University paper prints blank front page in support of janitors' union

/ Courtesy of SWU Press

By Lee Ji-hye

A university newspaper printed a blank front page to its Wednesday edition in its fight for editorial independence after it was stopped from including a petition against the school.

Seoul Women's University's newspaper, SWU Press, had planned to print a statement against the school's student body after it took down janitors’ union banners that demanded higher wages and shorter hours.

The school said the banners "hurt the visual image" of the campus.

A petition against the action was signed by 143 alumni.

The paper’s guiding professor said this was not considered a proper reflection of the school's referendum and he demanded it be removed from the paper.

"We were told that publishing the petition went against our newspaper's neutral stance, and that further publication would be forbidden should we include our statement," the newspaper said through a press release representing reporters and apologizing to readers for the decision to print a blank front page.

"We believe this is an infringement of our editorial rights, and that we have the right to raise our voice based upon our judgment that the statement is based on righteous grounds," the newspaper said, adding that 143 might not be a representative number, but the reporters agreed it needed to be published.

Students of the university also took to the streets to support the newspaper's decision to back the janitors’ union and protest against the tearing down of its banners.

"The school must take responsibility for its actions," said Jin Chae-hyun, a sophomore majoring in children's education, as she held a picket sign near the campus entrance.

"The workers must be announced as official employees of Seoul Women's University _ the blame should not be on the service personnel management company, but on the school that has not met the necessary conditions of their working environment."

The paper published on Facebook an explanation of its decision to print the blank page, along with the original statement.

"The students and alumni of Seoul Women's University ask Chancellor Jeon Hye-jung to face the problems that the janitor unions are raising, and to handle it responsibly _ instead of carelessly tearing down its needs as official workers of the school," the petition read.

"This problem is not just the matter of the janitors, but for the organization as a whole that prioritizes education for becoming human." The paper also demanded an official apology from the school's administration.

"We find it disappointing and difficult to take pride in an institution that blames the weaker individual instead of taking full responsibility for the improvement in our workers' working conditions."