SRC Motion on Palestine; R-24-07
Content Warning: the following makes reference to the Motion on Palestine. This may be distressing to those of you affected by on-going conflict. Support resources are included at the end of this page.
Introduction
The following page provides some information regarding the recent Motion on Palestine R-24-07, how it relates to charity law, and the limits of what the Students’ Association can do with respect to Palestine, or other global issues.
The Students’ Association condemns all forms of hate in our community, this includes racism, antisemitism, islamophobia, discrimination, and all forms of abuse. There are support resources at the end of this page, along with information on how to report abuse and harassment at University and externally.
The following is taken predominantly from summary guidance from NUS.
The Students’ Association and the SRC
When we say, ‘the Students’ Association’, we are usually referring to the organisation as a whole – the bars, the student reps, societies, subcommittees, and in particular its Board, which is made up of student reps and external appointees. The Board governs the charity and generally should not express any political views that don’t directly relate to its duties.
The Students’ Representative Council, on the other hand, is only one part of the Students’ Association. It is made up entirely of elected students and exists to represent student views. It isn’t allowed to campaign or spend money on matters that aren’t to do with students as students (see below), but it can take and express opinions on other matters on behalf of the student body. Any such view does not represent that of the Students’ Association as a charity, and particularly not that of the Board. It represents the view of the SRC only.
The motion & SRC
Motion on Palestine R-24-07 was presented to SRC on 19 March 2024. This was a motion by student petition. Details of the presenter and those who signed the petition have been anonymised at their request. The motion was intended to be discussed at SRC on 6 February, however this SRC was postponed at the request of the Board, before the motion could be presented to SRC. In the interim between the motion initially being shared with SRC to be added to its agenda, some edits were made to the motion with the agreement of the presenters to ensure that the motion was competent and did not exceed the SRC’s remit, though the aims and broad tone remained unchanged.
Following these edits, the motion passed unamended on 19 March 2024, and is due for review in January 2025.
Political activities at the Students’ Association (i.e. SRC motions) are bound by the following laws:
The Students’ Association is a charity, which means that we are also regulated by the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR).
We are also bound by our charitable objectives, as enshrined in our Constitution. These objectives cover; educational development and resources, community relations, extra-curricular development, and health and wellbeing. We also operate under the Nolan Principles of selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty, and leadership.
What the Students’ Association can do
The Students’ Association should according to charity law, use our resources to campaign on issues which affect “students as students.” This means that our focus should be on campaigning on issues that are directly related to student life, either specific to the University, or at a national level. Examples of “students as students” issues may include:
Through the SRC, in its present form, students can debate issues that do not affect students as students, and the SRC can reach and present their view on these issues to our members. The Students’ Association and SRC will do all it can to enact all actions suggested by an SRC motion, within the constraints outlined in the section below. Any actions that go beyond our charitable objectives, however, will not be enacted.
The Students’ Association can and will facilitate safe, respectful discussion and events around national and global issues, including Palestine, as per our charitable objectives to provide educational resources to our members. Through this, we will uphold academic freedom and freedom of expression (which is a human right, under Article 10 of the Human Rights Act, 1998). We will provide information about how students may safely and legally protest in the UK, through our Student Activism Guide. We will also act to support the wellbeing of our students.
We will continue to update our members on how this motion, and others in future, progress.
What the Students’ Association cannot do
The Students’ Association should not, according to charity law, use our resources to campaign on issues which do not affect “students as students.” In circumstances where a given campaign issue affects students as members of the community (local, national, or global), this is not a students as students issue. Examples of such issues include:
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National transport issues (such as pay disputes, strikes, or changes to timetables or routes, except where these would have a specific local effect).
“Campaign” here means that we should not spend money on implementing any position we reach through any debate on an issue not affecting students as students.
The Students’ Association, under charity law, is expressively forbidden from setting a position on a not students as students issue to the general public, which is where the distinction between the SRC and Students’ Association becomes important.
Next steps
In our role of supporting students as students, we are highlighting educational events on Palestine ran by students via our weekly sabbatical email. We are also helping to facilitate student events relating to the ongoing situation with access to our spaces.
Information about safe and legal protest action was shared in the Activism Guide in the first instance (linked with Resolves 6).
Q&A
All motions passed by SRC will have a ‘review date'. This means SRC will check in to see that any actions approved in the original motion have been progressed, where relevant, and whether the SRC’s position on the issue needs to be updated or revised.
The below is taken from some NUS guidance, to explain the difference between a students as students issue, and issues which do not pass this test:
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Permitted campaign issues - Affects students as students so therefore the Students’ Association can use its own funds and facilities to campaign on this
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Restricted campaign issues - Doesn’t affect students as students so the Students’ Association shouldn’t use its own funds and facilities to campaign on this
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Against tuition fee or maintenance loan policy changes
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Against reform for the pre-university school system
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In favour of increasing local transport provision (as relevant to students, for example commuters)
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In favour of nationalising railways
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Pro scholarships, including for those affected by global conflict
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Against military action being taken by the UK or another state
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You can contact the charity regulator, OSCR, if you have concerns that we are not operating in line with charity law or our objectives. You can find out more about OSCR and how to contact them via their website.
Support resources
Student Services and the Chaplaincy are always available to provide support to students experiencing personal difficulties. You can book an appointment to speak to a Student Services counsellor through their website or by emailing [email protected] . You can also visit the ASC at Eden Court on The Scores. You can organise to speak with a chaplain by emailing [email protected] or dropping by the Mansefield building at St Mary’s Place opposite the Students’ Association. All meetings are confidential unless there is an immediate risk of serious harm to yourself or someone else, and you can talk to anyone about how you are feeling regardless of whether you wish to report an incident or not.
Reporting instances of abuse and harassment to the University
Instances of abuse, harassment, and discrimination may be reported under the University’s Non-Academic Misconduct policy. You can disclose these directly to Student Conduct by emailing them on [email protected].
You can also use the University’s Report and Support tool to disclose an incident, either anonymously or with contact details. The website has further information on definitions of abuse, harassment and discrimination, as well as links to external and internal support services. When you disclose an incident, you will be asked which department you would like to deal with your report – there is also a ‘don’t know’ option, and any report you make will be reviewed by Student Services and sent to the relevant department to respond to. The target response time for an initial disclosure is three working days. Following a disclosure with contact details, you will be invited to an initial meeting with Student Conduct to discuss the reporting process and whether you would like to go forward with a formal report. The target response time for this step is three working days. No processes will be initiated without your permission unless there is an immediate risk of harm to yourself or another person.
You can also pick up a copy of the ‘What Now?’ guide to report and support options following an experience of harassment or a hate-related incident from the ASC or the Students’ Association building for a comprehensive walk-through.
It is important to note that while reporting anonymously helps the University to understand and identify patterns of incidents within the St Andrews community, if you do not provide contact details the University can’t get in touch with you to discuss making a formal report, opening an investigation if possible, or signposting you to support options following your experience. You will be given a unique case number following the submission of an anonymous disclosure, which you can refer to if you decide to come forward with contact details in future.
Reporting to the police
If you wish to report an incident as a crime, you can contact the police. You can report an incident after the fact by calling 101. If you would like to report a hate crime on behalf of someone else, you can go to the Student Services building, Eden Court, on the Scores as one of Scotland’s listed Third Party Reporting centres.
Reporting externally
If you would like to disclose incidents through organisations external to the University, you can report incidents of antisemitism to the Community Security Trust, and incidents of Islamophobia to Tell Mama.