EMERGENCY. soas occupation needs you urgently.

SOAS OCCUPATION NEEDS YOU

Students occupying offices at SOAS in London have been served with an injunction and told to leave the building with immediate effect.

Protesters at the university have called for an emergency mass demonstration to prevent the eviction from the office of the school's principal, Paul Webley.

The occupation was in response to the detention of nine cleaners who had been employed by ISS cleaning services limited to work at the university. Five have already been deported.


Picture: Jess Hurd at reportdigital.co.uk

Students at the occupation claim the company, with the knowledge of the university, reported the cleaners to the Home Office because they had taken part in a successful campaign demanding a pay rise to the London Living Allowance.

Graham Dyer, the UCU chairman at Soas and lecturer in Economics of Developing Countries and SOAS UCU Chair supports the occupation.

He said: “It is no co-incidence that there is an immigration raid at a time when the UCU, Unison and the NUS are fighting against the victimisation of a migrant worker who has been at the heart of a fight that has improved the pay and conditions of workers here at SOAS.

"It is also not coincidental that ISS had only just signed a union recognition agreement with UNISON last week. Our fight has united lecturers, staff and students and has rocked SOAS management. Those managers are now lashing out."

George Galloway MP said: You have my full support for your excellent and highly principled initiative in protesting against the detention of nine cleaners at SOAS and I am dismayed that as many of five of them may already have been deported.

"I will be writing today to the Home Secretary to add my voice to those urging the release of the SOAS detainees and to Professor Paul Webley, the Director and Principal of SOAS."


Picture: Jess Hurd at reportdigital.co.uk

Jean Lambert, the Green Party MEP, added: “The circumstances and aims of this raid are utterly deplorable.

"These cleaning staff have been treated like criminals, and the timing of the raid is particularly reprehensible – first thing in the morning at the end of the university term, with fewer people around to intervene."

Alan Smith, the Interim Secretary and Registrar, confirmed the university was aware of the arrests.

He said in a statement: "We understand this must have been distressing for those involved, and indeed our own colleagues.

"We have been informed that nine people have been detained for further questioning and ISS is liaising directly with the Border Control Agency at this stage.

"We have received assurances from ISS that the standard of cleaning in School buildings
will be maintained."

At 6.30am on Friday the 12th June, without any advance warning SOAS cleaning staff were called to an emergency ‘Staff Meeting’, were confined in a room and then confronted by a team of 40 immigration officers who had been hiding under staged seating.

More to come.