Welcome back to the Glass coverage of the Guild Student Representative Council (SRC) Meetings of 2024. This is our coverage of the August meeting held on Thursday September 5th, 2024, at E-152 Kelvin Grove Campus.
We will be bringing students coverage of these meetings throughout the year, so you have insight into all the goings-on in your SRC.
These meetings include the motions that Guild Executives and other students put forward for the SRC to vote on, and which will directly impact your university experience. This is our eighth council meeting of 2024.
All current students can attend SRC meetings. If you want to see change on campus, we encourage you to put forward a motion to the SRC.
COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
You can find the meeting minutes here.
You can also access the meeting agenda and documents associated with motions raised at the meeting in this folder.
AND WE’RE OFF!
The meeting was opened at 5:39pm by the Chair Michael Pendergast and began with an Acknowledgement of Country.
Michael began with a role call for the meeting with the following officers in attendance: President James Reid, Secretary Sebastian Page, Education Officer Isabella Foley, CIESJ Councillor Erin Milne, Science Councillor Daniel Soltermann, Science Councillor Courtney-Elyce Lewis, Women’s Officer Lauren Cuthbert, Disability Officer Ethan Johnston, Health Councillor Maya Rawlinson, Engineering Councillor Georgie Dobbs, Environment Officer Milani Rawlinson.
Present (online): Welfare Officer Paulina Luisce, Clubs & Societies Officer Jake Olver, Treasurer Calissa Layden, Postgraduate Students Officer Malgorzata Fituch.
Apologies: Engagement Officer Erin Rayner, International Officer Jovan Fersando.
Absent: First Nations Officer AJ Lee, Business and Law councillor Hetal Patel, Business and Law councillor (Louis) Vu Phuong, Health Councillor Arya Chaudhari (who has been absent for two consecutive meetings).
On Leave: Engineering Councillor Jasper Vermeulen.
Lauren Cuthbert and Ethan Johnstone confirmed the minutes of the last meeting.
First up, Collective reports
The Disability Collective report was delivered by Disability Collective Convenor Michael Pendergast, who reported 128 members, which is an increase of four members since their last report, and a new record for the Collective! Michael also reported the Collective’s August meeting, and an upcoming movie night on Thursday 19th September in B304 KG at 5pm.
You can read the Disability Collective report here.
The Queer Collective Convenor, Peri Habermas, was not present for council. The Collective reported 318 members, which is an increase of 24 new members since their last report! They held their last meeting on August 5th where they discussed upcoming events and funding. Their next meeting is scheduled for September 20th.
You can read the Queer Collective report here.
NEXT UP, MOTIONS
Motion One: The QUT Guild should publicise the results of the SGM
Last month, the QUT Guild held a Special General Meeting (SGM) for Palestine, where students were given the opportunity to vote on whether QUT should cut ties with Israel and divest from weapons companies. More than 650 students attended, the vast majority of which voted ‘yes’. This motion asks that the QUT Guild post the results of the SGM on social media and publish the meeting minutes on their website. You can read the full motion here.
This motion was moved by Erin Milne, CIESJ Councillor and SAlt member. “I just think there’s been very little coverage from the Guild post SGM, and I think that’s really a shame. I think it really makes it out like this wasn’t as historic and significant as really it was,” said Erin.
The motion was seconded by Isabella Foley, Education Officer and SAlt member, who spoke about the importance of publicising the SGM results. “I think the message that [this] sends students is actually that the QUT Guild is embarrassed by this historic decision…. This motion is being moved because we think that the QUT Guild needs to immediately just post the results of the student general meeting on its social media and actually make a public statement about how the Guild is now a pro Palestine organisation,” said Isabella.
In response to this, James Reid, President, had a point of information that publishing the SGM results is the responsibility of the Guild Professional Staff (GPS), who have been working towards it.
Sebastian Page, Secretary, who has been in conversation with the GPS, said the minutes will be out next week, and insisted that the Guild is definitely not embarrassed by the SGM, but that it takes time to get things like this done properly.
