Have the sit-ins been succesful?

Looking at the demands that have been met and the responses elicited from universities the question about the success of the sit-ins is one that has not even been properly discussed yet. The organisers unsurprisingly claim victory on almost all occasions but so what? You'd expect nothing less.


What statements have we seen from universities? Ambiguous ones at best. The humanitarian aid demands have been met most of the time but that's not much of a victory because a polite letter or request would most likely have achieved the same thing. Ask most students who oppose the sit-ins and their response to the humanitarian demands is most likely one of qualified support; support for humanitarian aid but concern about why its only for Palestinians and not equally needy people elsewhere in the world. Generally though we could all agree on sending aid (old books and computers especially) and fundraising for worthwhile charities.

Some of the groups and individuals claiming success point to the sheer number and that perhaps gives a clue as to the real success of the sit-ins. The main aim has surely been about recruitment to some of the far left campuses groups and an attempt to re-invigorate an activist base that has been decimated by weak, divided leadership and lack of tangible victories. The stage storming at the NUS Conference on governance and reform was the clearest example of this as the protest had nothing to do with Gaza and everything to do with an upcoming defeat in a vote (and the wider defeat in a campaign against the 'governance review').

In many cases university authorities are allowing the protesters to claim victory so as not to further antagonise them and to strengthen the appearance that a genuine compromise has been reached. A prime example would be LSE where very little was achieved beyond the humanitarian demands (many of which already happen at a student union level). The university agreed to continue a process which was already in place especially around ethical investment.

What about the wider student movement? Have they become more sympathetic to the cause espoused by the protests? Well no, not really. NUS Conference (again) which had students from across the country reacted with anger and disgust as hundreds of students literally turned their backs on Rob Owen or walked out the room as he spoke. Petitions, Facebook groups and letters of opposition to the sit-ins have been prominent and the vast majority of the NUS executive have come out against them too. Durham took a similar set of demands to referendum and lost.

The saddest thing about this otherwise laughable situation is that a genuine opportunity was missed to rally the student movement around pushing for peace in the Middle East because the agenda was once more hijacked.