A group of student activists charged under the Universities and University Colleges Act 1971 (UUCA) has urged that the draconian law be abolished.

A memorandum was handed over to Suhakam commissioner James Nayagam today by a group called the Student Movement To Abolish UUCA, the members of which are mostly student activists affected by the Act.

“University students who were charged under UUCA were merely practising their rights as a Malaysian guaranteed by the federal constitution, such as right to peaceful assembly, free expression and activity and association,” said the movement’s coordinator Safwan Shamsuddin (centre in photo).

“But UUCA has given power to the universities to carry out disciplinary actions at their whim.”

Mohd Fathihie Daimin, a second year biology student from Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Kota Kinabalu, who is facing a total of 11 charges, said that the university’s move was “cruel”.

“All of the charges are related to my Facebook activities, as if I were not allowed to post any status updates on Facebook.

“I only made a post to congratulate an internal association registered under the university for helping fire victims. Even for doing that, I was charged,” said Daimin.

Jamhuri Mohammed, a final year student from Universiti Malaysia Sabah Kampus Antarabangsa Labuan (Umskal) who is one of the 16 facing disciplinary hearings who were allegedly involved in “organising assembly and protests without university’s permission in campus” on May 26, claimed that three students had just been issued an immediate suspension last night.

“Out of the 16, eight of us were first given warning letters and suspended for a semester, three were suspended last night and another five are still waiting for further decisions from the disciplinary board,” said Jamhuri.

The movement is backed by 15 university groups as well as NGOs, notably Bersih, Suaram and the Global Movement of Moderates headed by former deputy higher education minister Saifuddin Abdullah.

Saifuddin (centre in photo), who was present during the handing over of the memorandum, queried the universities’ actions in charging the students, saying that the universities might have violated the existing disciplinary procedures.

He added that another questionable matter was the alleged “selective prosecution”, where the 16 students charged by Umskal received different punishments.   

‘They are not from kindergarten’

Bersih chief Maria Chin Abdullah and Suaram executive director Yap Swee Seng, who were also present, voiced out their support for the young activists.

“These students are among the educated, the future of the country, but they are being treated like kindergarten kids,” said Yap in urging the authorities to change their mindset.

“They (universities) want to control everything that the students do.”

In response, Nayagam (left) suggested holding a seminar to educate the public about the UUCA and said the commission would act as a facilitator to the concerned parties and authorities.  

In 2014 alone, 24 students were charged under the UUCA and another student was charged under the Educational Institute (Disciplinary) Act 1976, according to the statement.

Section 15(5)(a) of the UUCA prohibiting student from participating in politics and associating with any organisation, contradicting the federal constitution, and this had been declared unconstitutional by the Federal Court.

Final-year students suspended for demo on campus