A row over capping book sale zones has meant the New Zealand Universities Students Association is facing a crisis. Otago has withdrawn from Easter Council and is withholding the remainder of this year's levies in lieu of its intended withdrawal from the National Association.

This the first time Otago has threatened to withdraw from N.Z.U.S.A. and is the first time it will not have attended an Easter Council. Otago student politicians are concerned about the selling of foreign Capping Books to markets which in the past, by gentlemen's agreement, have been deemed to belong to the local distributors.

Capping Committee and the executive have unanimously declared that unless the gentlemen's agreement is made legally binding, Otago should not attend N.Z.U.S.A Easter Council.

Only Canterbury responded favourably to the request for a legal agreement, all others effectively ignored the ultimatum. The student exec at Massey University passed a motion in responce (sic) stating:

Masskerade

That under no circumstances will Massey agree not to sell Masskerade south of the Waitaki River as demanded by the Otago University Students' Association and that under no circumstances will Massey agree to the introduction of restricted selling areas for Capping Magazines."

This year Massey University is printing at least 10,000 more copies of its magazine "Masskerade," which will bring the total number to about 60,000, twice as many as Otago. Obviously this indicates distribution well outside the Palmerston North district.

Other universities have reacted violently in the past to such pirating, and often foreign book-sellers have been assaulted and had their books and, in at least one recorded case, clothes burned by local students.

Auckland president, Michael Law, sent the following letter to Otago, which typifies the response from the other constituents of N.Z.U.S.A

Yours Sincerely?

Thank you for your kind telegram of 2nd March and your letter of 6th March. This mat was raised at a meeting of the A.U.S.A. executive on 5th March, and it was the consensus of the meeting that we adopt no resolution on the question of providing guarantees to any constituent over Capping Book Sales 1970.

When one comes to think about it, this is not really an unreasonable stand. No-one up here can remember the last occasion when Auckland sent sellers south of the Waitaki. After all, most Aucklanders would not know where the Waitaki is, and those who do would prefer to forget.

Then there is the question of population. As you yourself know, Dunedin would hardly pass as a full scale Auckland suburb, so there would seem to be little purpose in travelling so far south to such a small market.

Finally, we also thought about your threat to withdraw from Easter Council. I bet that the making of such a momentous decision on the part of your Executive made all the members feel really big. I suspect that when I read the minutes of your meeting I will find the next motion was to have this significant resolution hand-painted in gold lettering and hung in the Otago Union in time for all the voters to see at the next election.