Simon Cunich, Sydney
Students inflicted a small blow to the Australian military machine on July 18 when they stopped a department of defence briefing at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS).
The defence department was on campus to promote the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) project, a 40-year plan to develop and then purchase a fleet of "lethal" fighter jets. The government has targeted UTS as a potential research partner in the project, which also involves Lockheed Martin, the world's biggest arms supplier and a powerful lobby behind the Iraq war.
Despite a strong campus security presence, more than 30 anti-war activists managed to occupy the lecture theatre in which the briefing was to be held, forcing defence department officials to move their meeting. The students gave their own presentation about the fighter aircraft project.
UTS student and Resistance activist Amber Pike said: "Australia, the United States and Britain are amongst the countries committing most resources to this project, aimed at strengthening their so-called war on terror around the world. We condemn the Howard government spending billions of dollars and using our universities to develop machines to be used in wars against the people of the Middle East and elsewhere.
"The JSF project is a clear example of the government's agenda — massively increasing military spending at the same time as cutting funding to public education. On top of this, we see educational institutions increasingly operating according to the needs of corporations and the military. We want an education system that works for the benefit of society, not used to help bomb civilians and exploit people more 'effectively'."
After shutting the first meeting down, students then blockaded the entrance to the room that the defence department officials had moved to, until they received confirmation that the briefing had been cancelled. The students are now demanding that the university refuse to sign the contract to provide research for the project.
Most of the corporate media has defended the federal government's largest ever "defence" procurement program. In a July 22 article in the Australian newspaper, foreign editor Greg Sheridan referred to Israel's bombing of Lebanon as an example of the "effectiveness" of superior air power. He said that Australia needs to spend the $12 billion on 100 JSF aircraft to carry out "the long war on terror, within our region and more distantly".
The government has already spent US$150 million on the development phase of the project. The aim is to produce thousands of JSF aircraft, to be sold to countries around the world.
After the protest action, students from universities across Sydney met to plan how to spread the news about the action and involve more students in the anti-war movement. The discussion noted the importance of continuing to campaign for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq, as well as demanding that the Australian government condemn Israel's military offensive in Lebanon and Palestine.
[To find out more about the campaign, phone Simon on (02) 9690 1977.]
From Green Left Weekly, July 26, 2006.
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