UMSU Activist

It was our generation that marched out of the schools to oppose this war when it started. Our generation is being asked by the military recruiters at campuses up and down the country to pay the blood price for Tony Blair’s decisions. The military propaganda tells you that a life in the army is one were you learn a skill, pay off your education debts and have exciting experiences around the world.

Horrific Reality

The reality is different. There are 273 families in the UK today, who mourn at the graves of their sons and daughters. There are thousands more, who have lost their limbs. Who will never walk or see again. The military propaganda doesn’t remind potential recruits about this - it just tells you how exciting it is to parachute out of plane. They don’t remind you that you might have to shoot at a family, or press a button to drop a bomb on a village - but millions of Iraqis and Afghans know the other side of military recruitment.

Military recruitment is about selling a lie to young men and women, the campaign by Military Families Against the War shows that after 5 years of conflict many serving soldiers no longer want to pay the ultimate price for Bush and Blair’s lies.

We are constantly told there is no money for education. The longer this war continues, the longer the military is fed the young men and women of our university, the longer they will be able to pour precious money into the war: money that should be spent on Universities, hospitals and schools.

Motion 3 at Wednesday’s General Meeting is part of a national campaign initiated by the Stop the War Coalition, to stop military recruiters from using the resources of our Students’ Unions to seduce young people into war. The Students’ Union is our organisation, its buildings are our buildings and its resources are our resources. This motion is aimed at stopping our Union being used as a base for military recruiters. The motion does not call for the various military clubs - such as the Officers Training Corps - to be shut down, but does call for them to be banned from using Students’ Union facilities. This already happens in practice, and is based on annually renewed Union Executive decisions. We believe that as a democratic organisation, this Union should be used to both promote peace and to protect our members from exploitation.

Opposition to War and the recruitment crisis

The illegal and murderous occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan are overwhelmingly opposed by the British public. The vast majority of people can see that the occupations are destroying both countries, and they can also see that young people are being killed for nothing but the vulgar projection of military power.

The massive opposition to War has created a recruitment and credibility crisis for the military, and it has tried to fill the gap by targeting the young and the underprivileged. The Army’s website gushes “How would you like to learn vital life skills, face exciting challenges and make loads of new friends - while being paid for the privilege?”, conveniently ignoring the fact that the Army recruits people to fight, die and kill in massively unpopular wars. Military recruitment often targets people who are less well off and this includes students; as education costs and student debt rises, the military plays up its scholarship schemes that offer the prospect of a bursary and employment.

Propaganda, Lies and protecting our soldiers

However, it is not only for the policy of targeting the less well-off that we should oppose military recruitment. The attempts to glamourize Army life – the beer’s cheap, the friendship’s good and you get to play at being Action Man – actually mask the true horror of war. Many soldiers and soldier’s families have spoken out against the treatment of soldiers in the MoD, the terrible effects that service has had on them and the complete lack of care they receive after service. At the heart of the Army’s crisis is the fact that thousands of soldiers have left the Army since the start of the Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, a statistic that should show just how deceitful their recruitment propaganda is.

Part of the biggest mass movement in British history

By banning military recruitment in our Union we are sending a clear message that Manchester students do not give political or material support to the illegal Wars and occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. By passing this policy we show that we reject both the lies and deceit of this Labour Government that took us to war, and those of the military recruiters who bribe young people to fight and die for them. The overwhelming majority of people want the troops brought home now and this campaign is an important part of making that happen. We urge you to support Motion 3 and to call for an end to this War and an end to military recruitment on campus.

For more information check out:
UMSU Activist
Stop the War Coalition
Military Families Against the War

Ex-SAS soldier Ben Griffin speaks about his experiences


George Solomou speaks

Debate on Military recruitment at Stop the War AGM