Salvation Isreal writes "Universities in Turkey Say 'No War' "

Check the photos of the latest demonstration at Bogazici University on April the 1st


http://uk.photos.yahoo.com/salvationcan




On the 17th of March, student social clubs and student representatives of different faculties at Bogazici University (Istanbul/Turkey) allied to demonstrate a massive protest against US Liberation(!) attempts on Iraq. There were over 800 students from several dorms, classes and departments. There were also teaching assistants, researchers, instructors, and administrative staff and syndicalists of university. The organization was held by Council of Students Social Club.
What made the demonstrations really important were that:First of all Bogazici University is the first College that US empire has founded outside its boundaries. The first educational attempt to imperialize and hegemonize the middle east. Secondly as one may guess 800 person in a small campus makes a lot of sense since the education system always imposing you the quotes of Adam Smith and his neo-liberal sons.(Fuckuyama,Thatcher etc). Thus the activism in this university was always the lowest level possible unfortunately. Thirdly, until now, all attempts to construct a massive sensitivity and opposition generally failed and the fractions became marginalized because of the students' unwillingness to show opposition.




But beginning with the demonstration on 17th March, different students clubs organized many activites. Theatre Club exhibited a play about soldiers in war, named "In the Kitchen". Fine Arts Club has constructed symbolic graveyards of soldiers, monuments of an Iraqi mother holding her child against a US diplomat holding a gun in his hand. There were Folklore exhibitions, Slide shows of Photography Club, Dia shows. The activities lasted for 2 weeks and Fine arts club provided the protestor with small peace signs and peace necklaces. The activities were held by nearly 15 clubs and I have to inform you that instead of an active participant some clubs have helped about the organizational side of the activities such as logistics, security (against cop aggression in the campus) and media connection.




This was one of the most wide-spread activity in the university. Participation of different groups were also significant such as Autonomist Marxists, Anarchists, Communists, Kurdists.Thus the cooperation between different social clubs has enlarged the students' frontier to construct a strong opposition against all other neo-liberal destructions. What made the opposition different was the productive part of the opposition. There were many things in the campus to remind people that an opposition to US aggression is inevitable. Monuments, Statues, Peace Signs, War Photos, News on Walls, Dollar-Shaped Symbolic Soldiers,Peace Balloons etc. Hence, the transformation of opposition must be analysed seriously. Unless we produce, we get marginalized.

Salvation Isreal