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Student protesters take over Q&A
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May 8, 2014
Original URL: http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Student_protesters_take_over_Q%26A



The broadcast of popular Australian TV show Q&A was interrupted on
Monday night by a student protest targeting Australian Education
Minister Christopher Pyne.
 
The protest was in response to proposals from the Commission of Audit
for the May 13 budget suggesting the deregulation of university
education. 

Christopher Pyne had been the focus of many questions on the panel
before the protest. One question initially directed at Pyne from the
audience was given to former parliamentary speaker Anna Burke to discuss
first.  When she started to answer, students unfurled a banner behind
her reading "More brains, not warplanes  --  Fund education". This was
accompanied by rhyming slogans shouted from the crowd of students
including the phrase: "No cuts. No fees. No corporate universities."

Unable to quell the protesters, the ABC briefly cut the program to air a
musical segment from a previous show, while removing the protesters from
the building. Upon return to the broadcast, about two minutes later, the
host Tony Jones apologised for the incident: "Apologies to the minister,
apologies to everyone on the panel, apologies to the wider audience
watching[...] This is not what we want to happen on the program, that is
not what democracy is all about and those students should understand
that."

Social media responded to the demonstration immediately, with mixed
reactions about the incident itself and Jones' handling of it. 
Education writer Maralyn Parker remarked on Twitter, "The riot on #qanda
is indicative of how deeply Australians feel about the destruction of
education the Abbott Govt is inflicting on us".

The commission proposed to raise tuition costs by 14% and require
repayment of the HECS loan starting at minimum wage, A$32,354, according
to Gwilym Croucher of the University of Melbourne. The commission also
proposed to reduce Commonwealth subsidies down to 45%.

== Sources == 

* http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-05-05/q-and-a-protesters-target-pyne/5432200
* http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/qa-hijacked-by-protesters-anna-burke-praises-christopher-pyne-20140505-zr53t.html
* http://theconversation.com/commission-of-audit-report-released-experts-respond-26177