No one spoke up against the motion.
Lauren Cuthbert, Women’s Officer, spoke for the motion, saying that she understands it takes time to get these things posted but it does not look good that the Guild hasn’t said anything about the motion at all yet.
James explained again that things are underway and that he would do his best to speed along the process of publishing the SGM results.
Declan Kerr, a student and SAlt member, also spoke for the motion. “Remind me who runs the Guild again? The last I checked; it wasn’t actually the staff… I expect a little bit more expediency from our elected office bearers, really.” Declan also went on to say the only people who did any “serious” work for the SGM were SAlt members.
Sebastian responded by thanking Declan and the rest of SAlt for the work they did on the SGM, but pointed out that James, Calissa and himself, along with the GPS, had also done a lot of work as well, particularly the managerial administration work required for the meeting. “As James said before, all of you guys [the mover and seconded of the motion] have the same access to the GPS that all three of us do. I think that it’s not the right thing to say that it lies on us completely. You also have the ability as office bearers to talk to them directly… I think you could have talked to us a little bit more about it internally before you made a public statement like that.”
This led to a debate over who should take responsibility over the Guild’s lack of posting about the SGM, between SAlt and members of the SRC. The motion was put to a vote. The votes are as follows.
For: Sebastian Page, Calissa Leyden, Paulina Luisce, Isabella Foley, Lauren Cuthbert, Malgorzata Fituch, Georgie Dobbs, Courtney Elyce-Lewis, Daniel Soltermann, Erin Milne, Ethan Johnstone, Milani Rawlinson, Maya Rawlinson, Jake Olver.
Against: None.
Abstain: James Reid.
The motion passed.
Motion Two: Defend the CMFEU
This motion calls for the QUT Guild to stand with the CMFEU rank and rile, Max Chandler-Mather, and against the media smear campaign against construction workers and unionism.
This motion was moved by Declan Kerr, who spoke about how important it is for students to defend construction workers. “What they’re basically being accused of is effectively defending their employees and their workers who have been going on strike over safety for the past two months… It’s also important for student unions to take stands like this defending workers’ rights because actually there’s a long history of solidarity between students and the construction workers. Construction workers built our university.” You can read the full motion here.
James Reid, seconded the motion, saying that unions are one of the most important mechanisms for defending workers’ rights.
Daniel Soltermann, Science Councillor and SAlt member, spoke for the motion. “This is what the Labor government is trying to wreck and destroy any chances of workers fighting back during a cost-of-living crisis, so I think we need to condemn the Australia Labour Party (ALP) to the highest order really and stand with construction workers.”
Elowyn Gampe, a student and SAlt member, also spoke in favour of the motion. “We’ve seen the ALP not actually care about workers’ rights and repeatedly sell out workers constantly again and again and attack the right for unions to actually put up for the safety of workers on their work sites.”
Erin Milne moved a motion to suspend standing orders to allow for two extra speakers on the motion since there were no speakers against. Speakers were allowed five minutes to speak, and with a 35-minute cap on the discussion. The motion passed unanimously.
Isabella Foley spoke for the motion, where she addressed Sebastian personally, criticising him for being affiliated with the Labor Party. “I think there’s nothing more disgusting than standing up for the Labor Party for no good reason when all they’re doing actually right now is attacking workers, not just the CFMEU, but around the country, attacking millions of working class people… next time you want to say that you know the ALP is a workers’ party, maybe have a shred of evidence under your belt before you say something so disgusting… It’s actually shameful that you would say such a thing in one of the biggest attacks on the union movement in recent Australian history…You should genuinely be ashamed of yourself for being a member of such a disgusting party.”
Sebastian defended himself by saying he agrees with everything that Isabella said. “You have to remember that the crux of what Labor is, is a social democratic party which stands to benefit the wider society.”
This began a debate between Sebastian and multiple members of SAlt, who continued to talk over the Chair when he called for order. The Chair used the gavel and threatened to start naming people in order to regain control of the room.
No one spoke against the motion.
