Concrete issue 247 09 11 2010

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Tuesday 9th November 2010 • Issue 247 • UEA's Independent Student Newspaper

STUDENTS SET FOR DEMO

As student unions across the country prepare for the National Demo, UEA students remind Liberal Democrat MP Simon Wright of his pledge to vote against a rise in fees.

Frustration and betrayal turned to protest in Norwich last Wednesday as students expressed their anger towards Norwich South MP Simon Wright and his party outside the Liberal Democrat offices, following the announcement of a possible three-fold rise in tuition fees.

General concerns about the rising cost of higher education in the country, combined with contempt for the evident disregard of the promises made by the Lib Dems, culminated in the protest.

This damning blow to students and their already fragile financial situations comes just six months into the tenure of the new coalition government, despite promises from the Liberal Democrats prior to the election this year, to veto any rise in tuition fees.

Universities Minister David Willetts announced in the House of Commons that tuition fees of £6,000 will be charged, with fees of up to £9,000 being permitted in "exceptional circumstances". The Universities Minister attempted to explain the changes, saying that the bulk of the money for universities will "follow the choices of students".

Speaking in response to the

announcement, Tom Dolton, Communications Officer of the Union of UEA Students, said: "As a Union which has a policy supporting free education, the announcement is pivotal to the future of higher education".

The National Union of Students and the University and College Union have organised a demonstration in London against fees and cuts on the lOth November. The Union of UEA Students will be taking seven coaches of students to the demo, with approximately 350 UEA students attending.

Simon Wright's seat was won on a precarious 310 vote majority, which he took from former Labour Home Secretary Charles Clarke. Clarke was dealt a humbling blow by his constituents, a large portion of them being UEA students, after refusing to sign the pledge to vote against a rise in tuition fees. Demonstrating the power of the student vote in this constituency, one of the protesters gathered a few hundred petition postcards and said: "this represents (Mr Wright's) majority which he can now say goodbye to".

When questioned about failing to honour the promises of his party's electoral campaign, Norman Lamb (Lib Dem, Norfolk North) admitted that he was wrong in signing

NEWS: Richard Powell OBE Union's new Chief Executive Richard Powell OBE has been announced as the new Chief Executive of the Student Union.

Page3

James Hughes News Reporter

gather outside the Liberal Democrat offices in Norwich to protest a ainst a rise in fees the pledge, but felt that Lib De m members and candidates signed the declaration because it was "a legitimate position for an opposition party to take".

The Browne Review and David Willetts' summary have set out ways not only for the course costs to

change, but how the whole system of finance is to be ordered.

A minor break from the bleak news is that the earnings threshold for paying back fees will rise from the current £15,000 to £21,000 under the new system, whilst bigger loans will be granted to those less

well off. There is no escaping the fact, however, that students living away from home could potentially face a debt of over £35,000 upon graduating from a standard three year c9urse.

See page 6 for Concrete's guide 1 to the National Demo.

NEWS: Drink spiking on the NEWS: Fight on bus leaves rise .students sfiaken

FEATURES: A UEA student in Burma

SPOlT: Maths prevail in ZiggLrat football

Fears are growing over a recent rise in cases of drink spiking at UEA and in Norwich.

Page4

DEV student, Tony Neil, writes about his experiences in Burma in the run up to the long-awaited elections.

Concrete Sport report from the Sport:$park as Maths overcome a spirittd EDU display.

Page 14

Page 21

A fight broke out on a number 25 bus after the Halloween LCR last week Page3

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co ncrete. news@ uea.ac. uk

UEA's Independent Student Newspaper Conc rete Ne ws paper Union )-lou se UEA Norwich NR4 7TJ concre te.ed itor@uea .ac.uk Editori a l: 01603 593 466 Advertising: 0160 3 592 507 Editor:

Da nny Collin s

Deputy Editor:

Ste ph McKenn a

Chief Copy Editor:

Mia We cke r

News Editors:

Davina Kesby Ed Leftwich

Comment and Opinion Editor:

Emm a Pan·ott

International Editor:

Ni s havitha Murthi

Features Editors:

Adam Fe nwi ck Sama nth a Lewis

Turf Editor:

Ann a Tomson

Lifestyle Editor:

Ja m es Di xon

Travel Editor:

Tom Hunt

Food Editor:

Kyle Spe n ce r

Sports Editors:

Chri s King Ro b Schatten

UNEMPLOYMENT TREND BUCKED BY UEA GRADUATES Rachael Lum News Re porte r Th e latest graduate unemployment fi gures have been released by th e Higher Education Ca ree rs Servi ces Unit (H ECSU).

According to th e Destination of Leavers from Higher Edu cation (DHL E) survey, graduate empl oyment has fallen fro m 61.4% to 59. 2%. This revea ls that the un employment rate has rise n to 8.9%, th e highest rate for 17 yea rs.

UEA gracluates bu cked this trend, with th e unempl oyment level being below 5. 7%. More than three-qua rters of last year's UEA graduates we re in gradu ate-l evel work or study six months after gradu ating.

A spokesperson for UEA

Greg Mann

Deputy Chief Photographer:

Laura Sm ith

Advertising Manager:

Jea n Will s

Distributor:

Ro ss Grant

Contributors: Ra chael Lum, Mark Shead, James Schofie ld, James Murphy, Joshua Resoun, Larry Ali, Oda Skjetne, James Dixon, Laraib Ali, Mi chael John Mascarenhas I-lardman, Kirsten Wade, Beth Wyatt, Stephanie Stephens, Luke Sm ith, Joe Lack, Tony Neil, Jon athan Parr, Susie Showers, Sam 1-lilton, De borah Prudhon, Drew Ni co l, Susanna Wood, Lisa Stephens, Su la Dean e, Carolina Bodme r, Christin e O'Sulliva n, Anni, Ueckerman, Tom Goldsmith, S:o 1 Tomkinsori, Chris Teal e, la n Hobbs, Oli Pl att, Beth Rob ertson, Dominic Smith, Simon O'M eara, Ruthan a Christofides Proofreaders:

Ne ws Re po rte r Fo r th e seco nd yea r in a row, Norfolk is England 's safest county with crime dec rea s in g by 11 % betwee n Jun e 200 9 a nd May 2010.

CONCRETE WEATHER

Whil e figures show redu cti o ns in burglary of 10%, dru gs 9% a nd crimin al dam age 21%, th e re has bee n a n in crease in 'vi ole nce again st t he pe rson' of a lm ost 4%. Thi s has bee n a ttributed to a ri se in do mes ti c a bu se.

DAN HOLLEY

Cloud w1th utbreaks of Sttnn' spells and a few Cold and very wm d , sh C Id and wtn d ,

at frrst and aga.m late r m the wrth showers or longer spe-lls 0f rarn

e pe cted rn-between. • ta mg qlllte chrll" Sta cey I<napp, Amin a Abdirahm a n, He le n )on es, Susa nn a Wood, Do ug Ba ulf, Milly Humphrey

fo ll owing th e Comprehensive Sp ending Review. Likewise, stati sti cs showed th at many graduates who saw more favo urabl e prospects are invo lved in hca lth ca re, social sciences or the welfa re secto r.

Neve rth eless, 94% of stud ents sti ll fee l that pursuing th eir studi es in university would increase th eir empl oya bility. Resea rch also shows that 8. 1% of UK stud ents opted for higher ed ucati on in 20 09.

With th e loo ming fi gures an indi cation of rising un employment in the near future, Porter

urges th at the Brown c Review be reconsidered to avo id furth er aggravation to gra du ate emp loyment prospects. "Grad uates should be seen as a criti ca l part of the governm ent's mrssmg growth stra tegy, and a vital co mponent to rebuilding our econ omy. Th e intergcnerati onal divide in our society is alrea dy ga ping, and th is is now just another part to an ove rwh elming case as to w hy . th e governm ent shoul d re;ect Lord Browne's pro posa ls, and urge ntly reco nside r the direction of travel."

NORFOLK NAMED SAFEST COUNTY MarkShead

Chief Photographer:

said of th e figures that "the university is working hard to enco urage our stud e nts, right from th e outset, to think ahead and make sure that they hone the skill s needed to secure employment."

Aaron Porte r~ presid ent of th e Nati onal Uni on ofStucl ents, has sa id that university gradu ates are ente ring "th e blea kest empl oy ment ma rket for decades". Employment in th e IT secto r is shown to be most adversely affected, with 16.3% currently out of a job.

There arc also signifi ca nt drops in rec ruitment for various oth er sectors including engin ee ring, media studi es and architecture.

In th e educati on sector, empl oyment dropped by 1% and is expected to fall furth er as a resu lt of the budget cut

throu ghout, wtth frosts hke.l an so me nrghts www_concreteweother .co.uk

Th es e fi gures refle ct a na ti o nw ide tre nd in th e Briti sh Crim e Sur vey, whi ch shows a 4% dec rease in th e numb e r of in cid e nts a nd a n 8% fall in reported crimes to th e poli ce fr om Jun e 200 9Jun e 2010, co mp a red to th e prev ious yea r. Acco rdin g to th e BBC, thi s mea ns th a t th e UI< has reac hed its lowes t level of cri me s i nee record s bega n in 1981.

As in Norfolk, th e Hom e Offi ce reports s how reco rd ed crim e in En gla nd a nd Wales has bee n redu ced in alm os t all ca tego ri es. Sex ual offe nces a re th e exce pti o n, with 10% in creases in th e mo s t se ri ous cases.

Chi ef Con sta bl e Phi !

Gor ml ey has pra ised the coll ective effort s of Norfolk Co ns ta bul a ry in no t only redu cin g crim e, but be in g abl e to do so in th e face of bud ge t cuts. Mr Go rm ley said : "During th e co urse of th e las t fo ur yea rs th e con sta bul a ry has · reduced its costs by £18mil ion and in ves ted s ignifica ntly in improv ing fro ntlin e se rvi ce delive ry. Thi s s tra tegy has

res ulted in th e exce pti onal fi gures re lc rse d by th e Ho me Office today.

"The cha ll enge for th e con sta bul a ry now wil l be how it ca n maintain thi s leve l of pe rform ance over th e nex t four yea rs wh en we know th e re is going to be a s igni fica nt redu cti o n in fundin g. Thi s is why I vis ited MPs a t Wes tmin s te r las t wee k, with th e poli ce a uth ority, to re inforce our message that Norfo lk has a!rea dy made savings and reinves ted th ose in frontlin e se rvices.

"Today's fi gures refl ect a three-yea r moderni sati on prog ra mm e w hi ch sa w a res tru cturin a of our poli cin g tea ms togeth er with a new strea mlin ed ma nage ment stru cture, along with a co mprehe ns ive revi ew of our suppo rt se rvi ces."

In th e s pirit of cos tcuttin g, No rfolk a nd Suffolk Police have rece ntly a nn oun ce d th ey will be merging so me of th e ir se rvi ces, such as faciliti es a nd hum a n res ources, to sa ve a roun d £9.8m betwee n th e m.

ISSUE 247

DANYOUMANS ELECTED TO NUS COMMITTEE David Murphy News Reporter UEA will have one more representative within the National Union of Students as Dan Youmans, Community and Student Rights Officer of the Union of UEA Students, has been elected to the NUS Welfare Zone Conference.

The Welfare Zone Committee aims to focus the actions of the National Union with a specific interest on issues such as crime, safety and equality and diversity.

Their goal, in working alongside the Vice President of the Welfare Zone, is to work on the priorities that students establish at the NUS annual conference.

Dan's work so far as full-time Community and Student Rights Officer has benefited many students within UEA. It has included ensuring the Union listens. to students on issues such as housing. mental and sexual health and community relations. He hopes to continue this work at a national level as he joins the five other members of the committee.

In a statement released earlier, Dan said: "I'm really pleased to have been elected - I can't wait to start work on delivering on the tasks conference set for the zone". That enthusiasm will be vital at a time when the NUS is facing harsh cuts in university funding and the threat of rising tuition fees.

But Dan is prepared for the tough task ahead. He told Concrete: "Given the context of harsh cuts, this year it's even more important that the welfare zone is .as strong and active as it can be".

The next annual conference will take place in Newcastle in Spring 2011 but there will be plenty of work to be done between now and then.

EARLHAM ROAD CLOSURE Earlham Road is undergoing resurfacing work until the lOth November 2010. The road is closed from 7.30am until 7.00pm, when diversions are in place to reroute traffic.

The 35 is still in service, but is running down Unthank Road, following the 25 route until the Farmhouse pub, where it then returns to the Avenues. The 35 returns to its normal route after 7.00pm completing the timetable as scheduled.

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Tuesday 9th November

FIGHT ON BUS LEAVES STUDENTS SHAKEN Ed Leftwich News Editor Students have been left shaken after a fight broke out on a bus last weekend. The fight occurred at around 1.30am on Sunday 31st October on a number 25 bus, after the Halloween LCR. A man had to be forcibly removed from the bus

by UEA Security.

Security were called to the bus stop by the driver after some LCR goers pushed their way onto the bus without paying. One eye witness said: "A 25 arrived and loads of people just ran past the driver and wouldn't get off". The bus driver then turned off the engine and refused to leave until everyone who had not paid had gotten off.

Security were asked to check everybody's tickets. Concrete's eyewitness said: "One guy refused

A disturbance broke out bPtween UEA Security and a LCR goer on the 30th to get off, so security attempted to force him off. It turned a bit ugly and required two members of security to get him off of the bus -

the guy had to be restrained after attempting to throw a couple of punches". . The police were called to

the bus stop by the driver, and attended the scene. No arrest was made, however the police took statements. The bus company has released the bus CCTV footage to police.

Friends of the man in question have told Concrete that security were heavy handed in dealing with their friend. The UEA Security staff however, have a good reputation for being fair and proficient in their work, and there is no precedent of such an incident. A complaint of unnecessary force has not been officially made, it remains an issue to be examined by both UEA Security and the police.

Bus drivers often have to deal with difficult situations during the night. The 25/35 bus service is a 24 hour route that travels from UEA to the railway station in the midd le of town, and sees more than its fair share of drunken students.

POWELL ANNOUNCED AS UNION CHIEF EXECUTIVE )ames Schofield News Reporter The Union of UEA Students has announced the appointment of a new chief executive, Richard Powell OBE, after a three month long recruitment process. Powell's knowledge and experience with charities was seen as a key factor in the appointment.

Powell is well involved with charitable work in the East of England, being regional director of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and also the chair of the Heritage Lottery Fund for the region. His work for the RSPB covers seven different counties, including jurisdiction over the environmentally important area of The Wash, and includes him managing a staff of 150.

The Union of UEA Students consider him the ideal candidate to lead the Union into its new路 position as a charity. His ability to innovate and to drive strategy in the organisation was looked upon very favourably by Rob Bloomer, Finance Officer of the Union and Chair of the Board of Trustees.

In a statement released by the Union, Rob said: "Richard will be an excellent addition to the management team at the Union.

Throughout the interview process I have been consistently impressed

with his people management skills, strategic ability and his ability to innovate and fundraise. Through his contacts in a wide variety of environmental committees and initiatives, along with his personal experience, I envisage us really developing as the exemplar low carbon Union that we aim to be."

The Finance Officer, who led the recruitment process, went on to say; "Richard's passion for the job was evident throughout, and I very much look forward to working with him when he begins his role."

Powell's work with the environment also aided the decision to appoint him as chief executive of the Union of UEA Students. The Union has a clear goal to be environmentally sustainable and to be an exemplar low-carbon union by 2012.

As well as working for the RSPB, Richard Powell chairs the Royal Forum, and is vice-chair of the Sustainable Development Round Table, a forum established in 1995 to discuss major issues on sustainable development in the UK. He has worked in agriculture and sustainability for several years, developing a passion for land management and regeneration projects, such as the Lakenheath Fen project, in which 600 acres of farmland was turned into an

environmentally diverse wetland.

It is hoped that his passion, experience and environmental acumen will help drive UEA to becoming regarded as a sustainable and environmentally

friendly university.

Richard Powell was recognised by the Queen in her Birthday Honours of 2005, receiving an OBE for services to the environment and sustainable development.

