Pera undergrads boycott lectures

December 22, 2011, 10:00 pm , The Island/

by Dasun Edirisinghe

Undergraduates of the Peradeniya University boycotted lectures yesterday in protest against the suspension of the students’ council and student unions on Wednesday by the university administration.

University sources said that students had held a protest opposite the Senate building demanding the withdrawal of the suspension order, but they had to disperse as the university administration refused to do so.

A spokesman for the students however said, they would not stop the protest against the suspension of the students’ council and student unions.

The decision to suspend students’ council and student unions was taken by the Vice Chancellor Professor S. B. S. Abeykoon following recommendation by his advisory committee.

Meanwhile, the Inter University Students’ Federation said that they would launch a separate protest campaign shortly against government’s suppression of undergraduates.

IUSF Convener Sanjeewa Bandara told The Island that so far the government suspended 24 students unions and six student councils.

Bandara said that student unions were allowed by the university act, but the government’s newest move it was violating it.

He said that a protest march organized from Peradeniya to Colombo, which was scheduled to be started on the same day, was also stopped by the police obtaining a court order.

"We planned to hold that four-day protest march against the establishment of private universities and suppression of student rights," Bandara said adding this government did not allow a peaceful protest march too.