Declan had a right of reply before the motion went to a vote. “Every worker has a right to come home safely from work and every worker has a right to actually fight for their paying conditions without being dragged through the mud by the Labor Party or the right-wing press.”
The motion was put to a vote. The votes are as follows.
For: Erin Milne, Isabella Foley, Daniel Soltermann, James Reid, Georgie Dobbs, Paulina Luisce, Lauren Cuthbert, Ethan Johnstone, Milani Rawlinson, Courtney Elyce-Lewis, Maya Rawlinson, Jake Olver, Malgorzata Fituch.
Against: None.
Abstain: Sebastian Page, Calissa Leyden.
The motion passed.
Motion Three: Solidarity with the Bangladeshi students
This motion asks that the QUT Guild stands in solidarity with Bangladeshi students in retaliation to protest against their government. You can read the full motion here.
This motion was moved by Georgie Dobbs, Engineering Councillor.“What the Bangladeshi students have done actually was they raised a campaign to fight back against this in an explosive movement that took to the streets, and I think it’s just incredibly important that we shine a light on these kinds of protests and show solidarity with them. I think it’s also incredibly inspiring that just the feat of this, to be able to topple such a dictatorship and in the face of such extreme police and state repression as well,” said Georgie.
The motion was seconded by Erin Milne.
Sebastian asked if there are any current Bangladeshi students at QUT, to which Jake Olver, Clubs and Societies Officer, answered. “I have received an email from the executive of the Bangladeshi Student Association, and there are current QUT students who are affected by this situation.”
Sebastian asked what support these students need, to which Jake said he would follow it up on behalf of the SRC.
Paulina Luisce, Welfare Officer, spoke up about the Bangladeshi club at QUT, and the support services she helped provide them with, after being in touch with the club’s president.
James asked what sparked the protest, to which Elowyn Gampe responded, “Basically, the government which is a dictatorship wanted to set up quotas in the government ensuring that a larger number of pro-dictatorship people who are involved in the overthrow of the previous government were like given a larger section of the government jobs, which are like basically the only stable jobs in Bangladesh… This is a horrible dictatorship that’s just supporting itself and making and looking after only its own people as people die again and again in Bangladeshi textile factories.”
James had a point of information on this, saying “In a country with huge wealth inequality and modern-day slavery for a lot of the population there, this was an aspirational job to escape a lot of those things. And that takes a long time to get to those government jobs, similar to any government job anywhere, it requires a lot of training, a long time preparing for those things, like starting at university years, which is expensive and time consuming. Imagine sending years of your life study just to have it taken away just like that without being asked.”
Isabella also spoke for the motion, saying “I think this is one of the most impressive displays of power of students uniting to topple a government that works to basically disenfranchise all of them…I think as student unionists, we have to show solidarity with the student unionists in Bangladesh who have actually organised these massive, massive protests and basically, straight battles with the cops to say that we demand democracy, we demand equality, and we demand a life that is worth living.”
No one spoke against the motion. Georgie had right of reply, and said she wanted to get a photo of everyone at the end of the meeting to show solidarity with the Bangladeshi students.
The motion was put to a vote. The votes are as follows.
For: James Reid, Sebastian Page, Calissa Leyden, Paulina Luisce, Isabella Foley, Lauren Cuthbert, Ethan Johnstone, Milani Rawlinson, Jake Olver, Georgie Dobbs, Daniel Soltermann, Erin Milne, Courtney Elyce-Lewis, Maya Rawlinson, Malgorzata Fituch.
Against: None.
Abstain: None.
The motion passed.
Motion Four: Justice for Mano Yogalingam: stand in solidarity with refugees
This motion calls for the QUT Guild to stand with the ongoing campaign for refugee rights and supports the demand for permanent visas affordable all refugees, and to condemn to the Labor government for failing to issue permanent visas to vulnerable refugees and protect them against racial attacks. You can read the full motion here.