ISSLII' L'l7

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eo ncrete.news@lu ea.ac.u k

UEA MATHS LECTURER DIES

DRINK SPIKING ON THE RISE Joshua Resoun News Reporter

A UEA lecturer sadly passed away this week after a lengthy battle with cancer.

Graham Everest was horn and raised in West Su~sex. From an early age, he demonstrated a natural fluir for Muthematics. lie obtained a degree from Hedford College and went on to receive a PhD from l<ii1gs College in !9Bl. In that S<lme year; he was offered the role of Mathematics lecturer at lJEA, where he spent most of his working life devoted to Leaching the value of higher education. lie was a ver·y dedicated Maths Leacher, reflected in his UEA Excellence in Teaching Award. !lis work appeared in the form of over 70 research papers. Always keen lo discover, he was .1n active researcher in number theory.

IL was at UEA where he found his other calling: Christianity. lie was one of the 27 signatories to the 2002 Estelle Morris letter to the State Secrel<lry, encouraging creationism within science lessons.

In 2006, he was ordained lo priesthood and is now remembered for the compassion he incorporated in his ministry <lrHI pastoral work.

S<idly, in 2008, he was diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer. lie died at home, aged 52. To commemorate his life, UEA have set up a memoriul fund in his name.

La.-ry Ali

PUBLIC LECTURES AT UEA LONDON UEA London is holding a series of public lectures featuring UEA and LSE Politics lecturers, including Charles Clarke.

Each lecture opens with a short presentation, that describes the main challenges, outlines the options that revo lve around making policy in government. Questions are then invited.

The first lecture is on Tuesday 23rd November 20 J 0 at 6pm on the UEA London Campus, attendence is free, just register with your name and affi liation to policyhriefings@ uea.ac.uk.

There have been reports of a recent rise in drink spiking at the University of East Anglia and in Norwich as a whole.

Drink spiking usually involves the drug rohypnol, commonly called the 'date rape drug'. Side effects include loss of memory, disorientation, drowsiness, loss of fine motor skills, dizziness and impaired judgement skills. The soluble drug is dropped in an individual's drink and begins to take effect 15-30 minutes after consumption.

Drink spiking seems to he on the rise owing to the ease with which it can be carried out. As Norwich and UF.A are generally seen as safe places, students can sometimes let down their guard.

Cathy White, a student at UEA, has had her drink spiked in both the I.CI~ and at llavana bar.

She described the experience as "very, very scary. To wake up in the morning and not remember what you did and who you were with is a terrifying experience. You have to be wary as it could he anything that is in your system." When asked if

the incident would put her off from going out again, Cathy responded "it hasn't stopped me from going out; it has made me more cautious though."

An anonymous source has also come forward saying that herself and her friend have both had their drink spiked in recent weeks at a popular nightclub in Norwich Dan Youmans, the Community and Student Rights Officer at the Union of UEA Students has organised a drink spiking awareness campaign, taking place in Week 8, called Be Safe. it will include a new section on the Union website about how to stay safe while on a night out. Dan said that "these incidents can put students off from going out, especially if their s<Jfety is at risk".

In order to avoid drink spiking, never leave your drink unattended.

Dan also said: "if you believe your drink has been spiked, call the police immediately and go to the hospital.

If you wait until the day after the drug would have passed out of your system." Campaigners argue that it is only through individuals reporting incidences that the police can help combat drink spiking.

The Union bars provide special devices called 'spikies'. This is <1 plug

for your bottled drink which only has enough space to allow a straw to be placed in it. Alongside the 'spikie', a cap is soon to be pmviclcd which

protects half-pint and pint glasses from drinking spiking. !3oth these devin•s arL' availahil' for frL•e from the Union bars.

UNION COUNCIL REPORT Davina Kesby News Editor The second meet111g of Union Council this academic year was held on Thursday 4th November·. For the first time, councillors were using an electronic voting system, which significantly reduced the length of Council.

The first job of Council was to appoint members to university committees that were not filled in the previous meeting.

Tom Dolton, Communications Officer of the Union ofU EA Students, gave councillors an update on what the Student Officer Committee had been doing in the fortnight since the last meeting. lie announced the appointment of a new Chief Executive, Richard Powell Ol3E, and also told councillors about the Union's plans for the NUS National Demo.

Will Lacey, Environment Office1; answered criticisms about a charge for students who wanted to attend a Carbon Conversations course.

As there has been a change in the

Union's constitution, a considerabil' amount of confusion arose about the ch,111ged role for Union Council. Amidst the confusion, the representative for the Pill School l:3o<1rd was temporarily sent out of the meeting for "being disruptive ".

Action plans for the Pnonty Campaigns were then presented to Council to show the plans to bring the Cdlllpdigns into the foreground of student activity.

After some reports from representatives, ArahSoc was ~1ppmved < 1S a society. Salsa and Latin Dancing Society was sent for ,dter<~tion due to a clash in objectives with Dancesport.

Several policies were recommended to he l;1psed, which p,1ssed. A policy to help improve communications with "hard to reach" groups also passed.

The Finance Officer presented

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a "Focus Sports Policy". Th1s policy attc•mpts to provide <1 fr<ll11l'Work for clubs to work in and put plans in place for improvement. Focus Sports \\'ill he able to ,JcC<:> ss <1 separate funding reserve, as well as extra facility time. This motion was passed after <1 clarification on sponsorship was provrded.

A motion on thL' creation of a "Student Officer Committee Scrutiny Space" was also passed.

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ISSUE247

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YOUR GUIDE TO DEMOLITION 201 0 With the National Demo fast approaching, Concrete's new s tea m take you throug h a ll yo u need to know about why the demonstration has been called, what student union s around the coun try ha ve been doi ng , and the logistics of the day itself.

WHY IS THIS DEMO BEING ARRANGED? Oda Skj etne News Reporter Thousands ol students and lecturers will he march•ng through the streets of London, as part of the National Demonstration: 'Fund Our f-uture: Stop l·:ducation Cuts', arranged by the National Union of Students (NUS) and the University and College Union (UCU). What has caused this outr<~gc'!

In November 2009, the Hrowne Revie.w was launched as a review on university lund111g systems. I\ year later, in November 2010, ministers have announced a proposdl !or a new education system, w1th major budget cuts to institutions' teaching budgets. The new system

AT A GLANCE The demonstration has been jointly organised by the National Union of Students and the University and College Union.

The demo is called "Fund Our Future: Stop Education Cuts", and has a Demo-lition theme owing to the perceived destruction of higher education.

The Union of UEA Students will be taking 7 ~oaches to the demonstration, with around 350 students booking themselves a place.

Coaches for the demo leave Union House at 7.30am on Wednesday, so make sure you set that alarm of yours nice and early!

If you can't go to the demo, you can show your support by buying a wt·istband for £2 from the Union shops on campus.

includes 1·aising the cap of tuition fees from today's £3,290 to £9,000.

Raising the Glp is the govel'llment's response to the Browne Review, which suggested removing the cap dltogcther.

So how can this influence university students·' First of .111, fees will rise, allowing uniVL'rsities to charge between £6,000 and £9,000 in tuition lees. Naturally, this will inrl-l'<lst• the debt of students. lfoweve1~ the new system is aimed to t,1ke eltectlrom September 2012, which means studL•nts who started university in 2011 slwuld not be affected. Students who applied in 2011 hut deferred L'ntry will have to pay Increased Ices if the legislatiOn passes. it has not yet been indicated

whether or not the cuts will inl1uence fees for international students. The new system also includes introducing a real rate of interest, instead of a rate subsidised by the government.

Critics of the new system fear that it will incre<Jse llll'lJU<liity, as poorer families may not he able to send their children to university. The government states that universities charging fees higher than £6,000 have to provide programs to accept students with poorer hackgrou nds.

Still, the proposal has caused an outrage by university students throughout the country.

The NUS and UCU are dl'ranging the national demo to slate the view that education should he free, and t~J

THE BUILD UP SO FAR Universities fro m across the country have been acting News Reporter in preparJtion for the NJtional The Union of UE/1. Students has Demo. The University of Leiceste1· been taking part and org<Jnising Students' Union have visitl•d various actions in order to support local FE schools to deliver an the National Demo. educational presentation to rdise /\s you may have noticed, the awareness of the efferts ol the Union has org,Jnised, in conjunction proposed cuts. with NUS and UCU, to j01n other Students from across the Wirral students on November 1Oth in ,Jrea are taking pa1 t in a walkout order to show anger at the planned on Wednesday lOth November. education cuts. In addition to this,. LSlJ hosted a livt• TV debate with they have created postcards to he thei1· local MP, N1cky Mcll·gan. sent to Simon Wright, the MP for Sallord University Students' !Inion Norw1ch South, protesting ag,Jinst have organisl'd ,1 march lnr their the planned edulalion cuts. 700 of students who <lie dressing up in these have been signed so far. high visibility jackets and hard The Union hds also created hats to show their support for the wristbands which demonstrate National Demo. an individual's support for the Tom Dolton, Communications National Demo. These hdVL' also Olficer for the llnion of UE/1. been sold to nine other student Students, said: "The Union hds unions. /\longs1de these, there !wen working h;~rd to ensure that has been an awareness campaign as many people as possible are taking place throughout campus, able to attend the demo and made including posters, l-sbirts and aware of the impact that cuts will campaign supporters explaining have upon higher education." what the National Demo is to For mo re inf01·ma tion, head students in the !live Jnd the bars. to www.demo2010.org.

Jos hua Resoun

influence politicians to vote against the propos<li. The vote is likely to take place before Christmas and,

a vote i~ needed in both !louses of Parliament for the legislation to go through.

ON THE DAY - LOGISTICS james Dixon News Reporter The national. demonstl·ation is going to he a massive day for students in their bid to display their anger at the government regarding tuition fCL'S. The lo_gistics of the day have requirl'd a huge amount of org,misation due to the sheer scale of the event. I\ large turnout is expected from UEl\ who wi 11 he travelling down to London by coach.

Coaches will leave lJnwn !louse at 7.30am on Wednescl,1y morning which me<lns students must arrive at least IS minutes beforehand. The drop off/pick up point in London is Embankment.

Upon arriving in London around 11.30, students will congregate at llorse Gu.1rds /\venue where they will then march to Millbank. There will be a few opening speeches at 12.30 from leading figures within the movement. 1\t 12.45, the march will begin and is expected to take 40 minutes. There will be a large rally at Millbank that will start at

13.15 and will finish at 14.00. 1\fter the day's events are over there is an optional after party at the London School ot Economics, which is completely free and will commence at 15.00. The coaches back to lJ r;;/\ will depart from London at 5.30pm.

Winter wear and practical shoes are recommended due to the outdoor nature of the event.

A waterproof coat could come in h,mdy too if the weather sours. The demonstration is a peaceful one and therefore aggressive behaviour should not he encouraged. Try and stay close to your friends/group as wandering ofT alone could lead to getting lost as there will he a huge number of people attending the demonstration .

Printing out a copy of the route map and surrounding area will prove handy should you wish to split off from the main body of UEA studen ts. Should you need any help on the day, there will be NUS/UClJ officials wearing high visibility orange jackets.

Have fun, stay safe and shout until your lungs are sore!

I

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INTERNATIONAL

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The UK Immigration Cap What does it mean for international students?

Laraib Ali Intcrnational Writer With the current ambiguous economic climate shadowmg developed countnes, it comes with no -;urprise that right wing political parties use immigration as a key Cdmpaigning issue.

The recent expulsion of the Rom;mi.tn<; .111d nulganan I~oma (Gypsies) from Fr<ltKe earned the country a rare rebuke from tlw European Union. ~imJiarly, just across Llw hordet~ the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, made a statement th.tl multiculturalism h<ls Jailed in Cennany. it is interesting to note that both ol these events have <1 diflerenl root c.tuse, with one hetng more in the direction olan economic approach, ,md the other being towards o1 cultural one.

So it comes as no surprisl' when the current UK Conservative government, alongstde wtth the Liher;tl DemoLTats plans, an immigralion

cap, a cap that in effect would Inn it the numhcrof potentially htghly skilled overseas workers that would normally be allowed to enter and work in llntatn. A., expected, this h,t d caused some

''Foreign students in some cases pay as much as 5 titnes more than a local student for their tuition fee and are of great value to both the university and the society general" uneasiness amongst the business communittes who would lw restncted from havmg the choice of employing those skilled workers. The Tories,

Brazil's Challenge Michac l John Mascarenhas Hard man Intcrnational Writer The omnipresent photograph ofChe Guevara, beret and green fatigues, st;Jring deftantly into the distance, has come to o,ymho lise a revolutionary spiri t wh ich lingers on 111 Lat in America. ll oweve t; a mongst this turbulent a nd ofte n controvers ial po litical landscape, Brazi I is emerging as a stab le presence which has become increasingly comfortable on the global economic stage.

On Sunday the :llst of October, Brazil cil'cted its lirst ever female president: Dilma Rousseff ol the Partido de Trah;tlhadores (Worker's P<tt"ly). The 62-year-old was jailed and purportedly tortured in the 1970s for lvlt wing urban guerrilla g r o u p s

against the m i litary d ictatorship ol the time.

Following her victory last Sun day over Hrazi li a n Soc ia l Democracy Party ca ndidate, Jose Scrra, Dilma now faces another opponent: Expectat ion.

Brazi l has been dubbed one of the 'big four' countries.

These are Brazil, Russ ia, lnd ta and Chtna (BR IC) which are expected to overtake the economies of North Amenca and Europe combined by 2040. Over the p.tst eight years, the number ol people living below the poverty line in Brazi l has decreased by over a th ird and app roximately 29 million peop le

have joined the newly emerging middiL· clo1ss.

Tourism is also booming with preparations underway for hosting the World Cup 111 20J.1 and the Olympit (;<ttnes in 2016.

A key contributing factor to the countrv's success was the 'Real Plan' oil 99 L This was <111 eronomit strdtegy orLill'stratt·d h\' tlw then Mintster ol Finance which S<lW inflation fall almost oven11ght from 2,000 3,ooocx, to just over 15%. Stnce then, strong government guidance in hanktng, the otl industry, exports ,md energy has steered the country into <1 position of great economic strength. llowever, the Achilles' heel of Braztl is infrastructure and t'ducation. Mountains of iron ore and sug,Jr lay idle in ports which cannot meet tlwir dematllh, unpaved roads outnumber paved roads by etght to one, ,1Jld throngs of commuters and tr;tvellers ;t like into 0 ut d i r p o r t s every dc1y.

M e,mwh lit•, p o o r ed u c<t t ion limits the development of its m;tnuf,tcluring service and industries and causes the country to rl'ly heavily on foreign expertise. Correclion of these two issues is essenti,tlin order to lay down the foundation for continual development.

It wtll be interesling to see how llraztl deals w1th these challenges over the next few years and whether Dtlma Roussefl, the forme >· guerrilla alltvist, succeeds in helping the collntry re;1ch its full potential.

howevet~ arc firm on it, and believe this pohcy would give Britain d ch,mce to develop home profe-;sionals to fulfill it's economic needs.

This issue, in theory, ts more significant than tt seems, as there <tre concerns that it could damage one of Britatn's htghest-earmng tndustnes: the higher educ.tlion sectot. Over the years, British universillt•s h.1ve SULU'ssfully m.tnaged to create an excellent hrand image .llross the globe with the aim of attracling foreign students. Foreign students 111 some cases pay dS much .1s live times more than a loctl students for their tuition fees .:me! arc of great value to both the untversity and the society 111 general. The mulliculturalism that these ~tudent~ bring to the LJI( campuses makes university life a great valt~<lhle lor expenence not only for these studL•nts hut also for their local peers who gel the opportuntty to tnteract wtlh a representation of a global community.

This immigration cap would undoubtedly allect llritam's standing in tL•rms of higher

educatton to prospective over-;eas students, not to mention the stiff competition they wi ll face from other American, Middle East or As1an untversittes who are also recrutttng a l.trgl' ntunlwr of OVl'rseas students. If such a move IS implclllL'llted, cnlir'> predtct tlldt tt ll'ould gravely impact not onl; one of its most profitable higher educ,llion industries, but also its servtl'l' industries.

