On March 31 the Monash Student Council voted to dock Education Officer Omar Hassan's pay for a fortnight. His crime? His public association with the Students for Palestine campaign. Omar has been an outspoken supporter of the Palestinian cause and has now been fined $340 because of it. This follows the Council's decision at the beginning of the year to refuse to condemn Israel's war on Gaza.

Omar Hassan

This is a student union that has historically been at the forefront of the campaigns against the Vietnam War and against apartheid. Recently people holding the Education Officer position have set up and run the Refugee Action Collective and Monash Peace Group out of the Education Department. What's different about this campaign? The student union has succumbed to pressure from the University and Zionist students to have no involvement in this campaign. The morning after the Chancellor's office raised complaints about Omar's involvement in the campaign Monash Student Association (MSA) President Julian Campbell wrote a diatribe attacking Omar and proposing the docking his pay. All but one of those who voted to dock Omar's pay were members of the ALP Club, the ALP or a student Labor faction, dutifully following the poisonous Rudd/Gillard position that not a word should be uttered in the Palestinians' defence no matter how grave the atrocities against them.

As Omar said in a statement: "Why have they done this? Because I committed the crime of condemning the slaughter of over 1500 Palestinians in just three weeks. Because we dare to fight for a just end to the occupation of Palestinian territory. Because I had the temerity to believe that my student union can and should take a stand on this issue, even when it faces opposition from reactionary organisations."

In The Age Campbell said that the step of docking an officer's pay "is a last resort, only taken when people aren't doing their job". He has the temerity to say this about one of the most hard-working officials in the union, who as many will attest has been working since January from first thing in the morning until late at night most days, despite being officially part-time.

What those pushing the anti-Palestine agenda really object to is the way he is doing his job. They have said that Students for Palestine doesn't count. Actually, Omar's job description includes involving students in the Education Department, and over 50 students must have been involved in organising for Palestine Solidarity Week. It also includes conducting research and holding events that are educational for students, and Omar organised the largest public forum so far this year, with 170 students attending the Antony Loewenstein forum.

As one of Omar's supporters said, they are hiding their nefarious agenda behind quasi-legal arguments that are baseless. Omar's co-office bearer, Gemma Buckley (who is also a member of the ALP club) revealed this agenda when she said she sees her job as taking up issues that concern "Australian students". This is disgusting dog-whistle politics, hinting that the student union is there for "Aussies" only. This theme has been persistent through the student union's discussions of Palestine.

Many students have rallied to Omar's defence. Eighteen students attended a subsequent Monash Student Council meeting to show their support. Julian Campbell himself acknowledged with great annoyance the volume of phone calls he has received about this issue (although those who have called report that he mostly hangs up on people!) Student unions, including the Sydney Uni Postgrad Association and the University of Western Sydney Student Union, have passed motions in support. Omar's case has also been taken up by the wider community, with Australians for Palestine offering legal advice and one man offering to fund a legal battle should Omar pursue this in the courts. Friends of Palestine in Perth have been collecting signatures to a petition in Omar's support.

Omar was elected on a progressive, anti-war platform and is now being targeted for it. Stand up for free speech at Monash by defending his right to be publicly associated with the Palestine solidarity movement.

Tell MSA President Julian Campbell what you think. Call (03) 9905 3141 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . You can find out more about the campaign at www.studentsforpalestine.wordpress.com.