By James Burns
The third motion on the AGM agenda, that re-ignites calls for the Students’ Union to campaign for and support pro-choice was passed.
The annual event that took place on the 20th November, saw all four submitted motions passed by the meeting. The motion supporting the continued campaigning from a pro-choice perspective won the audience vote by a clear majority.
However, this did not stop it becoming the most debated motion of the evening, in which two speakers from the audience spoke against the passing of the motion.
The AGM adopted an official pro-choice stance three-years ago, and with the policy due to lapse a renewed motion was submitted for the 2025 meeting, in order for the AGM to retain a formal position on abortion and the reproductive rights of students.
The side arguing for the renewal of adopting a pro-choice stance proclaimed that “neutrality is not an option” in the debate surrounding an official stance. They retained that while abortion remains a legal right in Wales, “issues of accessibility” persist, as women continue to be plagued with a “fear of judgement and stigma”, as well as the “misinformation” that clouds the process of abortion.
They made clear that an adoption of a pro-choice stance “is not about telling anyone about what choice to make but supporting the right to choice”. The board then put the motion to audience members to vote upon the issue, with the vast majority of voters siding in favour with the motion, and just a few hands representing a rejection.
One of these hands was that of Greg Owens, who then took to the stage to provide a rebut to the motion. Owens noted the importance of the Student’s Union’s obligation to protect free speech and suggested the motion “strays into an area of non-inclusivity”.
He affirmed that “if the university is to achieve its vision of inclusivity it must remain neutral on contentious issues like this. He also suggested the potential damage the stance could have over students who are outspoken about their pro-life opinions, and that “20-30 students” have been discriminated on the basis of such beliefs in the past. Owens then departed the stage with a chorus of jeers from the majority of the audience.
Photos by Mael Le Paih
The counter from the motion makers once again reaffirmed the importance of women having “control over their bodies”, and that the pro-choice stance “leaves openness for the debate”, whilst still retaining the importance of individual choice.
The next speaker, rejecting the motion, retorted “that we can not accept ideological suppression”. The speaker departed the stage to silence after the crowd was reminded not to boo speakers.
The proposers of the motion then provided a summary of their arguments. They provided clarity by stating “pro-choice in not pro-abortion but choice over individual’s bodies”. Maria Pollard told the audience that “we are inherently political, as a union we are allowed a stance”
This summary was followed by a landslide show of votes to pass the motion, and following confirmation of the result, an eruption of cheers broke out around the Great Hall.