariably is according to many discerning observers!

When the minister revealed that the vice chancellor has been directed to ban all student unions and lodge complaints with the police to arrest such students each time they cause unrest, he has taken an admirable stand over an issue which has needed addressing for a very long time bearing in mind that such deplorable activities as thuggery, intimidation, ragging of a criminal nature ( which has even driven some students to suicide ) and threatening irresponsible actions by apathetically defiant university students was unheard of in a Nation where Lankans of previous generations never dared to cross authority which includes myself as the objective was education and none other, and it is quite apparent that the motivations of backbench politicos have brought about a shambles in the university education system of today which urgently needs to be taken by the scruff of its neck and a few pointers driven into the culprits responsible that their direction is not kosher and unacceptable !

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ A group of students belonging to the Sabaragamuwa university have engaged in a protest a few days ago. The Students have charged that due to the Sabaragamuwa university being closed recently, they did not have sufficient time to prepare for an aptitude test conducted by the faculty of applied science. They also requested the university’s administration to undo the suspensions imposed on 58 students who have been charged with ragging.

High handed and beyond their limitations obviously where the art of peaceful negotiations, that too only if permissible seems to have been defiantly cast aside tantamount to a revocation of authority to set their own rules!

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ However in a no nonsense response on the same basis as that of the Hon. Minister and as reported in the local media, the vice chancellor of the Sabaragamuwa university has also informed the students that if further protests continue, steps will be taken to ban student union. ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-This is being led by the student union. If this sort of action is resorted to, we will have to take a firm decision. We will have to ban student unions for the benefit of the rest of the students,ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ said Professor Mahinda Rupasinghe and has done so very justifiably!

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ As a follow up to this, the Hon. Minister Mr. S.B. Dissanayake in his own words has not minced his word in saying ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-No matter how long this university will remain closed, we don’t have an issue with sacking even a 1000 students. It is essential to shape this university in accordance with national policies and to salvage it from ragging. Hence we will not submit ourselves to the students. I advised the vice chancellor and the lecturers to ban these students. We will even suspend the activities of this universities for a month, and legalize this. We will in no way let the students intimidate the administration of the university,ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ which are welcome words to the more orderly and conscientious students who appreciate the true value of education rather than those responding to anti Government disruptives who use the gullibilities of those who succumb to their idealogies and are subversive elements as were the JVP of their day !

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Mild protestations by students for a legitimate reason albeit needing tolerance in a democratic nation does not have any justification towards getting out of hand where authority is confronted by violent means as was the case at the Ruhuna University not long ago where Chancellors and staff were manhandled,and hospitalised and a breach in the peace on Campus involving violent confrontation with makeshift deadly weapons shocked the Nation. There is no premise for this kind of thing happenning ever again as the authority and direction of the Hon Minister has indicated and all kudos to him!

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ If the Students who gain entry to Universities exceed their limitations and ridicule discipline it is fully justifiable that they are dismissed with no chance of re- entering and perhaps punishable to the fullest extent of the law if they are in breach of regulations and take the law into their own hands!