Students feel "strangled" and "chilled" by a new University of Sydney campus policy severely limiting their right to protest.
At least three days' notice must be given for protests that include the use of booths or stalls, megaphones or amplifiers and affixing banners or posters to campus buildings.
Camping is banned altogether after an encampment protesting Israel's war in Gaza stood for almost two months before campus staff ordered them to vacate in June.
USyd's new "Campus Access Policy" - adopted without any notice or consultation - is an astonishing attack on political freedom at the university. We're now required to seek approval 72hrs in advance to put up a poster, set up a stall, or use a megaphone?! — David Brophy (@Dave_Brophy) https://t.co/LHocuyfGRlJuly 3, 2024
Students said the changes were made stealthily given they were not consulted or told the policy had been introduced.
They only became aware of the policy on Wednesday night when Dave Brophy from the National Tertiary Education Union called the measures an "attack" on freedom at the university in a post on social media platform X.
"USyd's new 'Campus Access Policy' - adopted without any notice or consultation - is an astonishing attack on political freedom at the university," he wrote.
"We're now required to seek approval 72hrs in advance to put up a poster, set up a stall, or use a megaphone?!"
University of Sydney Students' Representative Council president Harrison Brennan condemned the measures "in the strongest possible terms" and said campuses must be places where the democratic right to protest could be exercised.
""This is a repulsive, full-scale offensive on the right to protest at the University of Sydney ... the Vice-Chancellor has whipped up a policy that will strangle the dissenting voices of students, staff, and the broader community," he said.
"This policy will not just affect student activists around the topic of Palestine but will have chilling implications for other campaigns ... students shouldn't need permission to protest on their own campus."
The University of Sydney's new protest policy follows a pro-Palestine encampment by students. (Dean Lewins/AAP PHOTOS)
Asked why students were not consulted before the policy was implemented, a university spokesperson suggested it was not a necessary part of the process.
"The policy was updated to ensure that the right settings were in place for semester two so students and staff can fully participate in all aspects of campus life," they said.
"The policy is in line with similar policies at other universities."
University of Sydney vice-chancellor Mark Scott said the changes were made to ensure "a safe and welcoming place for all members of our community".
"While I am pleased we have experienced the peaceful end of the encampment on campus in recent weeks, I understand that its presence challenged us in many ways," Mr Scott said in an email to staff and students.
"The policy supports this by setting out the university's expectations for all users of our lands ... at its core it upholds our commitment to free speech - while recognising we need to be able to manage our environment for the safety and security of all."
The students' group rejected the claim free speech was at the heart of the policy.
"This is the new strategy of the corporate university trying to drown student activists in bureaucracy alongside continual waves of disciplinary action ... it fosters fear and silence within the whole university community," education officer Grace Street said.