Australia: A place for everyone

Kirsten Wade International Writer From the Lradition<tlland-owtwrs of Australia, thl' Ahongttws, to the ronvtrt settlement of the late 1700\, to the multirultural dtverstty that l'Xish toddy, Australia ho.tsts a nch cultural htslory. This rich cultural history weaves itself into the art and culturt' ol a soctety that is trying to make its m<lrk on the world.

Australia shm\'Cdses thetr ,ut dnd culture throughout the yeill' wtth l'<Kh rapttal city hosting ,1 festi\,tl. Sydney is hcnne to the Sydney Festi\ a! tor ex.1mpil', which involves <lrl, tbnce, lilm and forums, while Tasmcmia hosts the Ten Days on the lsl,md Festtv,tl, a mtx ol visu<tl <trt, ltter<lture, theatre and mustc.

The Sydney Opera llouse is an .trt ,md culture hub. hosttng performance~ r,lllging from the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, to Shakespeare's plays, to Rigoletto Opera.

Austr<tlia ts also wl'll known for its low of food. Food and wtne lcslivals take place throughout the ye<lt; ~\tth well-known ont'S held annually in the grape-growing and wine producing regtons of the country. such as the M<~rgaret Rtver 111 Western Australia, the Barossa Valley tn South Australia and the llunter Valley in New South Wales.

Multicultural food events also play a large part 111 the Australian way of life as a resu lt of the diversity, such as feslivals celebrated during Ch1nese New Year.

Test,nnent to Australi,t'.s love of sport,

Australta acted ,ts hosts of the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and the Melbourne Commonwealth Cames tn 2006. Winter sport is dom inated by football, such as rugby league and Aussie rules, while cncket is deltnitely the national summer sport.

"Fro In the traditional land -own ers of Australia, the Ab origines, to the convi ct se ttlement of th e late 1700's, to the multi cultural diversity th at tod ay, exists Australia boasts a rich cultural hi story" Not only is Austr;lii<l a place bursting with <lrt and culture, it also a place that offers a vast array of natura l wonders, m.1ny of which are World lleritage listed sites. From the underwater world of the Great Barrier Reef, to Islands such as Lord llmve and Fraset~ to thl' vast rL•dm•ss of lllunt and Kata Tjuta National Park, these natural wonders leave tourists and local., altke in awe.

Whether you are tnto cultu re, cutstne, sport or nature, there is something on offer for everyone in Australia.

I

•

ISSLII·: 217

10

conc rete.opinion@uea.ac.uk

As the largest spending cuts in decodes ore unveiled, Concrete looks at how necessary these ore and whether they cons titute on economic gamble or responsible change.

Luke Smith In a few years' lime, when <lskcd what was unique about the 20th October 2010, one s hould be <1ble to recall with consummate ease that thi s was th e day when the Chancellor of the Exchequer annou need that Britain was "back from the brink".

Surely thi s is th e time for rejoicing'! Perhaps, had this not been a s uperfluou s claim accompanied by th e d eepest cuts th at Britain has see n for generations. lt is, I think, important to remember, amongst the Chancellor's se nsational claim and the public spending cuts totalling £81 bn, why we arc <JII here in the first place. lt seems commonplace nowadays to blame the profligacy of New Labour and their irresponsibly close tics with the banking sector a nd minimal regulation whilst in power for an £1 SBbn budget deficit and a spiral ling debt problem. But the essence of this problem was a world banking crisis, which led to a g lobal cred it crunc h.

13ritain, li ke m;my other countries, was forced to hail out its banks at a cost of fBSOhn. This was a remarkable predicament for an

economy such as Britain's, which relies so heavily on the financial sector.

Labour in fact deserves credit for the speed at wh1rh billions of pouncb were moved to rescue a hank1ng sector on the verge of collapse.

1/So we really are all in it together; a front row seat to the biggest economic gamble for generations" Ironic then, that it is Ceorge Osborne and not Georgc Flrown or t\listair Darling who has the audacity to claim that he has brought Britain "b<lck from the brink". Strange then, that the myth of New Lahou1· reck lessness is allowed to endure when right at the moment when speed was <1hsolutcly Vlt;:JI it was in fact the Conservatives who initially opposed the bank bailout, just <1S they had opposed every attempt to in crease regulation in the preceding 1 3 years.

The real truth is that there we re very few vo ices warning of

the impending cris1s and those that existed were largely ignored as naysaycrs in the blissful days of economic boom.

Though it is clear L,d)()ur let public s pendi ng rise too much, particularly a fter 200 1, th e c1·cdit crunch hit nearly all developed economics not dependent on m ass ive industrial workforccs. it wou ld be wrong to acc use the previous government of making all the mistakes, particularly when th ere were so many others guilty on the opposite benches as well as further abroad.

The coal ition continue to cry 'Canada, Canada!' as a shining example for economic prosperity out of a strict deficit reduction programme.

Such claims arc nonsense, since C 111 ad<1's reduction programme happened against a backdrop of world economic growth; conditions now could not be more dissimila1~ In c r eas in g

demand and securing economic grm'\ th are the most important poliues for any recovery. Yet whilst I can live with a 14%1 cut in the hudgl't or the royal household and etticiencics in areas of obvious waste, spendi ng cuts that reduce demand a nd increase redundancies in the public sector a lo ne by 490,000 jobs over four years a rc patently go ing to d;:Jmage the prospects of economic grow th. it's increasingly hard to sec the coalition changi ng its mind and making growth its number one priority.

So we real ly arc all in it together; a front row seat to the biggest economic gamble I(Jr generations and a very tough ('hut fair')

THE FACT

BOX £46bn

from departmental reductions:

In cluding a lm os t 30% off local government <1nd the environment Reduction ol 20% in the police budget

£7bn cuts in welfare, including the new £2.5bn child benefit ch,lllges In addition to: cuts from welfare <lnnounced in June budget

£11bn

Plus:

£6bn announced in M<lY when the coalition took powc1· +

£11bn in lower debt interest payments <ll1d other savings.

Total of £81bn cuts

Student fees: What's it worth?

In light of government assurances of a ha rd cop on tuition fees, will be affected .

Joe Lack There are more reasons for students to be angry about higher ed uca tion funding than simply the disproportionately la rg e 4·0 1XJ cuts.

Th e gove rnm ent clearly believes universities exist to fi ll g 1·aduate jobs, not to cha ll enge mind s or provid e a uniqu e socia l experience. University is se lfinvestment, part of a serious struggle for economic advantage.

The power of this message is tragically confir m ed by the number

of students who state their reason tor go 1ng to university as wanting a well-paid career. it is tragic too that a lUt-throat graduate job market will dash m<Jny hopes. llut anyone who s,1ys the1·e arc 'too many graduates' cannot blame students.

Universities set ent ry standards; record numbers of stu dents m eet these and don't want to miss out, n ot least due to the government mcssage 1 Yet numbers mean they must now pay for the favour.

Government ministers have now given assurances of a hard cap on tuition fees, contrary to Lord Browne's r ecommendation of a

Concrete looks at the

soft cap .

Coupled with tc;1ching grants, this would at least avert a partmarketised university system where competition for funds would devalue certain degrees, where the brightest would face the greatest financial pe nalti es, and where stude nts might feel under pressure to pick the cheapest university.

The loan system, howeve1; looks se t to remain unf;:Jir. Loans would st ill he unlikely to cover a ll living costs, which in itself puts poorer students off university.

T h e rich who pay up front would save thou sands of pounds in comparison to those who take out

side effects

of such

fees and asks how students

loans,\\ lw would suffer Interest on rcp.1ynwnts at market rates.

There would he a pen<1lty fee for trying to p<lY off ,1 loan faster than normal, the treasury bizarTely prderring long term interest over immediate funds. it is not certain that lower earning graduates wou ld no t pay hack more th;ln

"The government clearly believes universities exist to fill graduate jobs" higher earning ones.

Int ernat ional spe ndin g 'arms

races' between universities will likely nudge th<1t hard cap up, the proceeds go1ng on facilities ,lllll research more than undergradu<itL' experience.

Russell Croup universities will pressure gove rnm ent us1ng that dreaded warning of'fa llin g behind' to adopt Brownc-esque reform to ge t more cash .

No matter how mu ch the gover nm ent stresses the fact that loans dl'e only paid hack once g raduates are earning enough, the psychological effect of an everescalating cap will put deht-<lversc, but able, students off university a ltogether.

~ ---------------------------------==--~~~~~~~~-

'1 ISSUE 247

Tuesday 9th November

Has Britain lost the will to strike?

As France is in turmoi l suffering weeks of strike action, the attitudes of trade unionists in the UK are exam ined and Concrete asks whether we are in store for another Wi nter of Discontent.

Joshua Resoun The memories of the winter of 1978-79 are still fresh in the mind of many of today's trade unionists.

Since that winter of discontent industrial action has waned, with government legislation, a downturn in union membership and a negative image by the media having

all attributed to this. However, with the Conservative-Liberal Democrat austerity package, could we see a waxing of union power?

The simple answer is yes.

Although we are not seeing the same economic and social strife of the late 1970s and early 1980s, we are seeing one of the harshest austerity packages to be introduced by any British government to date.

The planned public sector cuts are going to cause budget

..

')

.

~

reductions, pay freezes, pension cuts and job cuts. With 56% of public sector workers unionised, the call for industrial action is bound to gain volume in the coming months.

On the 1st November the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) announced strike action over working hours; and the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) staged a walkout on the 3rd November. Despite a number of small pockets of industrial action, there is still nothing on the scale of the winter of discontent.

That is not to say that the trade union leaders have lost the will to strike. At this years Trade Union Congress conference in September; trade union leaders such as Bob Crow (RMT) and Mark Serwotka (The Public and Commercial Services Union) made bloodcurdling speeches, saying that they would fight for every penny and every worker in Britain.

Despite their leaders will to strike, statistics show that the average unionised worker does not want industrial action. The think tank Policy ~xchange released data

from the recent conflict between easier for collective bargaining and British Airways and Unite union industrial action to be used to put that suggests only 31% of unionised pressure on the govern_ment. labour voted in favour of rejecting The old saying goes, 'if there's a will, there's a way'. The will of the the BA pay offer.

Returning to the Trade Union trade unions still exists, the debate Congress, the TUC themselves is not whether or not Britain's announced that they would not - for unionised workers want to strike the time being at least- oppose the on the same scale as France; the government's austerity measures. question is how much can you push The TUC, and a number of trade the trade unions before they finally unions, appear to be biding their do?

Since the days of Margaret time until the new financial year in April; by this time the austerity Thatcher, trade unions have been package would have begun to affect looking for the opportunity to Britain's economy. The TUC does reclaim lost glory and influence. have a rally opposed to the cuts The will of trade union leaders is planned, but this does not take made of iron, as the speeches at the place until March 26th 2011.

TUC conference show.

The unions, then, are biding That opportunity, it would their time until the foggy landscape seem, is finally here. With the that is the consequence of the biggest spending cut package in emergency budget becomes clearer. British history (25% is the goal), If predictions are correct- that the - the possibility of thousands of job budget will certainly slow recovery losses would push the trade unions and could well stop it in its tracks into action.

- support for industrial action, I doubt there will be a winter particularly amongst unionised of discontent for this year, but the workers, would increase tenfold. winter of 2011-12 may prove to be Once the media begins to support a different story. the trade unions, it becomes much

Drug money

Dying to be thin

Considering the introduction of 'Project Prevention' in the UK, Concrete asks how appropriate a venture this路 is.

In light of the on-going issue of eating disorders in young people, Beth Wyatt looks at o ne mothe r's actions and highlights the problems experienced by those affected.

Stephanie Stephens American Barbara Harris has sparked debate in offering money to drug addicts across the UK to be sterilised.

The aim of the programme is to prevent unborn children from suffering as a result of their parent's addiction. Harris, found er of 'Project Prevention' has already sterilised 3,500 addicts in the USA and now intends to spread her cause further.

This seems more than a little pre-emptive as the charity appears to be treating addicts as a lost cause, unable to change. The message being put across is 'once an addict, always an addict' and this seems wholly unfair.

Every individual's case is different and for some, perhaps ste rilisation is the way forward.

However; paying a person to take such extreme action, particularly when they're in the grips of addiction, can prove e thically problematic. Is the person in sound frame of mind to be making such a decision and what will the money be spent on once it's changed hands? Is it not likely that the money could be used to aid furth er drug use?

The aim, although noble, falls short of protecting the future interests of the addict. Harris needs to realise that it's not the person that's dangerous, it's the addiction.

If the money being spent on sterilisation was instead to be put toward a drug rehabilitation programme, then perhaps these individuals and their children's future would be brighter. lt is surely a more noble cause to aid positive development than a decision one may live to regret.

Beth Wyatt

I'm sure everyone has experienced. this at least once - the feeling of embarrassment when you discover that a horrific person lives in your town.

This happened to me recently.

Staring out of my newspaper was Aly Gilardoni, who weighs seventeen stone. This of course is not what offended me; we have become used to seeing more obese people in Britain.

What caused the strangled-cat noise to come out of my mouth was the revelation that Aly has kept her daughter Corleigh on a diet since she was two, only allowing her a pitiful 700 calories a day.

Yet Aly manages to outshine even the most neurotic control freak by affecting her daughter's social

life too - barring her from friends' This pathetic woman clearly has houses because she might eat no idea that eating disorders are a unhealthily. horrific experience for all involved, What gives a mother the right to and that it is estimated that every act like a dictator just because she year 13-20% of anorexia cases end (and her own mother) can't keep in death. their paws off food?

"I suppose Aly also The irony is blasted out when Aly reveals that she eats cheesecakes hasn't heard that and chips for lunch, while Corleigh is in 2006 fifty-eight granted the pleasure of a salad and children suffering half a roll.

This story is not just ridiculous from eating disorders but dangerous. Aly is willingly were admitted to NHS destroying her daughter's life. hospitals" Corleigh is eight and is 4ft 6in tall - yet she weighs four stone and her ribs jut out. It is clear that she is I suppose Aly also hasn't heard underweight, and she is growing up that in 2006 fifty-eight children suffering from eating disorders were with an appalling role model.

I felt furious when I reaa this admitted to NHS hospitals.

Perhaps Aly should take a long sickening quote: "She's not so underweight she's going to die next hard look at herself and what she week. With an eating disorder you is doing to her daughter, before can get through it with therapy. But Corleigh ends up being just another when you're fat, you're fat for life:路 statistic.

I 12 FEATURES

www.concrete-online.co.uk

ISSUE 247

ISSUE 247

concrete.features@uea.ac.uk

Tuesday 9th November

.F:~TURES 13

www.concrete-online.co.uk

Fleet street blues as foreign news declines Burma, ·the election, politics and teashops With a recent survey uncovering the limited coverage of international affairs in the British press, Jonathan Parr investigates the causes and consequences.

/ / T he best fiction is far more true than any kind of journalism - and the best journalists have always known this."

Hunter. S Thompson's words ring truer than ever as we witness a deep decline in quality of British news journalism.

A stlidy released last week by the Media Standards Trust shockingly revealed that the amount of international news coverage by UK papers has fallen by 40% in the past 30 years. Hidden away in the depths of newspapers, only the most stalwart broadsheet readers will have the stamina to make it to the World news section, and as for the tabloids, the most international story they are likely to cover is Wayne Rooney on holiday in the Caribbean.

As the effects of the credit crunch and the internet boom continue to threaten the future of print media, it is understandable that papers are being forced to make cuts. Foreign coverage is expensive but journalists do still have a role to provide the public with news they otherwise wouldn't be

able to access. With the proliferation of mass media, the information is certainly out there, but is it really our job to sieve it out?

The rescue of the Chilean miners, arguably the biggest international story of 2010, provides a great example of a story that the media could really have gone to town with, but again, they seem to have missed the opportunity. This hard news story was heavily focused towards the human interest element, and left out much of the political and economic implications. Equally, the story of Native Amerkan activist Leonard Peltier is going virtually unreported in the British press. Pettier was imprisoned for over 30 years after a fraudulent trial, when all evidence suggests he was not guilty of the crime.

