Other formats

    Adobe Portable Document Format file (facsimile images)   TEI XML file   ePub eBook file  

Connect

    mail icontwitter iconBlogspot iconrss icon

Salient: Victoria University of Wellington Students' Newspaper. Vol. 32, No. 6. 1969.

NZUSA endorses 'AID' programme

NZUSA endorses 'AID' programme

NZUSA has endorsed the 1% "Aid for International Development" programme in its efforts to persuade the Government to increase the level of overseas non-military aid to at least 1% of the national income by 1973, and has promised to provide organisational assistance and public support to A.I.D.

The remit also urged students to give 1% of their annual income to A.I.D.

Mr Gerard Curry said that Victoria felt that the remit was not simply an affirmation of our support for A.I.D., but actually proposed "concrete measures" to implement our concern for "suffering humanity".

It was, he said, a "realistic assessment" of our feelings in asking students to donate 1% of their incomes to the project.

Mr Bruce Robertson, Vice-President of NZUSA, said that he would personally like to leave out the first part of the remit which merely affirmed general policy.

"We should instead say simply that we are giving 1% of our incomes because this is what we believe in", he said.

He was a "little sad" that a non-productive part about persuading the Government to do something had been included in a remit which was otherwise so clear about the action which was to be taken.

Regarding the collection of the money, Mr Chris Livesey, a delegate from Canterbury, said that students could voluntarily ask university administrations to deduct 1% from their bursaries.

Mr Livesey said that he had already spoken to Mr N. W. Kinsbury, Registrar of Waikato University, who had indicated that the Waikato administration, at least, was willing to do this.

page 12

The deductions could centre around the time of the second-term bursaries payments, said the Canterbury delegate.

Following a query, Mr Peter Rosier, President of NZUSA, said that the money raised had already been earmarked by 1% A.I.D. to go towards a bursaries scheme for the new University of the South Pacific.

Victoria disagreed with this, saying that the destination of the money had not been included in the remit, and that students should decide themselves what is to be done with it.

Otago supported Victoria, saying that it had not been firmly decided where the money was to go.

Mr Rosier replied that the money was to be channelled through the Government, and it would simply be an embarrassment to them if it were not earmarked for something definite.

Victoria felt that the fact that the money was for the U.S.P. smacked of "the boys looking after themselves".

Students were raising money simply for the benefit of other students.

This was not good public relations.

Canterbury supported Victoria, and suggested that the money could be earmarked for more than one thing.

A motion to this effect was moved and passed later in the meeting.