The ragging will be limited to three weeks and the first week is going to be completely alcohol free. Lund’s Faculty of Engineering has taken that decision in a policy decision. The Union of Technology Students, Teknologkåren, feel completely disregarded.
“The reception days during week 0, day time and night time will be alcohol free up until Friday 5 p.m.” That’s what it says in “the Policy for reception of entrants at the Faculty of Engineering” which the rector of the Faculty of Engineering, Anders Axelsson has decided on together with the department head Elisabeth Gersbro-Bülow. The Union of Technology Students feel completely disregarded.
Photo: Archive/Jens Hunt
“The Faculty of Engineering and the Union of Technology Students have agreed to collaborate around the ragging, but the Faculty of Engineering presented the policy decision without including us in the discussion from the beginning. The Union of Technology Students have not been able to establish the decision among the students. We wanted to write the policy together with the Faculty of Engineering but they haven’t showed much interest,” says Björn Hansson, chair person at the Union of Technology Students at the Faculty of Engineering.
“The management are using sweeping arguments concerning values and the Faculty of Engineering’s brand and in addition how students should be treated equal to the employees. The set of problems they are communicating is in other words very unclear and most importantly they haven’t invited us to a discussion for a collaboration in making the policy,” says Björn Hansson.
“A punch in the gut”
The new decision has already come into force and will be implemented during the autumn semester for the first time.
“We realise that the ragging at the Faculty of Engineering isn’t perfect and we are prepared to work on it and move it forward. It feels like a punch in the gut when the Faculty of Engineering assert that they have to stick to the policy instead of opening up for a closer collaboration.”
What will the direct consequences be?
“It will be difficult to collaborate with the Faculty of Engineering when they claim to have the authority over the student union.”
What will be the consequences for phös, the mentors and the freshmen this autumn?
“For the time being it’s only possible to speculate.”
It has worked fine previous years
The Faculty of Engineering and the Union of Technology Students have been collaborating for a long time concerning the ragging by for instance making the schedule together and appointing mentors who help out during both day time and nigh time activities during the first week. Now the collaboration is shaken to its foundations.
“I think that it has, if not completely problem free, worked out fine during previous years. The question of fact concerns a violation of the independence of the student union and the Faculty of Engineering tries to control what the union should and shouldn’t do.”
What do you think about banning alcohol during the first week of ragging?
“We haven’t decided yet. At present it is about the collaboration and the lack of respect from the Faculty of Engineering towards the non-profit work of the students,” says Björn Hansson.
READ MORE: Alcohol banned during the technology students’ ragging
Text: Carl-Johan Kullving
Translation: Mia Söllwander