These pressing global issues just don't seem to be getting the coverage they deserve in our mainstream press.

Michael Moore, Director of the Media Standards Trust, comments: "You could argue that the decline in quantity and prominence of

s gs survey is ba for 2010 and we want to hear from you! Visit www.ueastudent.com/ drugssurvey to fill out the survey.

It shouldn't take any longer than 10 minutes to

international n~ws is symptomatic of a wider malaise in traditional news.

Yet we live in a far more globalised world than in 1979, one in which our work. our social networks and our travel are vastly more international than they were'.

"News outlets that have appealed to this internationalism - such as The Financial Times and The Economisthave increased their circulations. Why, then do other news~apers appear Iess

interested in the outside world?".

Perhaps in this new era, newspapers have become too commercially orientated. Take The Times for example, that is now charging i~ customers to view their online content. lf they expect people to pay this premium then this suggests they should have access to insightful, high quality investigative journalism.

With the internet providing such a vast source of information, maybe we should ask what all the fuss is about? Over the past few years there has been something of a revolution of non-professional online journalists and bloggers, and this gives us far more choice over what we view. But we must question how credible these sites are as sources of news as often we are fed far more opinion-based analysis than the reporting of facts.

Whatever your view may be of the British press, you can't deny that they run an incredibly tight ship. However, with Murdoch dominating some of Britain's most pop~lar newspapers, it may be fair to say he is the only man who holds any real artistic license. journalism also seems to have become a faceless business; the era of journalists being household names is long gone. No longer are there characters such as Ernest Hemingway, Tom Wolfe and Hunter Thompson to bring us ground-breaking stories. Matt Taibbi, contributing editor of Rolling

- -

Tony Neil, a UEA student studying in Burma, provides on insight into the country's poorly reported electora l process .

Stone magazine, seems to be one of the few journalists still dedicated to investigative reporting.

Taibbi's coverage of the 2008 U.S election won him a National Magazine Award; however, he himself does not garner the same kind of reputation amongst the general public as the aforementioned. We could attribute this to the 24-hour rolling news; once a story is found, within the hour it is being published in a number of media. formats. This makes it difficult to write such ground-breaking expose pieces, as journalists are under pressure to constantly churn out new content.

The newspaper industry isn't going to disappear overnight, but the way news is reported is certainly changing. There seems to be a real gap in the market for international and investigative reporting. Foreign news rarely makes the front page, and what little stories do attract coverage are often framed to appeal to a domestic audience. ovember the 7th is a seminal As a profession though, let's day in Burma's history as the not discredit the valuable work of country goes to the polls for journalists. Many undergo great the first time in 20 years. struggles to report a story accurately Much of the country's. life as an and to raise awareness of the facts independent state has been marred and issues. Whilst foreign news has by oppression and brutality. Aung decreased over the years perhaps San, a venerated national icon for his we need to remember so too has the ability to unite a country including demand; in reality how interested 142 ethnic and linguistic groups, that is the current generation in what is comprise one-third of the country's happening abroad? populace, was gunned down with most of his cabinet shortly following independence in 1947. The absence of his strong and charismatic leadership -~,..,;:;;;;;::::::;:--'-~_ led to domestic instability.

Burma's first Prime Minister, Nu ceded power to a 'caretaker' military government in 1962, and although re-elected, the taste of power was too much for Ne Win, whp had staged a military coup, and went on to rule for a further 23 disastrous years plunging the country into abject poverty through ·policies of autarky, ·· '.', Jif ,.n ., ,...

-J 1t U I nationalisation and censorship.

Nu's grandson, a friend of mine, I '•< I ' " '.1ft ' ~ • 1111 \ t. t explains the surreal scenes on ... . infrequent visits to see him during his many years of house arrest where he would wave at his grandfather through cast iron gates until ushered away. He was unaware at the time that this was an ominous portent of things to come.

Beside the very rarest of outings, the few images the world has seen of

N

Q~ilg _

~""

I~

Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi is waving from behind the gates of her house at lnya Lake in Yangon, such as at the height of the Saffron Revolution in 2008 where she looked on, tears running down her face. The junta is well aware of the threat she poses to their grip over the nation.

Critics are quick to point out that the elections will be neither free nor fair. The junta has underestimated

4th

January

public antipathy towards their rule twice already. This time their approach is more systematic and sophisticated.

Critics, activists and exile groups point out that the elections are a mere figleaf of democratic reform. The real motivation is to entrench military control legitimately.

Over ten parties have been banned from the election, including influential ethnic parties such as the the Pa-0 National Organization, the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy, the Shan State Kokang Democratic Party, and the Wa National Development Party.

Having chosen the contenders, the Election Commission went on to

decide who will vote. While elections are national not everybody will be participating. In September they declared that over three thousand villages across ethnic minority areas such as Katchin, Karen, Karenni, Mon and Shan states will not be participating on the hypocritical and tenuous premise that "they are in no position to host free and fair elections".

This will disenfranchise an estimated 1.5 million voters in ethnic minority areas. In some of these ethnic areas the world's longest ever civil war carries on between insurgent groups and government forces.

In the new parliament, 25% of the seats are reserved for the military Other clauses in the 2008 constitution restrict parliament from meddling in military affairs and the ability to reject the budget ·_ 40% is spent on the military. But the Junta's trump card is the power of veto over the constitutional amendment process.

Constitutional amendments need the approval of over 7 5% of parliament.

In a local tea shop, a regular meeting place for most Burmese, despite the extensive rigging of votes, everyone is eager to discuss the parties. The running joke is that there ?re only four of us not five so we can talk freely - we cannot be held under Burmese penal code for unlawful gathering, a convenient tactic for subjugation and control.

Although undoubtedly rigged, the elections may- offer respite to Burma's beleaguered population.

In parliament the upper house will be composed · of 224 seats (12 seats from each region). In the lower house there is one seat from each township nationwide, totalling 440. Of the 664 seats available, 168 will fill the military quota of25%. This leaves 498 seats open for contest.

Within the democratic bloc, 54 townships only have one candidate, so they will automatically win. A further 270 townships have democratic candidates, which means that there is the capacity to win 324 seats, just shy of 50% of seats in parliament. If the NUP sides with democratic forces, then it is likely that they will have over half of the seats, otherwise it is estimated that pro-democracy groups will have roughly a third, which is nota majority, but is still a significant figure.

Earlier, atan other tea house across town, the conversation turns to Aung San Suu Kyi, or the lady as she is affectionately known. The table talks

investment". This is versus people inside, who have no choice but to open up the cracks and engage, of which the November election is the best opportunity in a generation. In particula1~ real resentment is directed at exile groups who are seen as urban elites who have fled for a better life, are out of touch and perpetuate their position as a mere mouth piece of the West in their indignation of Burma.

The sad truth is that those who criticise exile groups tend to be well educated urbanites themselves. For most of Burma the election is a distant affair which they doubt will have any benefit. Farmers I speak to in the Delta are not surprised that they never received aid from the government after Cyclone Nargis; in fact they did

50 million Tho 2~9 population stimot (24th largost in tho world)

not expect any. For many, the state is only visible through its corruption and informal fees levied at local people. This has led Transparency International to place Burma 4th last globally in its corruption rankings, before nations like Afghanistan and Sudan.

Democracy has never ranked higher than 6th in the monthly surveys in whispers. You never know who asking people what change they may be sitting on the table opposite. would like to see. The vast majority of Although respected, Aung San Suu people have other concerns, namely Kyi's unwavering support of sanctions food security.

This explains the anger at exile has angered many Burmese. In line · with this stance her former political groups and even Aung San Suu Kyi. party the NLD has refused to take Geopolitically both India, China and part in the forthcoming elections and ASEAN are on cordial terms with the refuses to recognise the legality of the Junta, lured by its plentiful natural current military state. resources. Sanctions hurt the average This debate has polarised opinion, person not the.elite: the UN's Human but virtually all Burmese inside the Development Index (2010) places country are unanimous in 'their anger Burma as the poorest country in South and frustration at sanctions and their Asia. So whilst for many elections are a misrepresentation by exile groups. far off reality, there is scope for change, Marie Law, a fellow at Chatham House, and it will irrevocably alter Burma's describes the dynamics of the schism: political fabric.

"On one hand you have international At the very least political activity is organisations, lobbyists, exiled starting to be permitted, and at most, activists plus western governments anti-government groups will have and their politicians, who really do over 50% of the seats creating a real not want to give up this impasse, mandate for change. as it's a bandwagon they can easily As one Burmese friend put it: jump on with so little return for their "something is better than nothing''.

"2SOfo of parliamentary seats are reserved for the military... and are restricted from meddling in the military."

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FEATURES

ISSUE247

www.concrete-online.co.uk

concrete.features@uea.ac.uk

Q&A with Norwich .Famous Faces Former Norwich South Labour MP, Charles Clarke, brands Simon Wright a "weak and vacillating individual" when talking to Features Editor Sam Lewis.

Charles Clarke has certainly had an interesting political career; and has not shied away from controversy; he admits himself that "politics, more than most walks oflife, is a very up and down kind of business". As the man that pushed through the introduction of top-up fees as Education Secretary in 2004, and who openly voiced his concerns against Gordon Brown during his leadership, he is not

averse to ruffling a few feathers.

Meeting Clarke in the Forum early on Friday 22nd October this writer had wondered how receptive he would be to some of the current hot topics.

Born and brought up in North West London, Clarke went on to study ·maths and economics at Kings College, Cambridge, and upon graduating took up the role of President of the National Union of

1) Earliest m e m o r y :

6}

Our black cat Sheeba bearing kittens.

Always been Casablanca, which shows my generation. lt is a very powerful film.

Favourite film:

Students. Clarke, who has always been on the centre-left of politics, became a member of the Labour party in 1970 believing there needed to be a change in society. After having a number of jobs within the party, including running Neil Kinnock's office until 1992, Clarke was able to share New Labour's euphoric landslide victory in 1997 when he was elected MP for Norwich South.

Clarke lost his seat earlier this year to Simon Wright by just 300 votes. Concrete asked Clarke whether he thought this was because he wasn't prepared to agree to vote against the rise in tuition fees. He explained that whilst he wouldn't attribute it to one reason, he understands why voters may have felt this was the wrong position for him to take. Talking about his opponent, he said he is appalled

by Simon's behaviour: "Simon just said yes, signed up and it appears he is ready to go back completely on everything he has said. He is a weak and vacillating individual".

As we broached the subjec.t on every students lips, speaking about

pieces is a model of a politician of the day. ) If I could pass a new law tom orrow it wo uld be:

':l) ln a not her life I'd be: An astronomer, because I believe the way our knowledge of space and our origins is accelerating is fantastic and I wish I understood it better and was part of it.

3} The best unive r s ity was:

thing

a bo ut

Comradeship, friendship, and being involved in many activities. ) The w o r s t t hing a b o ut univer sity was: The element of almost aristocratic snobbery of some people at Cambridge, which I really didn't like.

Most importa nt lesson life h as ta ught m e so fa r : Jokingly, never trust a liberal pledge, but actually be optimistic at all tim.es and always look to the fu ture.

B

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Favour ite book:

Any of the Henning Mankell novels, I enjoy a number o£ Scandinavian detective stories.

..

11 } Guilty p leasure :

Being elected a Member Parliament in 1997. It was wonderful moment and it a tremendous honour to be Member of Parliament.

15

of a is a

Greatest fear :

Labour failing to recover itself and not be able to be an effective challenger for power and opposition.

Three people (de ad or a live ) I would invit e t o dinne r :

Trashy novels.

I am tempted to say Wayne

1? Of a ll the places I have been to in my life I would recom mend:

Nick Clegg by a long way. I have not thought he is any good for a long time.

Stockholm and in particular the Arch ipelago Islands outside Stockholm. I think it is a beautiful city.

1 My most overused word o r phrase is:

Rooney, his agent and Alex Ferguson, but I would really go back to Elizabethan Tudor history - Elizabeth, Mary and Thomas Cromwell. lt was a moment of tremendous conflict and intellectual thought.

l

1 b}

Overrat e d public fi gure:

"The way forward is ..." l

51

It would have to be one that was related to green politics, moving towards a deadline whereby all our energy came from renewable sources.

the Browne Review, Clarke said it that if he contests the election on the was both positive and negative: "It centre-ground, there is no reason is positive in that I am very glad why he can't be the man to win back that the report has confirmed that Number 10. Interestingly, Ciarke the basic structure the Labour Party went on to later describe Nick Clegg established was the right structure for as the most overrated public figure, the time". He singled out the removal a view shared by Adrian Ramsay of the means-tested student loan, when Concrete asked him the same extension of financial support for question. Clarke maintains that· part-time students and a real rate of for the Liberals, Clegg has made a interest as the commendable aspects mistake entering into the coalition, of the report However, he went on to and feels he was blinded by his own comment: "the question of removing "personal greed and ambition for the cap is much more difficult, and power".

I don't think the government will Clarke, amongst other things, go down that course, if only for the is now working with UEA as reason it requires legislative change". ·visiting professor, a role he is very He also criticised the government's enthusiastic about: "I was attracted response to Browne fearing that to this position because it gives me cutting the teaching grant for the opportunity to contribute to higher education could also force more discussions about the future universities to raise fees. of politics in thls country". When Asked if the coalition could serve asked about the future of his own a second term, he outlined that it parliamentary career, he said it was is a strong possibility and this is unlikely he would stand again, but if a why the stakes are so high for the general election was called before the Labour Party. Despite backing David assigned five years he may consider Milliband in the leadership campaign, running. he is supportive of Ed and hopeful

Mos t treasured possessio n :

A chess set that my friends gave me when I finished being President of the NUS. lt is made of the two political parties with a Ted Heat h blue side and Harold Wilson red side, a nd each of the

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I To a fa n cy dress party I wo uld go as:

Rl l n t he year 20 5 0 I expect or hope to find :

Myself.

] l

Proudest mome nt:

A telegram from King William congratulating me on my 100th birthday.

9l

Thing I like most a b o ut No rwich is : It is a very active, creative and cosmopolitan city but at a liveable size.

l) To a UEA s tude nt I wo uld say: Be positive, look to t he f~ture and have confidence in yourself. Don't let anyone talk you down and be proud of who and what you are.

ISSUE 247 Tuesday 9th November

15

The Right to Ride Susie Showers Turf Reporter Critical (adj) : urgently needed; absolutely necessary.

Mass (n): mult itude; the common people generally.

Critical Mass (n) : a bicycling event typically held on the last Friday of every month in over 300 cities around the world .

In early October, to mark the international day of action on clim ate change, kno wn as 10:10, over 40 U EA students and local Norwichers took to the streets of the city on bicycles to reclaim their rig ht to th e road. A Cr it ica l Mass is not a mob against cars, but a symposium for the joy of bike riding. It's promoting a low cost, low carbon, low fat way to get around and it celebrates cycling and asserts the cyclists' right to

the road . There are no leaders, no licences, and no legislation.

All around the world , on the last Friday of every month, people get on their bikes and exercise their pedal power.

"The re IS a real need for a change in the dynamic between motorists and cyclists."

Some peo pl e have opposing views to the event, saying that it makes cyclists look like deviants and traffic offenders, and that participants are often violent and rude . In rare cases when conflict arises, it only reinforces the ten se

relationship between bikes and motor vehicles. Several students have recently been hit by cars when cycling . There is a real need for a change in the dynamic between motorists and cyclists .

In a city made for cycling (minus a handful of hills and some skull shaking cobblestones), more events are needed for cyclists and their friends to build a strong network for sharing skills and resources .

The next Critical Mass is on the last Friday of November, meeting outside the Forum at 5pm. The theme for this month's ride will be Pirates & Fools, in honour of the names bestowed upon participants by motorists from the last event.

Bring flags, music, your lights, and your life .

Stop Tax Dodging!

