Alab Up Position Paper

ALAB-UP or Asosasyon ng Mga Lider-Estudyanteng Nagsusulong ng mga Batayang Karapatan sa Unibersidad ng Pilipinas, organized on March 2009, is a new alliance of student leaders of the College of Home Economics committed to guiding and taking the vanguard position in uniting the students towards the achievement of academic excellence, for the continuing struggle of the Iskolar ng Bayan for basic rights and to be of service to the Filipino people and the nation. ALABUP recognizes the need to instill on all the students the importance of responsible citizenship on being involved in all pursuits of the nation to attain the aforementioned goals. Being part of the college where the basic needs of the Filipino people are highly accentuated, ALAB-UP believes that education is a right. It is the government’s responsibility to give accessible, if not free, education to all its citizens. However, the present regime has only been allotting a measly 2.5% of the GDP to education - a far cry from the 6% suggested GDP allocation for developing countries by the United Nations. Inefficient state subsidy, particularly to state colleges and universities like the University of the Philippines, is the root of the commercialization of education. This entails the administration to look for alternative sources of funds. Joint ventures with private companies such as the AYALA Land Corporation, Tuition and other fee increases such as the 300% tuition fee increase implemented in 2007, and repressive measures like the 2009 Student Code of Conduct are mere manifestations of commercialization. ALAB-UP calls for the immediate junking of the 2009 Code of Student Code based on the following grounds: The drafting committee did not have a student representative. The University Student Council appealed for proper student representation in the said committee, yet they were denied thrice by the administration. The 18 Student Demands were not reflected in the student code. These demands, submitted to the Board of Regents or BOR last school year, were signed by 111 organizations. It deters academic freedom in the University. The code has provisions which impose activities to organizations, such as the inclusion of academic activities for tambayan “grants”. It deters our basic human rights. Violations are given to activities of organizations and individuals which are considered as, “disrespect towards persons of authority”, “breach of peace”, or “threatening behavior”. These vague provisions can be used to accuse extra-curricular and legitimate activities as acts of misconduct and therefore subject students to disciplinary action. With regards to disciplinary cases, due process is blatantly disregarded through the unilateral method of resolving cases. Here, the legal counsel is barred from performing his duties in Student Disciplinary Tribunal hearings. Student representation is also strategically eliminated through the removal of the student juror. It impedes our right to organize. Freshmen and transferees are prohibited to join organizations despite the fact that it is a constitutional right to organize oneself. Aside from being unconstitutional, the provision undermines the capacity of freshmen and transferees to decide for themselves. Moreover, the recognition of an individual’s right to organize also entails the organization’s right to a decent tambayan. Organizations need spaces which serve as a venue for them to prosper and conduct activities. With the position and grounds previously stated, ALAB-UP demands for the junking of the student code. We call for an alternative student code which genuinely recognizes the democratic rights of the students for anything less would only serve to curtail the rights that students have struggled for. In the end, it remains that the 2009 Student Code of Conduct defeats the purpose of an academe. There is no other option but to JUNK it.