USyd students suspended for protesting speech by former PM Malcolm Turnbull

By CHRISTINE LAI

Two students at the University of Sydney have been suspended following a months-long investigation into their involvement in a protest against former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull who gave a speech at the institution last September.

USyd Environment Officer Maddie Clarke and 2022 USyd Education Officer Deaglan Godwin were notified by management that they were suspended for a year, and one semester, respectively, for their roles in denouncing Turnbull’s presence during a Sydney Law Society event.

The former PM left the Sydney Law Society event last year following protests by a group of students at the university, who were critical of his cuts to welfare payments, and hiked university fees during his term.

In a video of the event, Godwin can be seen asking law students, “How many of you would like to pay $100,000 for university?” before telling Turnbull to “fuck back off to Mosman, fuck back off to Wentworth.”

Students called Turnbull “ruling class scum” before the event was cancelled and moved to an online presentation. Turnbull decried “fascism” after he was met with scorn by members of the Student Representative Council and protesters, and escorted out of the event by police.

SRC President Lauren Lancaster, Education Officer Deglan Godwin, and Turnbull engage in heated dialogue with Lancaster accusing the former PM and the Liberals of being one of the most damaging forces to higher education pic.twitter.com/PgZFnWi9Mg

— Honi Soit (@honi_soit) September 1, 2022

Both Clarke and Godwin were bound by strict confidentiality agreements throughout the months-long internal investigation that was launched by the university shortly after the event.

During the investigation, a private lawyer interviewed the two now-suspended students and other witnesses about the incident. The University had found that Clarke and Godwin had “violated Turnbull’s freedom of speech” and “made him and other students afraid.”

Students denounce outcome as an attack on the freedom of speech

Godwin described the suspension as “nothing but a blatant attempt by university management to intimidate student activists”.

He criticised the university’s decision, calling it an “awful precedent” by which students had their freedom of speech on campus repressed while “multi-millionaire ex-Prime Ministers can be invited onto campus and use their connection to discipline student unionists’ ”.

‘“As Prime Minister he [Turnbull] oversaw cuts to public services and the continuation of refugee torture on Manus and Nauru. THe idea that this man felt at all “intimidated” or “abused”, or had his freedom of speech impeded is laughable”, Godwin asserted.

A University of Sydney spokesperson said to City Hub:

“We have a rich history of activism and protest on our campuses and all students and staff have the right to express themselves freely, as long as it’s done safely and in accordance with our policies and the law.

Protests may be rowdy and spirited, but they cannot interfere with the rights and freedoms of others. We consider attempts to shut down speakers who have been invited to our campuses to participate in an exchange of views and ideas as contrary to our Charter of Academic Freedom and Freedom of Speech, which defines the core values of our University in these matters.”

USyd Environment Officer Clarke was previously under a suspended suspension, for protesting a pro-life stall, which was triggered after the Turnbull event and resulted in her suspension for an entire year.

The University was unable to comment on the “process or outcome for individual students” due to their privacy responsibilities. Other protesters at the event have also received suspended suspensions.
Clarke explained that the protest was not intended to shut down the Law Society event but to defend the right to free speech and protest against Turnbull’s presence on campus.

“This harsh penalty is intimidation towards activism. Universities want to deter students from getting involved in protests because activists have been the ones drawing attention to their course and staff cuts, weapons company ties and exorbitant salaries”, Clarke said.

Both students plan to appeal against their suspensions.