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Columbia Spectator: ESC Views Proposal For ROTC Referendum

A student-referendum protocol that would allow students to vote to express their opinions on controversial issues made its way through the Engineering Student Council Monday night with some resistance. Discussion centered around the largest issue that could soon bring a vote: a new movement for the return of the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps to campus.

ESC President Peter Valeiras, SEAS ’09, introduced the document, which he co-drafted, as a way to “represent the entire undergraduate body.” It calls for a committee of at least one member from each of the four undergraduate councils to decide on the process whereby students would be polled on “critical issues” such as ROTC and universal swipe access.

Rajat Roy, SEAS ’10 and ESC University senator, questioned the need for a uniform referendum procedure, suggesting instead that each school formulate its own guidelines.

“We have to represent our student body first,” Roy said. “Frankly, we don’t care about what Columbia College and Barnard do.”

Valeiras explained that referendums would only happen in those rare cases which affected all undergraduate schools equally, but Roy replied that there were “very few times” when that would be true, and that ROTC wasn’t such a case.

Columbia has not allowed ROTC to base units on campus since banning them over 40 years ago in response to loud student opposition to the Vietnam War. More recently, the University Senate has reaffirmed the ban as a statement against the U.S. military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy.

The ban received heightened attention last Thursday after the two major presidential candidates, Senators John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.), called for a return of ROTC to Columbia’s campus during the nationally televised ServiceNation Presidential Candidates Forum in Lerner Hall.

While Adil Ahmed, CC ’09 and Columbia College Student Council vice president for policy, emphasized at his own council meeting that the questions for a future survey have not been finalized, Valeiras said Monday evening, “It’ll be ROTC or no ROTC, essentially.”

Unlike resolutions or proposals, the student referendum protocol did not require approval or implementation by the council. Valeiras said it was merely a “statement” that the councils would form a committee to develop poll regulations.

Roy said after the meeting that he opposed submitting a ballot to the entire undergraduate population because ESC already has its own strict referendum policy, which requires 50 percent of its constituents to vote in order for a referendum to pass.

In other ESC news, 18 first-years in the School of Engineering and Applied Science began campaigning yesterday for four spots on their class council.

While in the past candidates have typically run in tickets of four—president, vice president, and two representatives—there were only two full tickets this year, as well as three smaller parties and three students running as independents.

“I’m more surprised at the number of independent candidates,” said ESC Secretary Whitney Green, SEAS ’10, who is overseeing the elections. “Maybe it says something about their class. Maybe they’re strong, independent thinkers.”

Candidates will participate in a forum from 4-6 p.m. on Sept. 21, followed by voting on Sept. 22-24.

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