Roots & Shoots

Sam Hilton Turf Reporter On the 3rd of October, 15 activists gathered to protest outside of the Vodafone store in Norwich .

They were protesting the decision of the Chancellor of the Exchequer to drop a legal case against the store which allowed the corporation to avoid six billion pounds worth of taxes.

" Vo dafone's taxes made

拢6

would

of w elfare budget u n necessary."

85%

billion

have the cuts

The activists came from various different political groups, including, but not exclusively, Norwich Anarchists, Norfolk Community Action Group, Norfolk Coalition Against the Cuts, and Counter Fire. The groups

with several people stopping to listen

In response to the protest, the

gathered together despite the cold and leafleted the general public, explaining to anyone who would listen that Vodafone's taxes would have made 85% of the cuts to the welfare budget unnecessary. In the biting rain the public's response was unpredictable, but largely positive,

to what the activists had to say. One member路 of the public suggested that the protest would be more effective if it was directed at Virgin Media, as Richard Branson's tax aversion is even more appalling than that of Vodafone . The group responded with the words " He's next".

Vodafone store locked its doors, presumably to avoid be ing occup ied, an act that has taken place at similar protests across the country. This meant that several customers were turned away at the door, leaving empty handed. The protest finally disbanded when the police arrived

and objected to the fact that certain protesters were shouting. Being told they were not allowed to shout, one protesters response was : "Ok, but we're coming back with banners." The continued protest against Vodafone's tax evasion is vital if we are to show the government that public spending cuts are unnecessary.

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Wanted : Volunteers interested in humanitarian and environmental issues to run educational wo r kshops for local school children!

Roots & Shoots is a charity which aims to educate children about humanitarian, environmental and animal welfare issues. It hopes to inspire children and schools to take positive action on both a local and global scale .

Roots & Shoots provides free resources to schools and encourages teachers to share their ideas. But for many schools, the time con stra ints of teach ing and all its paperwork simply do not allow teachers the time to look through the re sources and prepare lessons on these important issues.

The un iversity program bridges the gap between Roots & Shoots resources and the busy teaching schedule, by offering free workshops to schools, prepared and taught by university students .

The project is currently setting up a group in Norwich, so if you ' re interested and want to get involved in this inspiring project, join the Facebook page (Roots & Shoots Norwich ) Deborah Prudhon

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ISSUE 247

16

concrete. li festyle@ uea .ac. uk

Will you uphold your right to protest?

Concrete looks at the history of mass public protests and their impact on society Drew Nicol Lifestyl e wr iter

..,..

The right to pea ce ful protest is a long respected tradition in the UK; one that has bee n employed by the publi c on ma ny occasions to get th e ir voices heard by th ose in power. The id ea of 'people powe r' is one that is proven to work as a politi ca l too l, a nd res ulted in rad ica l changes to o ur society and politica l views tod ay. Wom ens" s uffrage a nd the a boliti on of the death pen a lty a re examp les of policies that would neve r have cha nged wit hout mass publi c protests. Thi s medium of politi ca l activism will be employed aga in as thousand s of peopl e, inc luding many UEA stud ents, travel to London to ex press their disd ai n at the pro posed rise in st ud ent fees.

Th ere have bee n路 many protesters who beli eve d that

numbers aren't th e answe 1~ and the key li es in a rad ica l exp ress ion of your beli efs. The id ea of public se lfsac rifi ce for you r ca use bein g the ultimate way to have you r opinions heard has led ma ny people to risk everythin g, includin g their lives. A famou s exa mpl e of one of th ese ex treme protesters is Em ily Davi so n, who threw herse lf in front of th e King's horse in 19 13 to show th e Suffrage ttes co mmitm en t to ga in ing th e right to vote.

Mass protests have ma ny positives a nd negatives as a politi cal tool. Th e co ncep t of thousands of peop le co ming together und er o ne banne r to show their public disagreement w ith governm e nt policy is both a powe rful and effective wea pon. Howeve r, there have bee n many in cid e nts where mob menta lity has taken over and these groups have turned from making a po liti ca l statement in to

Susanna Wood Lifesty le writer

an aiml ess mass th at ca n whip itse lf into frenzy, res ulting in tragedy.

A rece nt exa mpl e be ing the G20 protests in London las t year. What started as an expression of pub li c dista ste for our governm ent's actions during th e financia l cr is is end ed in an RBS branch being ransacked a nd riot pol ice mak in g 87 a rres ts. In addition to thi s, th e re was the death of lan Tom linson,

an impa rtia l bysta nder who was ca ught up in th e mae lstrom a nd died in a co ntrove rsia l ma nn er.

That British citi ze ns have the right to protest the action s of our gover nm ent speaks vo lum es for the mat urity of our democratic society.

Howeve1~ th e order of these eve nts must be ma intai ned, or the real a im of th ese ga therin gs w ill he los t comp lete ly.

s iz e refle cted the tru e fi gures of the gay co mmun ity of UEA, her reply is a n adama nt "No ." She goes o n to e labora te that many stud en ts s till lea d a so mewh a t doub le li fe, where the fear of t he repercussions 'co min g o ut' might e nta il leads them to hid e their t ru e sexua li ty.

Th ere a re so me memb e rs of UEA Pride who have st ill not prope rly 'come o ut' in their hometow ns and to their fa mili es.

UEA Pride hold s reg ular soc ia ls a nd bo as ts we lfa re officers th at ca n refer stud en ts to support teams.

Hayley reckons "it's safe" w hi ch is why ma ny s tudents e nd up hanging out predom in a ntly with their

UEA Prid e fri e nd s. When as ked if th ere arc many places in Norwich that arc specifica lly for the gay co mmunity such as bars a nd club s, Hay ley la ughs a little a nd a nswers "not really; there is 'Th e Castle' by th e riverside down Ketts Hill then a pub a t Anglia Sq uare, but that's ma inly for an older crowd".

In response to the imp o rta nce of UEA Pride as a soc iety, she answers: "it's ve ry important; whethe r peo pl e need it for th e s upp ort or socia l aspects th ere's so mething for everyo ne - people can take what they from it, it's th e re, a nd th at's a great thing."

Student's lifestyle labels: LGBT Lifestyle explores a side of university life that is often overlooked but is , nevertheless, prominent Li sa Stevens Lifestyle writer A troublin g th o ught is that ma ny peo pl e's o nly point of re fe re nce when it co mes to the Gay Co mmunity a re s hows s uch as BBC 3's Lip Se rvi ce and Hollywood's Brokeback Mounta in .

Concrete met ll ayley Kea rn s, Pres id ent of th e UEA Pride Society, to se t the reco rd stra ight on LGBT matters. Concrete asked Hay ley what she thinks be in g part of th e LGBT soc iety mea ns, a nd s he quickly ca ll ed to ou r attention that he re, "we prefer to ca ll ourse lves UEA Pride" not LG BT. 1-layl ey ex pl a in s that the UEA group wanted to ge t away from "t he la be ls" th a t LG BT i m pi ies, a nd focus on the in clu s ion a nd acceptance th at th e soc iety provid es. Hay ley does n't think being gay has made her univers ity expe ri e nce different from the 'stereotypica l' s tudent lifes tyle. She admits that

when she firs t a rri ved at UEA, in firs t yea r s he fo und the pro spect of ha ll s "da untin g" because she didn't know if everyone would be accept in g.

Now a third yea 1~ Hayl ey co inm e nts that, "Norwich is a fa r mo re lib e ral a rea than I ha d anticipated" and ass ures me she has ra rely, if at all , ex peri enc ed disp lays of homop hob ia. In fact, in a cred ited survey assessi ng LGBT

"Whether peo ple ne ed it for the support or soc ial aspects there's someth ing for everyone" friendly unive rs iti es, UEA sco red a n impress ive 10/10 reaffirming UEA's we ll -regarded accept in g attitude a nd diverse co mmunity.

When as ked whether s he thou ght UEA Prid e's membersh ip

Cheryl peril Hum a ns lea rn by imita tion . Our first ro le mode l is o ur mother, and from th e re we take th e 路 be haviour of th ose a round us as exa mples for ourse lves. We want to be s uccess ful; we look to othe r people as in spiratio n. In cave ma n tim es, mayb e thi s wa s th e pe rson who killed th e mo s t sa bre -tooth ed lions, th e pe rso n who was best at su rviving. Today o ur idea of 's uccess ' is n't killing crea tures that will go o n to be ex tin ct; we mod e l our be hav iour on a diffe re nt kind of s uccess.

Th e news th at Chery l Cole has been na med as th e mos t in sp ira tion a l person of the decade by one s urvey has brou ght ho rror a nd co nfu s io n to our soc iety. Is this true? Do we rea lly in s pire our lifesty les by a woma n who seems not to have any tale nt apa rt from crying on cue and th e abi lity to wear ha ir extensio ns rather we ll 7 Sure, it's nice to see a no rth e rn, working class girl in s uch a publ ic media s pace , but th ere have to be more Geord ies o ut th ere who don't need to be a uto tun ed a nd haven't been co nvicted of rac ia l assau lt - we have n't forgotten 2003, Cheryl.

Our obsession with ce lebr ity role models is n't a new thi ng, but th e rise of rea lity TV a nd 'norm a l' peo pl e be co ming ce le b1路iti cs has ma de fame and fortune re latab le.

Fantasy has become ta ngibl e - if Kri s te n Stewa rt, who by a ll acco unts is pretty ordinary looking, ca n e nd up starrin g nex t to Rob e rt 'hea rt throb' Pattinson maybe th e 1,000,000 Twilight fans may have a cha nce too.

On a more se rious note, may be ce leb rity cu lture has become so important because eve ryo ne feels disillusioned by tho se that s ho uld in s pire us. Only thi s we e k, Barack Obama ad mitted that he felt 'humbled' by th e negative response to hi s tenure as US President, as di s playe d in the mid-te rm elec tion s. Ob ama's life s to ry s hou ld be in sp irationa l; th e probl em with id ols is that they tend to not liv e up to expectat ions.

Soc iety e nd s up reve rtin g ba ck to th e TV where cy ni cism is less painful. Ultim a te ly, it's mu ch eas ie r to make fun ofC hery l Cole.

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ISSUE 247

17

Tuesday 9th November

Indian Inspiration

Warsaw's War-Torn Past Louise Upton Travel Writer

Sula Deane jumps into India, experiencing the wild rides , bumpy roads and incredible people of a country bursting with energy and fu ll of life, but finds there is never enough time to see everyth ing .. .

The easiest route to McCleod Ganj, a small suburb in Dharamsala, India, is by coach, but hold onto your seatbelts as you are in for a bumpy ride.

Coach drivers in India seem to have forgotten the brake pedal.

Whizzing around sharp corners in the mountains, with nothing to protect you other than a piece of string acting as a seatbelt, as a ridiculously endless drop looms directly to your right, your choices are clear: you can either panic or you can trust that the madman in the driver's seat knows what he's doing and enjoy the idyllic mountain range scenery. This writer opted for a ba lanced combination of the two.

Once you arrive in McCieod Ganj you realise the struggle to get there was completely worth your while. This charmingly harmonious place is home to the Dalai Lama, many Tibetan refugees, and quite a number of tourists who have found themselves unable to leave. McC ieod Ganj provides a welcome relief to the choking anxiety experienced in Delhi.

"... people were sitting on top of people on top of more people, and the bus conductor crowd-surfed

for

tickets as there was no roo m left ..."

The Tibeta n market, which flows all the way down the side of the hill, sells many inexpensive yet beautiful pieces of craftwork. You might want to write a shopping list and check out all of the sta lls before yo u buy, so your baggage doesn't end up heavier than you. A good week's sojourn would be recommended here in a home-stay fu rther down the hill, past all of the touristy shops and busy-ness, before you move on.

In all honesty, the government bus ride from there to Manali was the most enterta in ing journey this writer has ever made. On leaving Dharamsala the bus was comfortably full, which was how you might imagine it would stay.

However, government buses are a bargain for a reason: they will cram as many people on as is physically possible. The bus driver had to barge the door shut with all of his weight to fit everybody in; people were sitting on top of people on top of more people, and the bus conductor crowd-surfed for tickets as there was no floor left to stand on. The boys sat at the front started playing a song on their phone and singing a long, until the whole front row was singing, and eventually the whole bus. It didn't stop there either; they sang their hearts out relentlessly for the who le eight hours.

Arriving at any place in India in pitch black darkness with no accommodation booked is definitely not big and not clever. It was extremely lucky that the men who met this writer at the bus station were so honest, because anything could happen if you put your trust in the wrong people at a deso late hour.

The next morning saw the most beautiful view of the mountains literally covered in cannabis plants.

The climate is so hum id here that they grow everywhere, including outside the police station. This factor has made it a hotspot for stoned hippies (whom the guesthouse owner had appropriately renamed 'happys'), making it nearly impossible to escape the touristy vi be.

The twenty-hour jeep journey from Manali to Leh is far from easy.

Much of this mountainside road has fallen away leaving it dangerously bumpy and making it impossib le

to avoid continuously hitting your head on the ceiling. Don't be overambitious; doing this journey in one go is extremely painful, so plan an overnight stay in Sarchu or Keylong to break it up.

Drink lots of water to help lower the effects of acute mountain sickness, as you will drive over some of the highest mountain passes in the world, reaching over five thousand metres. But don't let this put you off; you will see the most spectacular views that you never knew were possible, which will stick with you long after the sickness has passed.

After spending a couple of days to recover from the altitude sickness, you can begin to explore this luscious haven properly. The guesthouses in Leh are extremely welcoming, and most provide a traditional Ladakhi breakfast and the option of eating dinner with the whole fami ly.

There are many tourist companies who offer an abundant range of adventures, from rafting up the Indus River, to trekking through the most scenic and rural parts of Ladakh. The only bad thing about Leh, and in fact most of India, is that you can never stay quite long enough.

Warsaw feels like no other Europea11 city. Its experiences under Nazism and Communism are etched into the city's architecture, yet a modern vibrant city has been emerging from the rubble, literally as well as figuratively, over the last fifty years.

The Stare Miasto (Old Town) has a strange, sparse atmosphere, which echoes its tragic history. It is not old in the literal sense of the word, having been rebuilt following its total destruction during World War 11. As recently as 1945, Nazi officials declared that Warsaw did not exist.

The Stare Miasto was rebuilt in the original Flemish style following the original town plans. Although it is aesthetically very beautiful it feels almost like a toy town. Walking around in the early evening there was no real atmosphere, and the restaurants and bars were twice as expensive as in the Nowe Miasto.

Evening highlights include Metal at 21 ul. Foksal. Packed with locals it served traditional Polish meaty bar snacks and cheap drinks into the early hours. Lemon Bar at 6 Henryka Sienkiewicza houses a

trendy but unpretentious bar with a vast drinks menu. It is slightly more expensive for Warsaw, but still cheap compared to UK prices. Step into jazz Club Tygmont, 6 Mazowiecka, and it feels like stepping back in time. This smoky basement club boasts live music, cheap drinks, and, unusually for clubs in the city, no entrance fee.

The city is scattered with remnants of the past, which have either been obscured or glorified according to political expediency.

Remains of the Ghetto walls stand within a communist-era housing development and you really have to look to find them.

The Warsaw Uprising Museum is not to be missed. It combines modern interactive displays with photos and artefacts surviving from the uprising of 1944. This was the most heartbreaking but beautiful testament to the city's past.

Top Travel Tips: Road Trips Beth Davison Travel writer Picture yourself, some friends and the open road; complete freedom with nothing tying you down. With this in mind here are a few tips for anyone planning a road-trip in the near future.

TUNES: The road can be a lonely place. When conversation ebbs with hours left to drive, nothing will lift the mood better than some epic driving songs. Have plenty to hand with songs the whole car can enjoy, and just let that iPod shuffle!

SATNAV: Maps are fine but they're no Satnav. Give it a name and an accent and let all the responsibility fall on the shoulders of this amazing gadget. It helps when you're lost and becomes the perfect scapegoat.

When you take a wrong turn don't yell at each other, it was clearly the fault of the Satnav system!

