SNU students occupy main building
Seoul National University students demand the school scrap its plan to set up an additional campus in Siheung, Gyeonggi Province, during a press conference in front of the school’s main building in Gwanak, southern Seoul, Tuesday. / Yonhap
School urged to drop new campus plan
By Lee Kyung-min
About 100 Seoul National University (SNU) students have occupied the school’s main building to protest the school’s plan to set up an additional campus in Siheung, Gyeonggi Province.
They said they would not stop the sit-in until the school withdraws the plan, which they claim was made unilaterally without collecting students’ opinion.
SNU Student Council held a press conference in front of the building in Gwanak, southern Seoul, Tuesday, demanding that the university President Sung Nak-in scrap the plan and offer an apology.
“The sit-in shows students’ anger over the school’s unilateral decision for the campus plan, while it earlier agreed to discuss the issue with students before signing a contract,” the council said in a statement.
It said the school ignored democratic process for the issue, which will greatly influence the students’ lives.
“If the school punishes protesting students and pushes ahead with the plan, we warn that the school should brace for a possible shutdown.”
The protesting students are currently occupying the fourth floor of the main building, where Sung’s office and other administrative facilities are located.
They entered there at 9:30 p.m. Monday, four hours after a total of 1,980 students gathered in front of the central library for a vote. Of the total, 1,483 voted to demand that school scrap its plan, and 1,097 voted for occupying the building as a protest.
On Aug. 22, SNU signed a contract with Siheung local government and Halla Corp., a construction firm, to build the campus as part of the Baegot new town development project. SNU plans to build a research complex on 662,000 square meters of land there and open it gradually starting 2018.
While the school says it would not move specific departments or colleges to the new campus, students claim the school will do so eventually without the affected students’ consent. They also say it is not right for the education institute to be involved in the commercial development of the new town.
Right after the signing, students demanded the school withdraw the plan, with some staging sit-ins.
While Sung belatedly sent emails to students on Sept. 6 to say he regretted not having included students’ opinion in signing the agreement and that he would listen to students’ opinion in the remaining part of the deal, the students decided to convene a meeting to put a stop to the plan altogether.
“We may begin talking with the protesting students soon, but have not decided yet how we’ll do it,” a school official said.
Meanwhile, Ewha Womans University students have continued a sit-in for 70 days since July 28, demanding university President Choi Kyung-hee step down to take responsibility for pushing for a now-scrapped plan to set up night school for workers without the students’ agreement.