University students will not be allowed to join political parties based on the preliminary proposed amendments to the Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA).

However, they will be allowed to join other off-campus associations or non-governmental organisations in what has been described as 'baby steps forward'.

Contacted today, DAP Youth deputy chief Chong Chieng Jen said the higher education ministry was told by opposition parliamentarians during a brainstorming session on the issue that students should be given space to participate in political bodies.

The ministry has yet to make it clear if students will be permitted to express 'sympathy or support' to political parties, which is prohibited under the current UUCA provisions.

The opposition and MCA Youth - from the ruling Barisan Nasional - want students to be allowed to join political parties . However, MCA Youth said students should not become office-bearers.

Yesterday, the ministry briefed opposition parliamentarians on the proposed amendments during an hour-long meeting at the Parliament House.

Apart from allowing students to participate in off-campus activities, the ministry is also mulling the inclusion of representatives from the alumni and academicians in the universities' board of directors.

At present, the composition of the board are government appointees.

Automatic suspension

The ministry may also amend a provision which allows for the automatic suspension of a student charged for a criminal offence and awaiting trial.

"The ministry proposed that the decision to suspend a student with criminal charge will not be automatic. It will be up to the vice-chancellor to decide according to his discretion," said Chong.

"However, we (opposition MPs) objected to that because we should adhere to the basic principle of innocent until proven guilty, where the concerned student should only be suspended upon conviction," he added.

Some opposition MPs expressed concern that the amendment will only serve to increase the already wide discretionary powers of vice-chancellors.

A notable case of automatic suspension was the trial of seven students -dubbed the ' ISA 7 '. The seven were suspended for four years after they were charged with illegal assembly.

Despite being acquitted later, the seven were unable to resume their studies because the prosecution has filed an appeal.

Uni ombudsman?

Meanwhile, Chong revealed that the ministry was also contemplating establishing a unit similar to an ombudsman to deal with complaints against the university administrations. Details of this are still sketchy.

It is learnt that another proposed amendment is to empower the university senate to have a final say in academic matters, except those with financial implications.

Commenting on yesterday's meeting, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail described it as 'productive'. She also said the proposed amendments were 'positive'.

"They were pretty open to our suggestions and we have been told to put everything together in writing. We're working on that now," she added.

The ministry held a similar meeting with ruling parliamentarians on Monday.

The review of the UUCA is conducted by a special committee comprising several legal advisers to the local universities and ministry officials. They include constitutional experts and renowned academician Prof Shad Saleem Faruqi.