SNACKS: As tiredness sets in, the one thing you can rely on is a sugar rush. Also, if the budget is tight and you have to make that all-important food or alcohol choice, then the last few crisps or sweets from that day's binge may just make the perfect desperate dinner.

PLAN: Even if you totally disre-

gard it, it's best to have some plan of where you want to be, and roughly when, otherwise there's the distinct possibility that you'll chase different tangents (and other attractive travellers) on the way. Family members will also appreciate knowing where you are and when you intend to return.

YOUR WITS: Don't be stupid. Follow the law because a speeding ticket will damage your budget as much as your mood. Also be aware of where you park for the night. The homeless man on the corner may seem friendly enough, but only park in the worst neighbourhoods when you have no other choice.

These are a few tips for the ultimate roadtrip. Stay calm, take lots of photos, and with your hands at ten and two and your feet on the pedals it's time to buckle up and drive.

t

ISS UE 247 co ncre te.u·ave l@uea.ac.u k

18

From Lima to Llamas

- Perusing the Peruvian Jungle

Caroli na Bodmer hea ds deep into the Amazon Rainforest to discover ancient ruins , exotic wild life, shades of Spain and irritating insec ts

-,_

,

Sta ndin g be fore th e h is to r ic. lncan c ita d e l o f Mac hu Picc hu, Pe ru , is a n unfo rge tta b ly s urrea l mom e nt. it is locate d d ee p in So uth Am e ri ca, in a fasc in at in g an d b rea th-ta kin g regio n w he re it is poss ib le Lo cr u ise down Lh e Amazo n J{a infores t, hi ke u p t he legenda ry And es a nd ex pl o re bo th coast a nd d ese rt la nd sca pes. An e xtre m e ly div e rse country, geog ra phi ca lly a nd c ultura ll y. Pe ru is reco mmend ed Lo th e a dventuro us of s p irit a nd to th ose kee n to get o u l o f the ir comfo rt zo ne.

This write r' s jou r ney bega n o n tou chin g cl o wn in Lima, Pe ru 's hu s tlin g ca pita l. Loca ted by th e coas t, Lima is a h ug e, s p raw ling city, w it h a beau ti fu l m a in s qu a re res p le nd e nt with Spa ni s h co lo ni a l a rc hitec ture a nd faca d es . r:rom Lima, you ca n boa rd th e ho ur a nd a ha lf fli g ht to lquitos, a c ity loca ted in th e m idd le of the Pe ruvi a n Amazo n, access ibl e o n ly by p l ~1 n e o r riv e r hoat. r: ly in g ove r th e tre m e nd o us And es a nd be ho ldin g

Write for Concrete Co n c r e t e is UEA's ind e p e n d e n t s t ud e n t n e w s p a p e r. We 're a lways loo k ing out fo r an y ta le nt t h a t th e s tud e nts of UEA ha ve to offe r.

Wh e t h er yo u fa n cy yo urself as a n in ves t iga tiv e jo u r n a li s t fo r Ne ws, a ca rtoo ni s t fo r Co mm e nt a n d Opi n ion, or y ou w a nt to inte rvi e w up -a nd- comin g ba nd s fo r Mu s ic, w e w a nt t o h ea r from yo u 1 Ge t in tou c h wit h us by e m a ili ng Da nn y, our e dit o r, on co n c r e t e.e dito r @ u ea.ac. uk .

If yo u wa n t t o t ake a m ore di r ec t a pproac h, yo u ca n find th e e m a il a dd r esses fo r t h e diffe r e nt section s a t th e top of th e p ages in b o t h Con c re t e a nd Ve nu e.

You ca n a ls o jo in o ur Fa cebook g ro u p to kee p up w it h a ll o f t h e la t es t n e w s from th e soc ie t y. Sea r c h fo r Co n c r e te UEA' s Ind e p e n d e n t Stud e nt Ne w s p a p e r.

If yo u 're n ot a m e m b e r of th e s o c ie ty, it co s ts ju s t £4 to join . You ca n contac t Da v in a , o u r Pres id e nt, o n D. Kes by @ u ea . a c. u k.

We h o p e y ou e nj oy thi s iss u e o f Co ncre t e a nd h o p e t o see yo u a t th e Na ti o n a l De m o o n th e lOth Nove mb e r in Lon d on. T ic ke ts ca n b e b o ug h t at t h e box offi ce fo r £5, w hi c h is r e fund e d on th e coac h .

t he mea nd e ri ng r ive rs in th e ex pa nse of t he ra info res t m a kes fo r a spectac ul a r jo urn ey. lquilos is a hec t ic a nd chao ti c jun g le city, imm e rsed in a cl im a te of sco rch ing hea t a nd h u mi d ity. it is v ibra n t a nd co lo u r fu l, w it h ma ny of its bui ld ings co ve red in bi za rre graffiti , a nd wh e re sa lsa, m ering u e a nd th e po pu la r cumbi a mu s ic e va d e t he a tm os ph e re.

Afte r a ll , why li s te n to hip-h o p a nd p o p mus ic w he n you ca n Ia t in d a nce with a pa rt ne r?

Th e hu mmin g wh irr of a utom a ted ri cks ha ws (mo toca r ros in Spa ni s h) have re pl ace d th e ne ed fo r ca rs, as th ey o ffe r a coo l breeze whi le tra ve lling a ro un d in t he cl ay's s w e lte rin g s un, a nd a re th ri ll in gly m o re da nge ro us t ha n the s tand a rd ca r r id e . Stro ll in g dow n th e bo ul eva rd , ove rl oo kin g th e giga n tic Am az on Rive r o n a Sa turd ay ni g ht, yo u w ill find it full o f peo pl e ea tin g tro pi ca l ice c rea m. Ve nd o rs a t s ta ll s in th e An aco nd a m a rke t e nti ce yo u to buy ha nd cra ft ed jewe lle ry, pai ntin gs, a nd exo ti c a nim a l t r inke ts, a nd at

Editorial "I pl e dge to vote aga ins t <my in crease in fees in the next pa rli a me nt a nd to press ure th e gove rnm e nt to introdu ce a fa ire r a lte rn a tive." So declared th e Liberal Democra ts' pros pecti ve co ho rt of pa rli a me nta ry ca ndid a tes in Lh e build up to the 201 0 Ge ne ral Electi o n as th ey s ig ned the NUS fe es pl edge.

Wha t a d iffe re nce s ix m o nths ma kes. Las t week w e wa tche d as Vince Ca bl e and Ni ck Clegg sat e ithe r s id e of David Wi ll e tts as he a nn o un ced th e s ugges ted rise in tu itio n fees. Am o ng those wh o s ig ned the pledge was Simo n Wri ght, the MP for No rw ich South. it is fu lly und e rs tood th a t Wright faces a d iffi cult cho ice: re ma in loyal to his pa rty, o r ho nou r a pled ge to th e s tud e nts wh o und o u btedly co ntributed s ig nifi ca nt ly to th e 310 vote ma jor ity he ac hi eved.

Wr ight is a for me r s tu de nt a nd teac he r; he und e rs ta nds th e implicatio ns o f Lhe vote. Wh a t ca n he ce rta in is th a t if he re m a ins loya l to th e s tud e nts of UEA a nd vo tes aga ins t a hike in fees, thi s loya lty w ill be re pai d in kind al the next e lect ion.

W ith nea rly 2 0,000 s tude nts in his co ns titue ncy, ca n Wr ight afford to lose th e ir vo l es"~

PO BOX 4 10, NO I\ W ICII , NOHFOLI< , NR4 7 Tj 01 6 0 3 593466 Co n n c te is pu b li s h e d by UU EAS Con c r e t e Soc ie ty © 2 01 0 Co n cre te . ISS N 1 35 1-2 77 3 Le tte r s s h ou ld b e a d clresse cl for t h e a tte ntio n of th e Editor, Da nny Co llin s.

Le tte r-s mu s t in c lud e co ntac t d e ta il s. but w e w ill con s id e r a nony m o u s publi ca ti on. W e reserve th e r ig ht t o e d it fo 1- le ngt h a nd c la rity as n e cessa ry.

Opini o n s ex presse d a rc n ot n ecessari ly t h ose of th e Publ is h e r or Edi to r.

No p a rt of thi s n e w s p a p e r m ay b e re p ro du ce d t h ro u g h a ny mea n s wit h o u t t h e ex press p e rmi ss ion of t h e Editor, Da n ny Col i in s. P r inte d by 1\rc h a nt.

m o nk eys a nd to th e caco phon o us s qu aw king of macaws. At ni g ht, w he n th e d a rkn ess tra ns fo rm s th e ra info res t, yo u ca n mo to r thro ug h th e rive r sea rc hin g fo r ca im a ns in te rri fy in g excite m e n t, re p ress in g n ig ht m a re th o ug hts a bout th e s m a ll ca noe tippin g o ve r in th e bl ac k w a te r.

Fro m th e ri ve r to th e sea, thi s w rite r nex t hea d e d Lo th e coas t. Pa racas a nd th e ls las Ba ll es ta s, d esc rib e d as th e Gala pagos Is la nds o f Pe ru , li e a bo ut th ree ho urs a way fro m Lima by coach. T he is la nd s a re hos t to a n a rray o f mar in e w ildli fe, wh e re th o usa nd s of bird s bars yo u ca n try loca l bee rs a nd cocktai ls, nock a nd yo u ca n see e no r m o us sea lio ns s uch as the ta ngy p isco so ur or th e d e li c io us s u n ba t hin g, Hu m bo ldt pe ng uin s w a ddlin g pin k ca mu ca m u fru it ju ice . nd, durin g th e ri g ht seaso n, vie w th o usa nd s a r: ro m lquitos t his w riter a d vanced to of mi g ra to ry na min goes .

Na uta, a s m a ll to wn, to e mb a rk o n a boa t a nd Fo r th e fin a l leg o flh e jo urn ey, thi s write r begin a jo urn ey de lvin g d ee p into th e hea rt trave ll e d to Cuzco, a wea lthi e r Euro p ea nof th e Pacaya-Sa mi r ia na ti o na l rese rve, w ith Op e ra ti o n Wa ll acca, a n o rga ni sa t io n w hi ch s ty le city, loca ted a lm os t th ree-a nd -a -h a lf t ho usa nd me t res a bove sea level. T he alt itu de prov ides academ ic stu d e n t resea rch t rips. sick ness can b rin g o n a na useating sensat io n Stayi ng in th e rain fores t for ove r a mon th , so a nd m igraines, whic h ca n be eased wit h the re m ote from civilisation - exce p t the sma ll pop ul ar ' m a le Le<1', bre w e d wi th Lh c leaves indi ge no us com m uni ties liv in g in t he reserve of -t he coca pl a nt. In Cuzco and th e nea rby - is a fa ntas ti ca lly liber;1ting ex p erience . s t u nnin g Sacred Va ll ey, yo u ca n ex pl o re th e W ith o ut interne t o r pho ne access, you s pe nd myr ia d of In ca r uin s with to ng ue- tw is tin g yo ur t im e wi th th e fe ll ow stu d e nts li vin g o n na m es s uc h as Oll a ntayta mho, Sacsayhu a m a n th e ri ve rb oa t. Eac h day is s pe nt reco rd ing a nd Puka puka ra as we ll as th e as to n is hi ng a nim a l resea rch ce ns uses a nd d o ing ca me r·asa lt pa ns of Las Sa lin as. Afte r a n ino rdin a te tra p w o r k, w ith th e he lp o f indi ge no us amo unt o f tre kkin g up a nd cl ow n th ese ruins, Pe ru via n g uid es w ho co ns ta ntl y as to u nd you ;rr rive at t he Mecca of th e So uth Ame ri can yo u w ith th e ir knowledge o f t he fo rest they ca ll experie n ce - Mac hu Picc hu . Th is a ncie n t ho me. a rchaeo log ica l la ndm a rk, cl oak ed w ith in Th e s wa rmi ng insects a rc ind escri ba b le.

At o ne po int dur ing t he tr ip thi s write r's · th e And es, is o ne o f th e Seve n Wo nd e rs of th e Wo r ld a nd li ves up to its m ag n ifi ce nce, un fo rtun a te fri e nd di scove re d a bo tfly ha d prov idin g exce pti o na l pa no ra mi c vi s tas whil e de pos ited its la rvae in h e r hea d, th o ug h quintesse nti a lly Pe r uvi a n lla mas graze o n its lu ckily to no u ltim a te ha rm. If yo u a re a lo ugh -s kinn ed exp lo re r w ith a fe rvou r fo r g rass .

Pe r u, b e ne fit in g fro m a growt h in ecowi ld li fe, t he Amazo n boas ts th e la rges t to ur is m a nd s ta bl e gove rnm e nt, has a ri ch s pe ci es bi o di vc rs ily o n Ea rth a nd yo u wi ll ka le id osco pe o f en viro nm e nts. Th e co untry treas ure yo ur t im e in thi s exo.ti c pl ace. ll e rc offe rs a life-c ha ng ing ex pe ri e nce, m a kin g yo u ca n ex pe ri e nce ex traord ina ry pin k ri ve r it difficul t to cap ture Lhe esse nce o f a n dolp hi ns wa kin g yo u up w it h th e ir s neezein cre dib le tr ip in w o rds tha t no o ne w ill t r ul y li ke s no rts as th ey brea k th e wa te r 's s urface und e rsta nd un less th ey und e rgo th e jo urn ey fo r a ir, liste n to t he eerie wa il s o f th e how le r th e m se Ives.

ISSUE 247

Tuesday 9th November

Get Your 5 A Day

I

Christine O'Sullivan

Food Writer

Any health magazine or TV programme will emphasise the importance of your "Sa day" of fruit and vegetables, which should be about a third of your daily food consumption, but the UK averages two to three portions a day.

As students, we are probably among this category, as we either end up being too busy to make a proper meal or find our budget a little too tight. We'd rather spend our last few pennies on sweets than a lovely juicy apple.

So this week, Concrete Food are helping to get your fruit and vegetable intake nearer to that golden five with some easy healthy meals

that are quick and fun to make.

To start you off, here are some ideas for those all-important snacks that get us through the day. You'll be surprised how little you need to count as one portion.

• One piece of medium-sized fruit, such as an apple, peach, banana or orange.

• One slice of fruit, such as melon, mango or pineapple.

• One handful of grapes.

• One tablespoon of dried fruit.

• A glass (roughly lSOml) of fruit juice.

• An BOg serving of vegetables, such as frozen peas.

I

Kyle Spencer

Food Editor

This Italian classic is great as a starter or even as a small lunch . Packed full of vegetables, it's a great way to get some of your S-a-day.

Serves 2

Stuffed Roasted Peppers

Tortilla Based Pizza This recipe is a tasty alternative to conventional pizzas, and seeing as it only takes around ten minutes, it's perfect for those one hour lunch breaks. Top it with vegetables and you will be even closer to that magic S-a-day. This can be served with all manner of things to turn it into a more substantial meal.

• One tortilla wrap • One jar of pizza topping or one tube of

Serves 2 You will need:

• Two red peppers • One packet of microwave couscous • Mozzarella cheese (grated is fine)

Method:

• Slice the peppers in half from top to bottom and then de-seed.

• Prepare the couscous according to the instructions on the packet.

• Mix the couscous with the mozzarella cheese • Fill the peppers with the couscous and mozzarella mix. Top with more mozzarella • Roast in a pre-heated oven at 2SO'c for 40 minutes.

• Serve with your chosen accompaniment

Two ciabatta rolls, One red pepper Half a red onion Ten cherry tomatoes Olive oil Balsamic vinegar

• Slice the cherry tomatoes in half.

• Finely chop the red onion. You can use as little or .as much of this as you like.

• Slice the pepper up into chunks that are about the size of the half cherry tomatoes.

• Mix the chopped vegetables with the olive oil and balsa mic vinegar.

• Slice the ciabatta rolls in half and toast the side that was in the middle.

• Serve the bruschetta mix spooned upon the ciabatta bread.

You will need:

This simple little dish makes a great main meal with a carbohydrate-based accompaniment or a side salad. Naturally high in vitamins A and C, red peppers are a great source of vitamins

• • • • • •

-

Method:

Superfoods!

