A group considered the heartbeat of the student protest movement has suffered a split.
Over the weekend the executive committee of the 70,000-student ASSE group was voted out, as members disagreed with a proposed strategy to delay protests until the fall.
The rift was caused by a letter the executive committee of the ASSE student group sent its member associations last week suggesting class boycotts be deferred until the fall when trade unions might join.
The student union leaders were unceremoniously escorted out of the building following the vote.
One current ASSE representative explained why members reacted so strongly to the epistolary proposal.
“Those letters are useful and usual but we think it’s a really bad idea now and we would have preferred to discuss together in congress the 4th and 5th. If we decided collectively to stop or continue the strike then it’s ok but before, it’s not really legitimate,” said Hind Fazazi interim ASSE spokesperson.
A new permanent executive committee will be voted in on April 25 and 26. Those dates are considered important, as they will also decide the fate of proposed boycotts.
