Stúdentablaðið - 01.12.2008, Blaðsíða 31

STÚDENTABLAÐIÐ EN 31
the leadership of parties from outside Iceland into
events leading up to the crisis and those measures
taken following the collapse of the Icelandic
banks.
In Helgi’s opinion, the call for elections is
unequivocal, but he also points out that tens of
thousands of former govemment party supporters
would be faced by a lack of choice in an election in
the immediate future.
Women take the helm: An “emergency
government” for Iceland
Although the Women’s Emergency Govemment
(Neyðarstjóm kvenna) was formed only recently, the
battle for equality certainly is not a new one -
iiyustices occur in good times as well as bad. One
member of the Emergency Govemment puts it this
way: “One lovely day in autumn, the Icelandic
economy collapsed. Up until that point, life had
smiled on our boys: they were so venturesome and
clever that they succeeded in buying all kinds of nice
things. Of course, they were in close consultation
with all the other boys and met with the Central
Bank Boy and the Prime Minister Boy regularly. The
Icelandic economy was in their hands.”
The day that it all collapsed came perhaps as the
greatest surprise to just such boys, as may be seen
in media boys’ interviews with politician boys on the
venturesome boys. But what solutions does the
Women’s Emergency Govemment offer?
“We’re a grassroots organisation that first and
foremost emphasises the need to do away with the
gender apartheid of a bygone age. Under this
apartheid, women to a great extent hold up the
foundations of society, but decisions regarding what
type of society we have and the order of priorities
are in the hands of men. At the same time, it’s said
that all decision-making should take the viewpoints
of both genders into consideration - but for that, it’s
necessary that men and women sit together at the
table where these decisions are being taken.”
The organisation calls for a new ideology, one that
clearly does not embrace the politician, Central
Bank and prime minister boys who are currently
doing the decision-making.
New Tímes: Those in power have zero
credibility
The group New Times (Nýir tímar) demands that the
present govemment step down immediately and a
new national govemment be formed, with elections
to be held as soon as possible: “We in New Times
believe that this is a prerequisite for starting to
rebuild the country. Our prime minister has
absolutely zero credibility, and our patience with the
current govemment is marvelled at abroad.”
The group says it intends to engage in all possible
action within the bounds of what is legal in order to
bring about change and points out that 70% of the
nation wants the opportunity to vote: “We call for
public administration that is transparent and has
integrity. We believe that the connections between
those currently in power and the business sector are
too close for the govemment to be qualified to act
on the behalf of the nation.”
New Times calls for an end to all squabbling over
petty issues of contention, urging Icelanders to unite
and rise up in the name of justice and democracy.
Despite their differences, it is clear that certain basic
demands unite most of the groups examined here
and that Iceland’s protesters are virtually unanimous
when it comes to three things: No corruption, no
injustice, no nonsense. Or, in practical terms: No
Davíð as Central Bank govemor, no Geir as prime
minister, no pooh-poohing the people - elections
a.s.ap.!
Journualist: Bryndís Björgvinsdóttir
Translation: Katie Parsons
P. 22
ASK&ANSWER THE STUDENTS COUNCIL
PARTIES: RÖSKVA AND VAKA
Dear Röskva and Vaka.
Before the last elections for Student Council and
University Council, I made a real effort to try and
distinguish a difference in your policies, reading each
of your booklets and leaflets carefully along with both
of your manifestos.
I was not successful.
Actually, I seem to recall, and please correct me if l'm
wrong, that the Röskva party list was set up so that
there were alternating male and female candidates
and Vaka defines itself as an non-political power
while Röskva does not. On the other hand, both of
you opposed tuition fees, both wanted the lcelandic
Student Loan Fund (LÍN) to increase the minimum
loan amount and both promoted performance-based
student loans. Furthermore, both of you took the
credit for more punctual returning of grades and both
claimed throwing awesome parties, which is rather a
good thing but doesn't really impassion me to show
up at the polls and cast a vote for... nothing?
So, when I vote for either one of you, what it is l’m
actually voting for? Is there anything that distinguishes
one of you from the other besides the way your party
list is set up and your opinion on whether or not the
Student Council should be political?
Yours sincerely,
Eyrún Ólöf Sigurðardóttir,
Leisure Studies
Röskva responds:
That question is always rather complicated to answer
because the “difference” itself is disputed and
continues to be an infinite source of arguments. Of
course, the parties are united when it comes to many
issues that concern all students, i.e., the longer
opening hours of the National and University
Library (Þjóðarbókhlaða) and higher minimum
student loans. The difference lies primarily in the
two parties’ standpoint on the nature of student
politics. For a comprehensive answer, it’s probably
best to outline exactly what Röskva stands for and
what ideas unite its supporters: First of all, we are
united in our idea of a just society. Secondly, we
agree on a certain stance regarding the nature of
student politics. And thirdly, the supporters of
Röskva have a clear idea of what projects should be
addressed by the Student Council.