The motion was moved by Yuanyi Tham, a student and SAlt member, who said “When Labor was first elected into office, they gave 19,000 permanent visas to refugees and then just left these 12,000 others to remain in the state of limbo… It’s disgraceful actually that the Labor government and Australia in general prides itself on multiculturalism, on diversity, of being like incredibly welcoming to people from other countries and yet treats their refugees like absolute dog shit.”
Elowyn Gampe seconded the motion, who said “This motion is a decry of Labor’s failure to stand up for refugees and we shouldn’t be surprised Labor has continued to be racist and failed to defend anyone from further attacks from the right.”
Isabella also spoke for the motion.
When asked if anyone else wanted to speak on the motion, Isabella singled out Sebastian, urging him to speak on the matter, saying “How do you justify saying that you want a political career in a party like this?”
When Sebastian replied that he agreed with the motion and everything that was said, Isabella continued to pressure him to speak, and the two broke into a debate. The Chair called for order and used the gavel to regain control of the room. The Chair said that if Sebastian didn’t want to speak on the motion, he was free to do so. Debate broke out again, between SAlt and Sebastian, which led to Isabella calling Sebastian a coward for not speaking. Once again, the Chair was forced to use the gavel to call for order in the meeting, and as personal attacks go against the Guild Regulations, the Chair asked Isabella to withdraw her comment about Sebastian, which she refused to do. As a result, the Chair named Isabella once (being “named” three times by the Chair in a council meeting, results in being removed from the meeting).
Here’s the exact excerpt cited by the Chair from the Guild Regulations document for all you curious kids.
R6: Member Conduct (page 7)
6.3: No person may personally insult another person in attendance or use offensive or disorderly language at the meeting. Such conduct shall be dealt with according to the following:
(a) The Chair shall ask the offending person to withdraw the insult or offensive or disorderly language and to apologise;
(b) If a person has drawn the attention of the Chair to an insult or offensive or disorderly language, the Chair shall make a ruling on whether or not the comments were insulting, offensive or disorderly and rule whether they should be withdrawn and an apology given;
(c) The Chair may name a person who insults another person in attendance or who uses offensive or disorderly language.
No one wished to speak against the motion, so Declan moved a motion to add two new speakers for the motion. This motion was put to a vote and passed. The votes to add two new speakers to the motion are as follows:
For: James Reid, Sebastian Page, Calissa Leyden, Isabella Foley, Georgie Dobbs, Daniel Soltermann, Erin Milne, Paulina Luisce, Lauren Cuthbert, Ethan Johnstone, Malgorzata Fituch, Milani Rawlinson, Courtney Elyce-Lewis, Maya Rawlinson
Against: None.
Abstain: Jake Olver.
Declan then spoke for the motion, saying “I’ve had enough of hearing people say that they oppose their party’s position and then say nothing about it publicly, and do nothing, and abstain from the refugee campaign, because enough people have died, enough people have been injured, enough people have been self-immolated in concentration camps set up by our country, set up by both the Liberal and the Labor Party!”
Ethan Johnstone, Disability Officer, also spoke for the motion, saying “I very strongly believe that no person is illegal on stolen land…Ultimately, we need a massive overhaul of the way that we currently treat refugees…We shouldn’t be denying access because no one chooses to be a refugee.”
The motion was put to a vote and passed unanimously.
For: Isabella Foley, Erin Milne, Daniel Soltermann, Georgie Dobbs, Ethan Johnstone, James Reid, Sebastian Page, Calissa Leyden, Paulina Luisce, Malgorzata Fituch, Lauren Cuthbert, Milani Rawlinson, Jake Olver, Courtney Elyce-Lewis, Maya Rawlinson.
Against: None.
Abstain: None.
CASUAL VACANCIES
There were two casual vacancies that needed to be filled during this meeting, one for Queer Officer and one for CIESJ Faculty Councillor. Applicants for the positions were given five minutes to give their presentations, and allowed to answer two questions, before the SRC took a vote.
QUEER OFFICER
There were two applicants for the position of Queer Officer, Lauren Cuthbert (current Women’s Officer), and Katrina Paul, both of whom were physically present for the meeting.