No, they aren't foods with super powers, but they can help prevent against certain diseases, so they are alwa>:_s good to try to get into your diet.

Blueberries contain flavonoids that can improve circulation and help defend against infection.

Broccoli is rich in the antioxidants vitamin C and beta-carotene, as well as folate, all of which can protect against cardiovascular disease and cancer.

Tomatoes are rich in lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that can protect against various harmful cancers. ·

You will need:

• Grated cheese (mozzarella or cheddar will be fine) • Your choice of topping Method:

• Place the wrap under the grill and lightly toast it on both sides.

• Spread a thin layer of the tomato puree over the wrap.

• Add your chosen topping.

• Sprinkle the cheese over the entire wrap, you need to cover as much as possible.

• Place under the grill again until the cheese has melted and turned golden brown.

11'

ISSUE 247

20

con crete.editori al@uea.ac.uk

STOP THE TRAFFIK how a human trafficker was found living in UF.A accommodation.

Anni Ueckerman Stop the Traffik UEJ\

F.ver wanted to travel the world, or work in another country"? Does this sound like your dream job"?

Thousands of peop le are currently do in g it, hut not how you'd im<Jgine; they are trapped in the nightmare of s lavery, without a voice or means of escape.

That's where you guys can help make a difference. Last yea r· UEA stu de nts l"elt so strong ly about the issue of human trafricking that they set up Stop The Traffik UEA, a soc iety that aims to raise the aware ness of trafficking and aid the cha r·ities wo rkin g to era d ica te it- suc h as the J\21 campa ign. J\11 of the organisations invo lved have one aim: to fi nd <lrHI free those people taken to work as slaves and help th em back to th eir fa mil ies .

"People are products, I was one of them, but I am a survivor."

,

it's easy to think that these things don't happen in Norwich, that they're restricted to Eastern Europe or India; but now the issue is quite li tera lly on our doo rstep. At the sta rt of se m este r~ Conc rete reported

"Whe n peopl e act, t hings cha nge" On October 21st, International "l<ey 2 Free" clay, the events that Stop Th e Traffik staged on campus were hard to miss.

T hose of you out and about couldn't have failed to see the impression made by various vo lunteers dressed up as pimps and sex workers on campus, who demonstrated how ordinary girls cou ld be exposed as victims to sex trafficking. Following the success of the Body Shop window disp lay tha t Stop The Trafrik put on at their first major event in Norwich last year~ students were asked to give an estimation of what they wou ld pay for any of the girls.

Meanw hi le, oth er demonstrators we re pushed around in shopping carts to symbolise that traffickers view peop le as products, to be bought and sold for profit. J\s one of the surv ivo rs of sex trafficking said: "People are products, I was one of them, hut I am a survivor." With this inspirational story in mind, the society also put on flash mobs and free running displ<1ys in the Square, bringi ng the ir campa ign to the very

How much would yo u pay? Students make an impact fo r 'Key 2 Free' day las t month. heart of UEA. A stall in the hive promoted the finer details of the campaign, including leaflets on survivors' stories and how members of the public can get invo lved in help ing to stop slave ry.

Even doing something as small as signing up to the A21 campaign and wearing a key, any key, from· house keys to rustic gate keys, symbolises commitment to unlocking freedom for peop le taken aga inst t heir wi ll as

slaves.

For more information, search for "Stop The Traffik UEA" on Facebook or visit www.stopthetraffik.org.

To join us in our cause e mail stopt hetraffi ku ea@ hotma il.co. uk.

LIVE MUSIC SOCIETY Tom Goldsmith LMS President

..

lt seems that people often think that the Live Music Society is just for people who pl<1y instruments or want to be in a band. That is far from true. What we aim to do is provide something for everyone, whether you play or just love watching and listening to live music. On Friday 5th, LMS held their first live event of the year in the Hlue Ba r~ consis ting of a brilliant lineup.

Every semester we try and give the artists in the society the chance to perform in a number of places, for a night of entertainment that all of our members can enjoy. These Blue Bar events are free for everyone and shall be taking place again in the spring.

LMS's main event is the Open Mic night which takes place regula rly in the Hi ve; the first of

which this academic year will be on 14th November. This is free for members and £2 for non -members (though, as membership is only £3, you would be better off just becoming a member)! On these nights the society try to provide a great selection of v<1ried acts, from meta l bands to soothing acoustic tunes. Open Mic night is being held twice this semester and usually has a lot of acts wanting to perform, so if you are interested in playing then get in touch as soon as possi bl e.

Aside from all that live music goodness, LMS also have our own radio show on Livewirel350 that you can check out on <1 Sunday evening 7.30-9 pm, bringing you the best in new music fro m UEA artists and prov iding a round-up of all the gigs happening both at Union venues and in town. 'fhere are also some live acoustic tunes b roadcas t from the stu d io by LMS

members!

On top of <1ll of this, LMS have a number· of gre<lt offers for _their artists. The society has deals with two of the leading studios in Norwich so you can get great value on practice lime. With Plug Studios, LMS members get <1 £5 discount wi th your LMS ca rd (whi ch wi ll be printed off in the next week or so for <1ll paid up members). In <1dditio n, there is <1 free practice slot with Access to Music on Weclnesd<1y eve nings 7- 1 0 pm , though if th ere is a high demand the s lot wi ll be sp lit to make it more be neficial.

All of these fa nt<1stic benefits and opportunities are provided by Live Music for a me mbers hip fee of o nly £3 for th e entire yea r! To gel in touch, emai l uea live mus ic@ googlemai l. com in order to he signed up to the mai ling list, or check out th e facebook page: UEA Live Mus ic Soc iety.

• ISSUE 247

Maths spot on with penalty calculations Sports Correspondent Ion Hobbs reports on a thrilling night One of the highlights of the Ziggurat competition took place last week in the form of an exciting knock-out football tournament at the Sportspark.

The first round of games saw a number of teams finding their feet and settling into proceedings, resulting in many games drawing blanks and leading to sudden death penalty shootouts.

This trend continued as the rounds progressed but despite the lack of goals, many games were still full of end to end action.

The tournament really got into its stride going into the semi-final rounds, Maths snatching the lead late on in the second tie only for opponents EDU to grab a last-gasp equaliser to take the match to penalties.

Players from both teams fired confident and sometimes audacious penalties home but it

Football earn their first win UEA Women's I WorGester Women's 11

SPORT 21

www.concrete-online.co.uk

Tuesday 9th November

5 0

UEA advanced to the second round of the BUCS Conference Cup with a consummate S-0 mauling of Worcester 11, the team's first win of the year ·in their second outing.

UEA's superior fitness showed throughout the game as they were capable of consistently out-playing the visitors. A series of neat passes between strikers Aisha Shuaibu and Kate Silver soon set up Bernie McSharry to put UEA in front, a neat lob over the Worcester keeper getting McSharry on the scoresheet.

Once the first goal went in the floodgates were forced open, and winger Christie Haynes fired home a fizzling effort to double the lead before the break.

After half-time the UEA barrage continued. A Nicky Shanks header and a neat finish from Leanne Stubbings· put UEA 4-0 up before McSharry netted a fifth from Shuaibu's cross in the dying minutes.

Ruthana Christofides

was Maths' Matt Clark who netted the vital kick

his team into the final.

In the night's showpiece game Maths faced up against the other EDU team, who had triumphed over History in the first semi-final.

All Blacks too much for spirited England

of Ziggurat football

Many supporters gathered to witness the final and they were certainly not disappointed as Oliver Dingli, a firstyear Maths student, opened the scoring wjth superb after footwork even Gareth Bale would have been proud of.

D i n g I i then killed off the game a simple completing virtuoso performance to secure the title for Maths.

Speaking exclusively to Concrete, Dingli mused that had Andy Gray been one of the final's many spectators, he would have told the Maths match-winner to "take a bow, son."

I

Chris King Sports Editor

Saturday's autumn international saw England's revival come to an abrupt end against New Zealand, going down 26-16 despite fighting back from an significant first-half deficit.

Martin )ohnson's side continued England's unenviable record of having lost their last 9 games against the imperious All Blacks with an auspicious start that saw New Zealand roar into a 14-0 lead courtesy of converted tries from Hosea Gear and Kieran Read.

Two penalties from Toby Flood and a converted Dylan Hartley try weren't enough to bring England back into the game, with Carter's kicking maintaining a comfortable

margin for the All Blacks.

Despite a victory over Australia in the second test of a summer tour; England were clearly second-best, but the manner of England's fightback from 14-0 down should encourage both fans and players alike.

Despite England's domination of the scrums, )ohnson's side were outclassed by the All Blacks' pace and power, and were largely on the back foot before England's late flurry left New Zealand somewhat hanging on to victory in the face of repeated onslaughts.

Wales were also defeated by Southern Hemisphere opposition in the form of Australia, whose superb attacking performance saw them claim a 25-16 victory at the Millenium Stadium.

Tries from David Pocock, Kurtley Beale and Ben Alexander were enough for deserved winners Australia, with Ben Rees' try for Wales nothing more than a consolation.

Next Up for England and Wales are trick)) ties against South Africa and New Zealand respectively, and a chance to improve for both sides.

Netball narroV#Iy beaten I

Kirsten Wade Sports Correspondent

UEAI Nottingham 11!

44 49

Netball 1st team went down in a closely fought match against the University of Nottingham's third team in round three of the sues Cup last week. While UEA went into the match with the home team advantage, Nottingham also had an advantage due to their placing in league 28 of the Midlands League with UEA in 38.

Despite this, UEA were able to put significant pressure on Nottingham, domin~ting possession at times, attacking with speed, and regaining possession on numerous occasions whilst in defence.

Both teams held the lead during stages of the match, however, in the end Nottingham were too strong, with UEA going down 49-44. Captain, Rosie Sheward, said after the game the

•

team "were disappointed that we couldn't pull through right at the end."

UEA player of the match went to Emma Parker, who played goal shooter for the entire game.

Parker was a dominant force at the attacking end of the court with precision shooting and support play to goal attack and ViceCaptain Becca Hargreaves, helping UEA remain close to Nottingham's score for the majority of the game.

The result means that after three matches UEA have recorded one win and two losses. The two losses were close with UEA losing by five goals on both occasions, while the win came against the University of Leicester first team in round one 48-31. These results put UEA in equal second place on the 38 ladder based on goal differential, with Sheward ·adding "the rest of the season looks very promising".

Nottingham Trent are up next at home for UEA, a side who have also recorded one win and two losses to date in the BUCS Cup.

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• ISSUE 247

22

I

Ch r is Teale Spo rts Corres pond e nt

Norwich City were stunn ed in the fi rs t ha lf away to Card iff City, currently occ upyin g th e Champion s hi p's second autom a ti c promotion pl ace . Th e We ls h s iJ e were a hea d ea rly th ro ugh a jay Both royd head er in the 9 th minu te, before Mi cha e l l.h o pra add ed a second three minu tes later, se t up by a sweet flick from Bothroyd.

Wes ll ool a han pu ll ed a goa l back fo r No rwi ch w ith a heade r from a Sim o n La ppin cross, before Pete r Whitting ham s lotted home a pe na lty in th e 37 th minute afte r a ha nd ba ll

by Ca na ri es ce ntre-h ac k Elli ott Wa rd . The ga me fini s hed 3- 1 to Ca rd iff, Norwi ch's seco nd • away defea t of th e seaso n, w hich saw them fa ll to fift h in th e tabl e.

Th e Ca na ries welco med Bur nl ey to

concrete.s port@uea.a c.uk

(a rrow Roa d at the weekend, and aga in foun d th e mse lves two goa ls down in th e fir st ha lf courtesy of a brace fro m t he in -fo rm Ma rti n Patcrson. Chris Ma rtin pu t Norw ich hack in the runnin g in the 71s t minute with a n exqu is ite fi ni sh , an d then /\n d rew Crofts sco red from close ra nge in the 92 nd minute, de nyin g th e Cla rets a first away w in in th e Cha mpi o nship thi s seaso n a nd sea li ng a thl-illing Afte r tak ing ju st a po int from th e ir las t two ga mes, City have slipp ed o uts ide the pl ay-off places o n goal d iffe re nce, a nd s uffe red a num ber of inj uri es to th e ir defe nce, whi ch

in

Ru sse ll Ma rt i n to be e mp loye d as a ri ght- back eve ry ga me this

seaso n.

Howeve r, as th e ir recove ry aga in st Bur nl cy wo uld s ugges t, the Ca na ries defin ite ly have the pote ntia l to reac h the pl ay-offs.

Ip sw ich Town had to co me fro m be hind aga inst gia ntkill ers No rtha mpto n Tow n in th eir Ca rlin g Cup fou rth ro und t ic a t Portm a n Road.

Li a m Dav is put Cobb le rs in fro nt be fo re Trinid ad ia n inte rn ati o na l Ca r Ios Edwa rd s levell ed fo r t he home s ide in th e 26th minute. Da mi a n Dela ney t he n put Ipswi ch in front just be fore half tim e, with a hea de r from Ta mas Pr is kin sea lin g the wi n in the 88 th minute. Ipsw ich we re rewa rd ed by a noth er home ti e in th e fifth round , wh ere they will hos t Pre mie r League sur prise outfit Wes t Bro mw ic h Al bi on.

The Tracto r Boys we nt on to sec ure a co mforta bl e 2-0 w in ove r Mill wa ll th a nks to a go al fro m jaso n Sco tl a nd a nd a pe na lty from Gra nt Lca d bitte r. it was Ipsw ich's first clea n-s heet s in ce mid -Se ptembcr, a nd ended a run of three stra ight league de feats.

Hittin g th e roa d afte r success ive ho me ma tches, Ipswi ch travell ed to Sheffi e ld United, a nd loo ked to bui ld o n the ir rece nt good res ults.

Ta mas Pr is kin ope ned th e sco ring from close-ra nge in th e sixth minute for th e vis itors, befor e Ste phe n Quinn levelled for th e 29 th min ute. Howeve r, ca pta in Ga reth McAu ley fired home in the 40th minute to sea l t he po ints fo r Ipswi ch a nd kee p th e m in th e pl ay-o ff places.

Ipsw ic h's victory ove r North amp ton Town has clea rly he lp ed to a ll ev iate their poor run of res ults w hi ch saw the Tractor Boys slum p to three co nsec utive leag ue defea ts .

Such form s ugges ts that, like Eas t Angli a n ri va ls Norw ich, s hould th ey co ntinu e to put in such impress ive per forma nces, th ey a lso have th e pote nti a l to be in the pro moti on h unt co me th e end of th e season, mos t likely via the pl ay-offs.

·Wolves edged out in thriller I

Oli Platt Spo rts Co rres po nd e nt

UEA Pa nthers Women's I 67 W'hampto n Women's I 56

• •

UEA's Women's Bas ketball tea m got their firs t win of the season tha nks to a late fourth q ua rte r s urge aga ins t a previous ly unb ea te n Uni vers ity of Wo lve rh a mpton s id e.

Unti l that UEA rally in th e clos ing minutes th e two teams had battled out a close, exc iting ga me, the seco nd ha lf in pa rticula r see ing them exc ha nge th e lea d regul a rly, with the moment um frequ e ntly sw inging from one tea m to th e oth e r.

In th e e nd it was UE /\'sd isci pl ine a nd co mpos ure th at proved to be th e dec is ive factor, w ith two of Wolve rh a mp to n's s ix ava ila bl e playe rs foulin g out - leav in g the vis iting tea m a body s ho rt fo r a la rge pa rt of th e dec isive fo urth qu a rte r.

The ho me tea m got off to th e stro nge r s t ~1 rt , pass ing th e ha ll we ll and d rawi ng severa l fo uls a round th e net to estab li sh an 18-13 lead a fter the first q ua rter. jcmma G01·don in pa rti cula r ca pitalised on th ese free throw o pp ortuni ties, puttin g up I 8 po in ts fo r the ga me.

