How was it born and what are doing?
The student movement in Sri Lanka is not a recent development. It has a history of at least several decades. The current driving force of that student movement is the Inter-University Student Union.
It was once known by the short name ‘Avishibama’, but today everyone in this country is familiar with ‘Antare’.
Since Antare is often talked about these days, and Antare University student body has been a constant news maker for the past time, we made an inquiry from its history.
The beginning of the student movement
In 1935, the Sama Samaja Party started as the first left-wing political party in Sri Lanka and managed to attract the student community to left-wing ideas. Since then, the student movement has operated in a shape that is inclined to left-wing ideas. The first struggle in the history of Sri Lankan universities started for egg in the year 1949 at Peradeniya University. This struggle was implemented by demanding a whole egg for the university students instead of the half egg they get in their diet. Around that time, a struggle was also launched demanding a private car park where students could park their vehicles.However, in the 1960s, when all the schools in Sri Lanka were taken under the control of the government, and with the opportunity to study in the Sinhala language, children from ordinary families in Sri Lanka were also given the opportunity to join the universities(Until then, university education was available only to a privileged few in the society)As a result, the student movement expanded, and it started moving along a new path politically.
Starting “Anthare”
The Inter-University Student Union nominally started on June 18, 1969 at the University of Peradeniya. The first convener was Malcolm Wijesinghe of the university’s student union.The main phenomenon that led to this was the conflict between the students of the University of Peradeniya and the police on December 5, 1965, in which both sides were seriously injured. However, it became formally operational in the late 70s.In 1978, Antare University Student Union was established formally and organized by all the university student associations that existed in Sri Lanka at that time. The first convener was the student of Peradeniya University, Shanta Banadara.Until then, Avishibama or Antare, who stood for the students’ demands, started intervening for people’s rights in 1978 with the struggle against the cut of Rice coupon(HAL POTHA).Since then, they have been struggling for many issues including free education and people’s demands, and through that, they have won many things for the country.
Defeating the Education White Paper
In 1982, the Education White Paper brought by the United National Party government was a topic that led to controversy in this country. Lowering the compulsory education threshold from grade 09 to grade 8 and providing a certificate at grade 8, removal of literature and history from school curriculum, introduction of continuous assessment in school education, government burden for school education expenditure. Reduction, abolition of grade five scholarship examination, introduction of cluster schools. these included proposals to start fee-paying private and semi-private schools and make English compulsory for university entrance. The Inter-University Student Union started a continuous struggle against this, which marched across the island. On January 20, 1982, when the bill was brought to the Parliament, tens of thousands of students and the public besieged the Parliament (currently the President’s Secretariat) and staged a demonstration. There, the government deployed the police and carried out a massive repression by launching an inhumane attack, which caused great displeasure towards the government. In the end, the government had to withdraw the relevant bill.
North Colombo (Ragama) Medical College Battle
The North Colombo Private Medical College under the process of privatization of education was started in 1981 through a gazette notification under the University Amendment Act No. 16 of 1978. It was opposed from the beginning. A huge struggle started with the slogan of ‘nationalizing the private medical college’, and a number of student leaders including the student Padmasiri Trimavithana, who led the struggle, were killed. However, due to the continuous struggle, the private college was nationalized and it was attached to Kelaniya University.
Strong suppression to Antare
During this time, the Inter-University Student Union was severely suppressed. Especially from 1986 to 1990, all the leaders of the Inter-University Student Union were killed in the Battle of North Colombo and the 1987-1990 rebellion.Ranjitham Gunaratnam, Macchagama Senaratne, Nimal Balasuriya. Venura Edirisinghe, Udeni Bandula Dissanayake, Sisira Kirti Jayawardena, Atula Senaratne etc. were among them.Even today, a slogan is heard among the slogans of Antare: ‘Api yanne Koi pare – Trima Venura Giya Pare’ because they sacrificed their lives back then. IN addition, more than 600 university students were killed during that time. However, the battle ended with the government taking over the concerned private university. Even today, it is functioning as a medical faculty producing hundreds of doctors annually in this country.
SAITAM Struggle
The student fight against SAITAM Private Medical College in Malambe which started in 2008 is another huge struggle in the student movement in Sri Lanka. This struggle and the Battle of Ragama spread throughout this island. Almost all the defendants, social activists supported it. This struggle, which lasted for a year with agitations, token strikes, class strikes, continuous Satyagrahas, marches and even deadly hunger strikes, was carried out under massive repression including cancellation of studentships, imprisonments and kidnappings.Janaka Bandara of Kelaniya University and Sisitha Priyankara (Janaka – Sisitha) of Ruhunu University disappeared in 2012 during this SAITAM battle. However, in the end SAITAM Private Medical College was abolished, and it went down in history as a struggle that ended the student movement with victory.
The fight against the private university bill in Kotalawala
The struggle to repeal the Kotalawala Act is another important battle of the student movement. This bill was first brought by the good governance government. However, this bill was withdrawn due to student protests, and Gotabhaya Rajapaksa’s government again presented the same bill. There, Antare took to the streets and struggled against it, and although the repression was mild, the government had to withdraw the bill again.
The flame of struggle
Antare was able to play a prominent role in the common people’s struggle in this country which started from Gallumudoori last April 09. In particular, they worked to bring new life to the Gallumudoora struggle at the time of need, doing justice to the epithet ‘Flame of Struggle’. On several occasions when the excitement of the struggle was waning, they traveled around the country and came to Colombo in large numbers. It raised hopes for the struggle again and again across the country.
Coming, bathing, going
However, in the midst of all this, for some time now, there has been an angry opinion about the student movement among the general public. People complain that despite frequent protests by blocking the roads and affecting the daily lives of the common people, there is no result. For some reason, it has happened to the point where inter-university activities are referred to with the derisive term ‘coming, bathing, going’. In addition to this, the Inter-University student body has been able to achieve more social and political achievements. Win, School Development Act 1993, Srinath Dias Committee Report 2001,2001 Regaining Sri Lanka Program, 2001 Private Universities Act, 2002 Community Boards Act, 2003 Ruhuna Sarasavama Management Faculty Struggle, 2005 Tara Haroldi Report. 2005 Mahapola bursary struggle. Private University Act 2012, Mahapola Bursary 2014 etc. are some of the cases that actively contributed.The inter-university student body, which has a left-wing political shape by nature, has from time to time been connected to various political organizations and movements and has been dividing power. However, just like then, the student movement is actively intervening to win free education and people’s demands.