Riot police called on students as strikes continue at study abroad university in Bordeaux

Student strikes have continued to disrupt teaching and exams at Université Bordeaux Montaigne (UBM), one of Warwick’s partner universities, with the university unlikely to reopen this academic year.

Students began to protest at the French university over three weeks ago following government plans to cut university research budgets by over €900 million.

The student committee leading the strikes and the university’s president, Alexandre Péraud, have failed to reach an agreement after weeks of negotiations and, with only one week left of scheduled lessons, the university’s doors could now remain shut until the new academic year.

While the university initially reopened on 14 April, confusion remained for students as some exams remained online, while others were moved in person.

Specialist police forces have now been mobilised on campus in what has been seen as a final move by Péraud to shut down the student protests

This confusion has now been furthered after the university was blocked by protestors once again on 14 and 15 April, meaning all in-person exams have now been cancelled again.

Specialist police forces have now been mobilised on campus in what has been seen as a final move by Péraud to shut down the student protests.

An extension of the blockade was first supported by student protestors on 2 April, with a vote of 394 for, and 142 against.

This vote was reaffirmed on 7 April, with 556 students voting for a further prolongation of the blockage.

During these general assemblies (AGs), the student committee decided that the unblocking of the university would not be put back up for discussion until the President accepted their three key demands.

Student protesters at UBM have re-blocked buildings with classes and exams cancelled for the foreseeable future. Image: Bethany Sirianni / The Boar

These students also attended a general mobilisation in the city’s Place de la Victoire on 3 April, with many holding signs protesting the government’s decisions. One of the signs read: “Money for public services, not for the army or the police”.

The demands put forward by the students called for exams not to be held on exam days, for attendance requirements to be waived, and for a lecture hall to be made available for better organisation of general assemblies.

The committee also called on the President to allow them to send emails to all students, teachers and staff at the university to allow for better communication about the strikes.

In response to the demands, Péraud offered the use of the Students’ Union to the student committee. This offer was rejected by the AG, however, on the premise that the building was “too far away”.

The President also offered the striking students an independent mailing list – the only method authorised by law – but this was also rejected.

Tensions have risen between staff and students at the university, with some teachers beginning to send emails to their classes describing the blockade as ‘illegal’

The mobilising students later re-blocked the buildings that were previously reopened by the President on 31 March and 1 April, causing further disruption to university teaching.

During this time, some of the university’s lessons have been held online, but the majority of teachers have chosen to postpone their courses or to supply materials online, rather than teaching lessons via Teams.

Tensions have risen between staff and students at the university, with some teachers beginning to send emails to their classes describing the blockade as ‘illegal’.

Security personnel have also been hired to protect the offices of staff vital to the running of the university.

On 8 April, an email was sent on behalf of Péraud to students, which referenced ‘new concerns’ about the safety of the university premises during the blockage. The nature of these ‘concerns’ were not explained in the email.

As a result of the protests, all midterm exams have been moved into the final week of the academic calendar and moved online.

I decided to call on the police to liberate our university premises […] the blockade had to be lifted because nothing can be built on violence and disunity

Alexandre Péraud, UBM President

With summer exams scheduled for the week commencing 5 May, many students feel that there is too little time between exam series to prepare, especially with limited content available and severe confusion and disorganisation over the assessments.

On 11 April, the CRS – a specialist unit of the French police – and other officers were called to UBM by Péraud.

In a statement, Péraud said: “I decided to call on the police to liberate our university premises […] the blockade had to be lifted because nothing can be built on violence and disunity.”

The student blockers were enraged by this development, immediately taking to social media to plan another AG and to call out the ‘violent’ and physical actions of the CRS.

Around 300 students attended the AG, with students chanting, shouting, and standing face-to-face with the riot police.

Political posters cover the UBM campus as student unrest continues. Image: Bethany Sirianni / The Boar

With the protests ongoing, students at AGM look set to have to ‘retake’ exams in June, with Péraud announcing the move as a final attempt to dislodge the actions of the committee.

This is despite student accommodation contracts running out before these exam ‘retakes’ – a move which has again caused severe backlash.

Bethany Sirianni provided this report on-the-ground from Université Bordeaux Montaigne.