Resistance activist contests Swinburne by-election
By Kerryn Williams
MELBOURNE — Students at Swinburne University will vote to fill a number of student union positions in a by-election on March 24 to 26.
Resistance activist Arty Titiz is contesting the international student representative position. He told Â鶹´«Ã½, "Racism is a key issue affecting international students. If I'm elected I'll use my position to build stronger anti-racism campaigns."
Titiz intends to use the next couple of weeks to publicise the April 1 national day of action against attacks on education. He explained, "The moves by the federal government towards the privatisation of education represent a massive attack on all students. International students were the first to be affected by up-front fees, and now this has spread to domestic undergraduates.
"The staff cuts, course closures and cuts to library services and other resources all drastically impact on both local and international students. We urgently need a united campaign to defend publicly funded education and the national day of action will be an important part of this.
Titiz is urging students to not just vote in the elections, but also get involved in the campaign. He will be working with other progressive candidates in the by-election to run a united left election campaign.