anti-victimisation struggle at Essex University, police arrested more than 90 pickets on Wednesday.
The arrests started at 9.30 a.m.. when about 250 police marched up to a mass picket of 500 students, and tried to get some lorries through the barricades which have been erected. As the pickets tried to block the vehicles police moved in and made 50 arrests.
During a brief truce in the carly afternoon discussions took place between the Vice-Chuncellor, the police and the Students Union Executive, but ended in deadlock when the Vice-Chancellor refused to drop the disciplinary charges which had led to the pickets. The police then resumed their attempts to smash the picket and a further 40 were arrested.
SERIES OF ATTACKS
This is only the latest in a series of police attacks on pickets at Essex. Last Monday a force of 60 police surrounded the picket line and ordered them to disperse, making 15 arrests as they were doing so. The 15 arrested, who included two IMG members, were all militants and were deliberately picked out by Detective Chief Constable Markham.
At a general meeting on Monday evening 950 students unanimously passed a resolution to strengthen the pickets. This was moved by Ronnie Munck and Will Rich, the two IMG militants who were expelled last week, and who are now the subject of a High Court order restraining them from entering the campus.
For over three weeks, the delivery of supplies at Essex has been stopped head on. by barricades and pickets. This is a protest against disciplinary hearings and victimisations arising from the NUS Day of Action on grants last term, and the subsequent 23 day occupation of the University administration block The picketing has had considerable effect. The University is rapidly running out of heating oil, the restaurants are serving austerity meals, the coffee bar is closed and the University shop is unable to maintain its stocks, But it wits probably the turning back of a lorry containing 170,000 worth of computing equipment which spurred the authorities into action.
Since then the police have been very much in evidence on the campus. Plain clothes men mingle with students, vans full of uniformed police regularly patrol the campus boundary road, and there have been reports of dog-handling vans stationed in the car-parks.
NATIONAL CONFERENCE A national conference met at the University last Saturday (16 March) with the support of the National Union of Students to discuss the current wave of repression and victimisation in colleges. This body adopted important proposals for action. The 200 delegates from all over Britain decided:
*To continue the picketing at Essex, and to ensure that it is maintained over the Easter vacation by setting up a picketing pool, drawn from colleges all *To submit a resolution to the NES conference in Liverpool calling for full backing for the struggles at Kent, Oxford and Essex, and for solidarity action on a national and local basis next ter*To call for a mational densonstration in London on 3 May demanding the ending of all trials, and that police should be KEIR QUE DE DRE COleRCS John McGeown, President of Kent University Students' Union and IMG candidate for NUS President, received prolonged applause from the Conference when he brought the greetings of Kent students to their comrades at Essex. He called for the continuation of direct action, and urged delegates to meet the offensive by college authorities and the police STOP PRESS Following the police attack on pickersat the Universty of Fres coachicadsof students have apne to swell the picker liner from a number of Universitier, including Cheirea College, Imperial College, Brunel, Lancaser, Oxford and Kent.
Telegrams and meagesof
organsantonzare urgently required: and to Student Union, University of Frax, Colchester.
1000 PIL.
AFTE