The Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA) must be amended to allow students to join political parties, said the leaders of three political parties today.

Met at the Parliament House, MCA Youth chief and Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Liow Tiong Lai said students should be allowed to join political parties but not hold any posts.

According to him, it would be "detrimental to the campus" if students became office bearers in political parties.

Liow said the UUCA should be amended to provide greater freedom to undergraduates to take part in of-campus youth associations and this will be in line with the proposed Youth Act .

He also called for an end to the extensive discretionary powers granted to vice-chancellors under the UUCA.

Among others, vice-chancellors are empowered to dissolve any student organisation deemed to be against the interest of the university.

Earlier, Liow and representatives from eight Chinese youth-based organisations submitted a memorandum on the proposed amendments to the UUCA to Deputy Higher Education Minister Ong Tee Keat.

Responding to a question, the deputy minister denied that the amendments are being pushed through to allegedly serve the interest of Umno and allow the party to recruit younger members.

"Whatever we do, there will be criticisms," he told reporters after receiving the memorandum.

At present, the UUCA prohibits students from having affiliations with any society, political party, trade union and other groups without a prior written consent from the vice-chancellor.

It also bars students from holding any gathering of more than five people, engage in part-time work and release media statements without the written permission from the campus authorities.

Time to repeal the Act

At a separate press conference, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and PAS Pendang MP Dr Mohd Hayati Othman also called for greater campus freedom.

"If Puteri Umno can go into the (local) campuses, why not allow our university students to join political parties?" asked Wan Azizah.

She also noted that Malaysian students abroad were free to join any political party-linked body such as the Umno overseas club.

Yesterday, the PKR president held a consultation with over 40 representatives from the academia, students' groups, non-governmental organisations and unions on the UUCA amendments.

Commenting on it today, she said: "The consensus from the discussion was that it is time to repeal the UUCA because it contradicts the basic tenets of any democratic political system."

Meanwhile, Mohd Hayati - who was representing PAS MPs - urged the government to lift the restrictions imposed on students and allow them to join any organisation.

The higher education ministry will hold a brainstorming session with opposition parliamentarians tomorrow to get their feedback on the amendments.

A similar session with ruling parliamentarians was held on Monday.

In another development, Wan Azizah and Mohd Hayati also received a memorandum from human rights group Suaram on the proposed amendments to the Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code.

The two amendment bills were tabled for the second reading today.

Suaram executive director Yap Swee Seng said he hoped the six-page memorandum will help parliamentarians to be more informed during the debates.

The memorandum covered several proposed amendments under the two legislation relating to sexual offences, terrorism, remand procedure and the death penalty.