A student activist claimed foul on Universiti Malaysia Sabah Labuan campus (Umskal) handling of student disciplinary hearings, which has resulted in students to be tried in absentia.

 

“We commend Umskal’s effort on allowing trial but we are unhappy with their actions in picking a date without consulting us first,” student activist Mohammad Syahidiyanto Sukiman said.

The Umskal Pro-Mahasiswa movement activist added that the hearing set for July 4 was called on short notice, allowing students no time to prepare.

 

“The time to prepare for the hearing is too brief and most of the students involved are not around...some are back in the peninsular, making it even harder for them to prepare or even  attend the trial”

 

He also questioned why the notification was only emailed out yesterday, even though the notification was dated June 30.

Appeal unheeded

“The university is not serious in allowing the students to defend themselves when they take actions like this that do not consider the students predicament” he added. 

 

Syahidiyanto also said that the appeal made by five students to postpone the hearing to next semester went unheeded.

These five students will have their hearings as scheduled on July 7.

Sixteen students are facing disciplinary hearings for allegedly “organising an assembly and protest without university’s permission in campus” on May 26.

 

They had demonstrated against the university’s move to take back a shop lot on campus which had been run by students.

Some of the students, including final year students, have been suspended while others were evicted from residential colleges.

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