Let’s look closer at what that means.
First, we should consider one thing that tends to be
forgotten: Röskva is the movement of the University
of Iceland’s socially minded people. We are socialists:
we want a society that is based on respect for human
beings and a society that preserves human rights and
equality. We want a society that gives everybody a
fair chance. Röskva has, for example, rejected the
introduction of tuition fees at the University of
Iceland (HÍ). In that case, we obviously took a
political stance, for it addresses people’s fundamental
viewpoints on a just society. For us, politics are
about criticising, taking a stand and fighting for one’s
opinion. That’s why Röskva gladly pleads guilty to
all accusations of being political - of course these
are politics, student politics. For years, differing
conceptions of student politics have separated HÍ’s
student alliances. The people of Röskva want the
Student Council to be a political power that fights
for the interests of all students, outside of HÍ as well
as inside. That means we don’t limit the Student
Council’s list of issues to the domestic problems of
HÍ, which also need to be addressed: we also choose
to view the student as a citizen in the Icelandic
society. We want to protect the interests of students
in any given situation. Röskva’s position was vividly
reflected in the so-called Bus case, where Röskva
made sure that Student Council lobbied the
municipal governments of Reykjavik and its
neighbouring boroughs to make it free for students
to take the bus.
The movements are divided on the role of the
Student Council. Röskva’s position is clear: The
council should be an active power in society and
speak with a clear voice on behalf of university
students as a social group. And the council should
be daring and take the first step. Throughout history,
students have been society’s gadflies, the critical
voice that isn’t afraid to point directly at the emperor
if he’s in the nude - that’s exactly what Röskva
does.
Best regards,
Röskva.
Vaka responds:
Hi Eyrún!
You are by no means the first one to find it hard to
spot the differences between Vaka and Röskva. I’m
not surprised at all, thinking of the flood of leaflets
that tlie movements hand out during every election.
Therefore, it’s no wonder that you should ask
yourself - why Vaka?
Vaka has a rich and colourful history after having
been working inside HÍ for over 73 years. Each year,
the party’s work concems many different things, and
the fight for the interests of students is always the
number one priority. Vaka operates on two levels: on
the one hand in Student Council and on the other
inside Vaka’s administration itself. Thus, Vaka stays
active regardless of the outcome of the elections, but
through our candidacy for Student Council we hope
to create a good platform for introducing our policies
and work.
There are multiple things Vaka has over Röskva For
example, Vaka runs a social centre where Vaka
supporters regularly come together for meetings,
studying, watching English football and partying
down. Initiative and a joy in getting things done also
exemplify the movement’s way of operating, along
with a rejection of extreme feminism. In Vaka,
people are appreciated in regard to their worth and
talent - not their gender.
Vaka focuses mainly on the political neutralify of the
Student Council and believes its only role to be that
of fighting for the interests of the students of the
University of Iceland. Therefore, we don’t connect
ourselves to any political ideology such as socialism
or libertarianism, like Röskva, the socialist
movement, does. Of course it’s important for Student
Council to uses its power as a political lobby and
demand progress regarding issues conceming the
University, but that’s as far as we go. We do not
waste the council’s time issuing statements against
salary secrecy or the neighbouring airport, for all of
the council’s time should be spent fighting for
interests that concem students directly. So we do
not take a stance on behalf of every student regarding
political quarrels that don’t have anything to do with
students. We do not publicly decide how you feel -
nor the rest of the thousands of students at HÍ. We
simply don’t, and that’s where the borders lie - the
boundaries between Vaka and Röskva.
Finally, I would like to point out that the doors of
Vaka are always open for any student at HÍ. If you
want to get more information on our movement or
our policies, I urge you to show up for one of the
weekly informational meetings Vaka hosts
throughout the winter. In addition, I can point you
to our website, www.vaka.hi.is, and our email
address, vaka@hi.is, in case you have any further
questions.
Best regards,
VaJca.
The elections for Student Council take place next
February. If you have any questions for Röskva or
Vaka, please do not hesitate to mail them to
Studentablaðið’s editor in chief at: studentabladid@
gmail.com.
Journualist: Bryndís Björgvinsdóttir
Translation: Finnur Gudmundarson Olguson