Ethical affairs demonstration

Students launched a "Vote Yes" campaign supporting the creation of a CUSU sabbatical post for an Ethical Affairs Officer at the Sidgwick Site on Tuesday.

The demonstration comes ahead of a CUSU referendum next week where students will vote on the issue. If the vote is carried forward, Cambridge could become the first university in the UK to have an Ethical Affairs Officer as a sabbatical post.

Thirteen campaigners spelt out the word YES with their bodies on the lawn at Sidgwick site. The display was accompanied by a banner reading 'vote yes for a fulltime Ethical Affairs Officer'. The campaign dropped similar banners across the city.

The demonstration marks the beginning of a week of campaigning before the referendum takes place at the start of next week. The campaign has spread to the social networking site Facebook, with opposing 'Vote Yes' and 'Vote No' groups established to encourage debate. 'Vote Yes' advocates announced plans to step up the campaign over the coming week with additional "body spells" in Market Square and the Downing Site.

CUSU'S Ethical Affairs Team is currently run by part time officers, unlike the other teams, such as Welfare and Education, which are headed by sabbatical posts.

Supporters of the sabbatical post argue that the expansion of responsibilities make the role of Ethical Affairs Chair too demanding to carry out on a part-time basis.

"To be performed profes sionally, this job needs full-time and continuous attention, which is impossible to juggle with full-time study," the 'Vote Yes' Facebook group reads.

Opinion within CUSU remains divided.

Grayden Webb, member of CUSU Council and an ethical affairs representative at Churchill, told The Cambridge Student (TCS) that he believed a sabbatical post would be the wrong way of promoting ethical affairs in Cambridge.

"I am opposed to this proposal for three main reasons," Webb said. "The first being that CUSU is legally unable to represent political views nationally. Whitehall is where change happens, not CUSU Council. The second is that a sabbatical is unnecessary and would mean the campaign being led by somebody removed from College life. The third is that the funding issues would distract from CUSU's main priorities of getting a Caseworker and a Union building."

"These reasons mean that CUSU would suffer if this were to pass," he said.

Steven Bland, Ethical Affairs Co- Chair, explained the role of the sabbatical officer to TCS and said the growing presence of ethical affairs in student life has been a factor in necessitating the creation of a sabbatical position.

"CUSU Council agreed last term that it would be good to have an Ethical Affairs Officer, to later be renamed Sustainability Officer, to deal with ethical affairs such as climate change, sustainable food and a range of environmental and social issues," he said.

He described the role of Ethical Affairs Officer as "too important to be left to part time officers" due to the increased interest in these issues among students.

"The University and colleges need to have a strong voice for these kinds of issues," he said.

A minimum of 10% of students are required to cast a vote to validate the referendum, and the majority vote will determine whether a sabbatical post is introduced into the CUSU constitution. Once a source of sustainable funding is found, elections for the position would be organised, according to CUSU referendum information.

Alice Baghdjian Deputy News Editor