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Join the protest against the higher education cuts

Students and staff from Leiden University are protesting in The Hague on 25 November against the billions in cuts to higher education. ‘The cuts are a terrible idea and we want to show why’, says Claire Weeda from WOinActie. ‘Research and teaching are essential to society.’

Previous demonstration cancelled

The national demonstration against higher education cuts in Utrecht on 14 November was cancelled a day before. The organisers were following the advice of  the Utrecht ‘triangle’ (mayor, police and Public Prosecution Service), which stated that the demonstrators’ safety could not be guaranteed.

On 14 November, students and staff from the university took part in a spontaneous protest. Around 1,000 people made theier voices heard against the planned cuts to higher education. Read about this protest on the live blog from the day.

The text below is a revised article that was published before the 14 November protest.

Demonstration in The Hague

The demonstration is being organised by the FNV, CNV, Algemene Onderwijsbond and LSVB unions together with partners including WOinActie. ‘During the protest, we want to show how important research and teaching are for all of society’, says Claire Weeda, who is involved in WOinActie and an assistant professor at the Institute for History. ‘Training teachers, nurses and engineers, for example, or discovering new medicines. The damage caused by the cuts will come as a nasty surprise to the population.’

Budget discussed at the end of November

The protest will be held just before the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science’s budget is discussed in the House of Representatives and Senate. ‘There has been some criticism in the Senate of these cuts and the government does not have a majority there’, says Weeda. ‘That makes it crucial for masses of us to show in Utrecht that we condemn these cuts.’

Sign the petition

Signing the petition against the cuts is still possible. Also read the regular updates provided by the Executive Board on the impact of the budget cuts on Leiden University

Mobilise people

People are being mobilised in various ways to come to The Hague on 25 November: through university app groups and teaching staff telling students about the demonstration in lectures, but also through external contacts, for instance with alumni, cultural organisations and local schools. ‘The cuts will also affect future students. The programme they may be considering may no longer exist by then. Others will be affected by the late graduation penalty, which can make studying much more expensive.’ 

And the universities are talking to politicians to explain just how disastrous the effects of the cuts will be. The government has promised to tackle society’s problems and yet it is cutting the budget of the degree programmes and research that are essential to this.

Executive Board and deans support the protest

The Executive Board and deans support this protest. They are calling on students and staff from Leiden University to come to The Hague and make their voices heard. They are joining the demonstration too, as will the faculty boards. The university will pay its staff’s travel expenses. You can use the new Shuttel card for this.

Video: Will you be there too?

Staff members Rosalien van der Poel, Renske Janssen, Roderik Gerritsen, Arnout van Ree, Jan Joost Aten and Tanja de Bie are calling on students and staff from Leiden University to join the protest on 14 November against the higher education cuts.

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Where will the demonstration on 25 November be held?

The demonstration in The Hague is expected to be the biggest ever in higher education. ‘I think the gravity of the cuts and what is hanging over our heads is beginning to hit home with more and more students and staff’, says Weeda.

The protest will be held on Monday 25 November, from 13.00 to 15.00 hours. Protestors will gather at Malieveld in The Hague.

If you are taking action in some other way, do let us know.

Why the red felt square?

The red felt square has become an international protest symbol at universities. It originally comes from Canada. Students, teaching staff and researchers a Quebec university used it in protests against tuition increases and cuts.

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