Whi le UEA we re mainta ining mos t of th e ba ll possess ion, Wolve rha mpton re ma in ed da nge rous; what they som etimes lacked in height, th ey made up fo r in s peed and s kill , a nd shot acc urate ly from all ra nges .

The vi s itors' fas t-pace d style s ta rted to pay off in th e seco nd qu a rter as Wolve rh a mp to n w iped out UE/\'s fi rst q ua rte r adva ntage, tak ing a 30-27 lead at half-ti me.

UEA had beco me gui lty of pl ay ing too ma ny long, am1Jiti ous passes in th at d isappo in tin g seco nd qu arter, but wha teve r hea d coac h John Ha rri s sa id durin g the brea k clea rly worked , as they ca me flying out in the third . UE/\' s exce ll ent energy was epito mi sed by th e

ha rd-wo rking Sand ra Bed nar, with ] 2 of he r tea m-lea d ing 20 po ints co min g in the seco nd ha lf. "Sa ndra has rea lly he lped our tea m th is year as we' re now abl e to ca ll on a lot of height in our front lin e", UEA coac h John ll a rri s told Co ncrete Sport afte r th e ga me.

The vis itors' perseve rance was adm irab le, th ough, pa rt icula rly afte r d ropp ing dow n to fo ur pl aye rs.

UEA had to do a profess iona l job, pati ent ly matchi ng the vis ito rs befo re eve ntu ally exte nding a lea d in a ga me th at had onl y a po int or two in it for mu ch of the fourth qu a rte r.

Bedn ar a nd ca pta in Nico le Luc ioni led the fin a l dri ve, Lu cioni prov id ing a tim ely five seco nd half points to take her total to nin e as UE/\ cl in ched an eve ntu a lly co mfo rtable 67-56 victory.

"I was rea lly pro ud of th e tea m th ro ughout th e Wolve rh ampton ga me, es pecially th e ir foc us in th e 4 th qua rte r with th e ga me o n th e lin e", sa id ll ar ris. '"T he pl aye rs wo rked ha rd until the fin al buzze r a nd exec uted ve ry well in th e fi n<:1 l pe ri od." /\ nd he sugges ted the re is mo re to co me from hi s tea m, add ing: "/\11 th e playe rs a re finding th eir fee t but it's sti ll go in g to ta ke a whi le fo r thi s tea m to fu lfil it's full potenti al."

WEDNESDAY 3RD NOVEMBER 2010 BUCSLEAGUE Badminton UEA Men's I Notts Trent Men's I

8 0

Football Luton Men's I UEA Men's I

0 3

Tennis Bedford Women's I UEA Women's I

0 12

B.llCS. CON..EE.B.ENCE. C.UP l st B.OUN..D Football UEA Women's I Worcester Women's 11

5 0

Hockey UEA Men's I 12 Birmingham City Men's I 0 UEA Women's I Bedford Women's I

5 3

Netba ll UEA 11 Nottingham Trent I

19 63

Rugby UEA Men's 11 Aston Men's 11

67 0

Tennis UEA Men's 11 Coventry Men's 11

4 8

Representing UEA this week: Football Men's 11, Rugby Me n's I and 11 and Lacrosse Wome n's I are all in action on a busy Wednesday at Colney Fi elds; Basketba ll Men's I and Footba ll Men's I travel to Northampton; UEA Fencing hosts a three-tea m sues tournament this weekend, welcoming Staffordshire and Warwick to the Sportspark; UEA Pirates American Football entertain Hertfordshire on Sunday.

'

......

â&#x20AC;˘ ISSUE 247

23

Tuesday 9th November

Editors' So You Think You Know Taekwondo?

Column Sports Correspondent Sam Tomkinson struggles to get any information from Rob's pretentious housemate

It's been a big fort night across the s porting spectrum, with the FA Cu p already begin ning to work its magi c and the climax of the Formula One seaso n edging ever closer. FC Un ited's s hock victory over League Two Rochdale means a 'Roy Of The Rovers' ti e agains t Manches ter United in th e third round remains an exciting propositi on.

The Champions League also chipped in with its fai r s hare of excitement, with Tottenha m Hotspu r reco rding a historic 3- 1 victory over Inter Milan at White Hart Lane following yet another masterclass from arguably Europe's hottest property, Gareth Bale.

Yet the fortnight's action was by no means bereft of controversy, with Nani's goal against Spurs once again provoking footba ll's own 'great de bate' over video technology.

At the weekend's Brazil Grand Prix Sebastian Vettel took the initiative in the t itle race, w hich will be decided in a week's time in Abu Dhabi.

Ferna ndo Alonso remains in the lead w ith 246 points, eight clear of Australian Mark Webber, and needs only to maintain his composure to claim what has b een one of the most fiercely contested World Championship titles in recent memory. Briton jenson Button, though, saw his title hopes extinguished.

El sewhere, the tip-off of the NBA season in North America has captured our attention.

This season marks the dawn of a new era for the Miami Heat, who worked tirelessly over the s ummer to compile an allnew roster around t eir three star summer signings, All-Stars LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and the returning Dwyane Wade.

Already there have been surpnses aplenty and more than enough nail biting action to point towards an enthralling season.

Closer to home, BUCS competition continues to provide excellent entertainment at the Sportspark and Colney Fields every Wednesday. Why not turn up and see for yourself - our sportsmen and women are always appreciative of the su pport!

- Chris King and Rob Schatten -

The numerous martial arts clubs available to UEA students offer a variety of combat training but retain a common friend ly attitude and enthusiastic fo llowing. Taekwondo, despite representing a less wellknown martial art than karate or judo, is no exception.

Early records of the discipline can be dated back to 50 BC Korea where it was divided into the three kingdoms of Silla, Koguryo and Paekche.

Although taekwondo first appeared in the Koguryo kingdom, it is the Silla's Hwarang warriors that are credited with the growth and spread of taekwondo throughout Korea. The modern-day version was formalised in 1955, and since then it has grown rapidly, with an estimated 30 million practicing the discipline in 123 countries. This growth led to it being accepted as a medal competition in the 2000 Olympic games.

Though similar to karate and judo, taekwondo, according to Armitage, "differs in two important ways - it focuses a lot more on kicks, and there's a lot of in-close grappling.

"It's almost a fusion between the technique-based style used in karate and the grappling emphasis in judo," he continues, "and taekwando applies these skills in more of a street setting so they're mo re usable in the real world. It's the best of both worlds."

Apart from an increased ability to

fight off an assailant through patterns and self defence, the sport also teaches meditation and a focus on mental and ethica l discipline - from justice and etiquette to self-respect and self confidence.

Such benefits are clearly very popular with celebrities. Stars such as Kylie Minogue, Ph i! Mi ckelson,

Sarah Michelle Geller (black belt), Sharon Stone and Willie Nelson (black belt) practice the discipline as a means of staying in shape and personal reflection. Even Former U.S. President Bill Clinton has been training in taekwondo.

'1\t UEA we have a budding society where members have the chance to hone their skills in training with patterns and moves with an aim to achieve high grades. In the second semester sparring is the focus with a club competition at the end of the year."

If the competitive side does not lure you in then, according to Armitage, there is more on offer than just the fight: "It's a great social atmosphere, there's a real friendly but competitive nature about the _. club that pushes everyone forward, and we have a strong relationship with other martial arts clubs too."

Taekwondo is open to everyone with two training sessions a week, Tuesday at 7.00pm - 10.15pm (Martial Arts Room) and Friday at 7.40pm -10.15pm (Dance Studio).

UEA roar to victory Vettel blows title

I

Rob Schatten Sports Editor

UEA Me n's I Nottingham Me n's I

17 0

A belated home debut for UEA's top table tennis aces saw a consummate victory against the University of Nottingham, with the hosts producing a stunning performance to whitewash their opponents.

"Ho pefu lly we can take th e

momentum

into

our biggest match of the season at home next week" The firsttie of the match rather set the tone for the afternoon, with UEA's fourth seed Long Zhang overcoming the Nottingham top seed 3-1. From there on UEA were unstoppable, losing only one other set in the following 16 matches.

The UEA quartet of Zhang,

johnny Bispham, Sam Collins and Matt Haynes put on a fine display, with several spectacular shots highlighting the home team's superiority.

Haynes, the president of UEA Table Tennis, enthused after the demolition was complete, that "the match couldn't have started better, w ith Long's win. After that we never looked like letting them off, with a ll our players playing at a standard the opposition couldn't handle."

This was UEA's first victory of the young BUCS season, following a narrow 10-7 reverse away to Oxford I the previous week, and an abandoned tie against Aston I in what ought to have been this season's BUCS opener. As Nottingham will attest, though, the UEA team are certain ly starting to find their feet.

Haynes added: "Hopeful ly we can take this result and momentum forward into the b1ggest match of the season next week, home against Loughborough 1." The match takes place at the Sportspark on Wednesday afternoon, with a starting time yet to be confirmed.

race wide open haunt both the driver and the team, with Alonso holding an eight point Sports Editor advantage over the Australian driver which looks likely to be enough to Sebastian Vettel ensured that see him over the line for a third title. the Formula One World Surprise po le-sitter Niko Championship title race Hulkenberg was easily will go down to the brushed as ide by the wire in Abu Dhabi imperious Vettel off in a fortnight starting grid, the following a Red finishing up in a stillBull one-two impressive eighth at the Brazilian place, another Grand Prix. positive result for the The result young German in his also ensured first season in Formula Red Bull's first One. ever Constructors Following the race Championship title after just at lnterlagos, Alo nso declared six seasons in the competition, with himself to be "100% confident" of a massive 48 point adva ntage over landing the title at Abu Dhabi next Ferrari. â&#x20AC;˘ week, no matter how well his Red Red Bull's decisio n not to Bull riva ls perform. employ 'team orders' in order to A dejected Lewis Hamilton, set up what would have been a meanwhile, gloomily wrote off his spectacular showdown between title chances after a disappointing second-placed Mark Webber and fourth-placed finish that left the current Championship leader Briton 24 points behind Alonso, and Fernando Alonso could come back to in need of a miracle in the desert.

Chris King

.

a

Update East Anglia

Rugby

Norwich City sa lvaged a last gasp draw whilst Ipswich Town .

I continu ed * their recent res urgence

England a nd Wales taste defeat in the first of this year's autumn internationals

RUGBY MAUL OPPONENTS

Mixed week for Korfball

I

I

Beth Robertson Lucie Kibblewhite

Sports Correspo nd e nts

UEA Women's I N'Hampton Women's I

31 0

Foll owin g a co mforta bl e win aga in st th e medi cs in ea rl y Octobe r, UEA Wom e n's Ru gby have made a fa ntasti c sta rt to thi s yea r's BUCS ca mpaign with a 31 -0 win ove r North ampto n.

Th e ma tch was not with out its di fficulti es, with a n abse nt refe ree a nd th e requ es t for un co ntes ted scrum s pri o r to ki ck-off. UEA coach Andrew Driver ste pp ed in to referee, and th e matc h bega n with UEA domin atin g th e fir st ha lf.

Stro ng ru ck in g by numb er eight Chl oe Lea nin g a nd impress ive r uns by win gers Holly McDo nn e ll a nd Ste ph a ni e Creasy paved th e way fo r a ba rrage of a ttac ks on No rtha mpton's try lin e. !I brea k by in s id e ce ntre Lira Pa rk led the way for sc rum half l<elly Gomez to score UEA's first try fiftee n minutes in . UE!I co ntin ue d through the first half w ith a strong a ttackin g lin e, kee pin g Northa mpto n away until th e whi stl e.

Th e second half co mm e nce d a nd UEA showed no sign of slowin g down . A try by Pa rk fiftee n minutes

in was co nve rted by ca pta in a nd fly half Ni co la l<ac iubs kyj. fo ll owed sw iftly by a t ry in t he left co rn e r fro m debuta nt winger Creasy.

No rth a mpton were unab le to stop th e forwa rd ma rch of UEA. a nd prop Kati e Wals h made a s up erb run, brea king clown North a mpto n's defence to ce me nt th e fourth try, again converted by l<ac iubs kyj .

UEA still we re n't fini s hed, a nd a fifth try by seco nd row Ca mill e Braye r brought th e fin a l sco re up to 3 1-0. Ma n of th e Ma tch we nt to Gomez a nd Creasy, with fl a nker Ma rta Boki ej also being co mm e nded by North a mpton.

Ca pta in l<ac iubs kyj said afte r th e match: "Thi s is such a brill ia nt sta rt to th e yea r for us. We've

wo rked ha rd to sec ure thi s win, a nd! co ul d n't be more proud of the tea m. We' re a ll ve ry exc ited for th e nex t matc h! " UEA cur ren tl y sits in 2nd pl ace in BUCS Mid la nds Co nfere nce 2A, a nd th e team will atte mpt to ca rry momen tum into th eir nex t ma tch, aga in st Anglia Ru skin on Nove mb er 17th.

Dominic Smith Spo rts Corres po nd e nt

UEA's l<orfb all si de boun ced ba ck after one of th e club's pres id ents, Amanda Halliday, quit he r post, by claiming second pl ace in a freshe rs' tourna ment in Nottingha m last week.

Th e shock r~s i g n a ti o n had left th e club a coach do wn, yet with th e introdu ction of some ta lented freshers, so me of whom brou ght previous experi ence in bas ketball a nd netball, th e s id e were still able to exceed ex pectati ons an d better las t yea r's perform ance.

Th e shoo ting profi ciency of josh Woodbridge and Will Abbot gave UEA a helping ha nd, whil st coach a nd ca ptain, Emily Keel, was praised for pulling together th e less experienced side.

This was a remarkabl e effor\., a nd after sufferin g a defea t to Card iff in th e first ga me, UE!I were abl e to go on and win all th eir ga mes up until th e fin a l, wh ere th ey fell short to favo urites Sheffi eld \\ all a m.

Thi s form is fa ntasti c news fo r th e squ ad as they co ntinu e an impress ive winning streak, whi ch the tournament in the Eas t Midla nd s further hi ghli ghted last week.

"Despite being a coach down, the side were

ATHLETICS ENJOY CLEAN SWEEP A thleti cs President Simon O'Meara describes the latest triumphs for his club in the East Ang lia Cross County League On October 27th, th e UEA CrossCountry tea m travell ed to th e second race of the East Anglia Cross Country League.

A strong performance at the first race, two weeks prior, saw the men's team take a solid lead in th e tea m co mpetition, whilst Sa rah Burdett showed real grit to fini sh 6th overall, justi fy ing th e tea m's high pre- race exp ectations.

From th e off, UEA took full advantage of the absence of th e usually competitive Easton College,

â&#x20AC;˘

with nin e UEA ath letes in th e leading pack.

Opposition however, as the likes of RAF Ma rham, City of Norwi ch Athl e ti cs Club and Great Yarmouth Road Runn ers fi eld ed a vast number of runners.

Though ha rd pressed by fres her Da rren who an impr ess i ve debut, Ni ck Ea rl used hi s tacti ca l ex p e ri e n ce to fi nis h 1st.

Th e ove rall men's res ult was a landma rk clean sweep of the first eight

pl aces. Of UEA's oth er athletes, Man Cheung fini shed lOth and Andy Di xo n brought th e tea m hom e in 47th.

Represe nting the ladi es, seco nd yea r Lycli a Crowns ran well to fini sh 3rcl a hea d of Burdett in 6th; th e girls will he out in force and aiming to move up th e sta ndings of their tea m co mp etiti on in the next race, at UEA on Wedn esday 17th Nove mber. The tea m as a whole are also gearin g up fo r th e City of Norwi ch HalfMa rath on, late r in November.

sti ll able to exceed expectations" Fi rst-tea m member Li sa Stevens comm ented on how this was a "cracking start to the seaso n" for a club looking to retain its impress ive reco rd in loca l a nd BU CS competition .

Korfball's current pres id ent, Ashl ey Ca imi es, vice pres id ent, Ha rry Fish, as well as johnny Harries and Meredycld Wil kinso n, have rece ived praise from members for handl ing "a trialling fe w weeks for th e cl ub, res huffling a nd delegating, whi ch had demand ed imm ense commitm ent from those left to pi ck up th e pi eces".