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Page13 May 1997
Dear Friends and Comrades
Last Thursday as you know, the joint staff and student National Day of Action for Publicly Funded Education was an unqualified success, with around 15,000 people participating in marches, rallies and meetings across the country. The Melbourne rally culminated in an occupation at the Melbourne University Administration Building. Melbourne Uni draw students attention as it was the first institution in Australia to take advantage of government legislation and introduce up front fees for a proportion of domestic undergraduate students in 1998.
The hugely successful 25 hour long occupation of the Melbourne University administration building was a wonderful example of how we can come together, work in solidarity and involve hundreds and thousands of people in the fight for publicly funded education.
This action, which occurred in conjunction with occupations at Adelaide and Sydney Universities was an experience which inspired and empowered many. The Friday rally outside the occupation attracted around 1000 supporters; today at Melbourne Uni, around 250 people rallied again to fight against user pays education.
The Occupation received dozens of messages of support from student and staff organisations across the country, from Trades Hall Council here in Victoria and from the Council for Civil Liberties. And when the remaining students left the building to end the occupation at 5pm on Friday, there were hundreds of supporters cheering and chanting as they exited.
As always, our actions are all about getting people involved and getting our message out there. So this letter is to thank you for your help, support and work in making the occupation happen.
For all the people who sent messages of support, for those who brought food or donated money, people who sang and slept (or tried to) downstairs, to the wonderful staff of the Union House at Melbourne Uni, to the Farrago editors for the office, to all student organisations who helped and sent people to the Friday rally, to the National Tertiary Education Union and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, to the members of the legal profession who offered advice and help free of charge, to all of those who offered their support time and energy:
A VERY BIG THANK YOU!
Cheers, the Occupiers and the External Support Team
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