Applicant One: Lauren Cuthbert
Lauren is a 24-year-old asexual biromantic woman, who has worked as both Engagement Officer and Deputy Convenor of the Queer Collective, as well as her current role as Women’s Officer. She also spent 5 years volunteering at Headspace. In the past, she has assisted in the preparation of the Collective’s Welcome Week, Community Day, Respect Week and Wear it Purple Day stalls. “My time as Women’s Officer has given me an incredibly valuable insight on how I could assist students…Being on the SRC has also allowed me to step into the position of Acting Queer Officer, in which I coordinated the Guild’s recent involvement in Wear a Purple Day, as well as a number of other initiatives. I’m deeply committed to advocating for the rights and well being of queer students here at QT, and I believe my experience and dedication may be an excellent fit for this role.”
Ethan asked what sorts of things Lauren planned to do for students in this position.
Lauren replied, saying that she would like to expand on a binder drive that the Guild has done in the past, to include things like makeup and undergarments that trans people may benefit from. Lauren said she would also like to implement more safe sex resources, awareness stalls and queer focused events.
Applicant Two: Katrina Paul
Katrina uses they/them pronouns and is a first-year student studying Psychology and Justice Security. “I would like to say my queer identity is not why I think I’d be an ideal candidate for Queer Officer, but my experiences, understanding of social political issues, and absolute overwhelming passion for dismantling bigoted ideals that hurt queer people.” Katrina mentioned that years of organising scouting and charity fundraisers has made them confident, resourceful, and organised. “I value continuous learning about queer issues and engage actively with my peers every chance I can to learn more about their experiences and things that haven’t affected me directly.”
James asked Katrina what kinds of activities and events they had organised.
Katrina said they had successfully organised fundraisers in the past for people in their community whose houses had burned down. Katrina has also worked on the Live Like Her challenge, which is fundraising for homeless women, specifically those over the age of 60, as the homeless rates of women in Australia are rising.
CIESJ Faculty Councillor
Applicant One: Elowyn Gampe
Elowyn Gampe was the only applicant for the CIESJ Faculty Councillor position. Elowyn is a member of Left Action (SAlt) and spoke about how passionate she is about getting students involved in activist campaigns. “As a union, it’s our duty to fight for the rights and interests of students. We’re facing course cuts, a cost-of-living crisis, the militarisation of higher education, environmental destruction, a racist state continuing to attack indigenous people and refugees and major institutions like QUT and the QUT admin and the Labor government directly supporting a genocide in Palestine… it’s our responsibility to take a stand on every single issue. I’m a socialist. That means taking up every issue and every fight.”
James asked Elowyn how the student body would benefit having her in the position of CIESJ Councillor.
Elowyn responded, saying students want an end to the genocide in Palestine, and that it was important to represent them. Elowyn stated that every councillor should be advocating for this.
After the presentations, Milani moved a motion for the voting to be done in-camera, meaning that only SRC members could be present in the room for the voting process. The votes are as follows:
For: James Reid, Sebastian Page, Calissa Leyden, Paulina Luisce, Malgorzata Fituch, Ethan Johnstone, Milani Rawlinson, Courtney Elyce-Lewis, Maya Rawlinson.
Against: Isabella Foley, Georgie Dobbs, Daniel Soltermann, Erin Milne.
Abstain: Lauren Cuthbert, Jake Olver.
The motion passed.
VOTING & DISCUSSION DONE IN-CAMERA
The new Queer Officer is Lauren Cuthbert.
The new CIESJ Faculty Councillor is Elowyn Gampe.
QUESTION TIME
Erin asked for an update for access to the communication documentation between the University and members of the SRC, in regards to a motion that was moved and passed during the last council meeting, ‘Student Democracy is Not Negotiable’.
Sebastian, who has been in contact with the Registrar, has been told he is not able to give an update on the situation yet.
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The chair closed the meeting closed at 8:27pm. The next council meeting is scheduled for October 3rd.
