As someone who took part in the 2000 occupation of SOAS and the student action against the meeting of the Committee of V-Cs and Principals in 1996, I recommend the following codes of conduct for student occupations:

1. Get some sort of mandate from the SU to carry out the occupation. SU general meetings are usually poorly attended, so flood them with occupationists, force a vote and get action approved immediately prior to occupation.

2. Occupy offices (esp, those of the academic elite) and avoid lecture rooms and libraries. This will keep students (esp foreign students who are generally disinterested in British politics) and staff on your side.

3. Stick to the point. At SOAS, the occupation became a recuitment zone for minor communist parties, who took over the place with discussions on the October revolution and the Spartacus rebellion. It fast became irrelevant to most students and annoyed many people.

4. Have a party and organise events in occupied areas, involving students from other colleges. This will keep spirits high and improve attendence.

5. Don't damage any property - the authorities will use this as an excuse to belittle you.

6. Be mindful that the police and/or security guards will be used to evict you. Build strong and dirable barricades and maintain a constant vigil. The SOAS occupation was closed within minutes after the police evicted people at 3 in the morning, taking advantage of the fact that most students were sleeping off alcohol at the time.

"Stick to the point" Ah, that good old favourite of all rightists and "moderates" everywhere from the trade unions to the SOAS!

Lets not let anyone mention the Great October Revolution. What on earth could socialism have to do with student fees? Lets reform capitalism so it will pay the fees, lets beg the government for more money. Lets get all the members of Blair and Blunket's social-fascist party on board!

"Stick to the point" Ah, that good old favourite of all rightists and "moderates" everywhere from the trade unions to the SOAS!

Lets not let anyone mention the Great October Revolution. What on earth could socialism have to do with student fees? Lets reform capitalism so it will pay the fees, lets beg the government for more money. Lets get all the members of Blair and Blunket's social-fascist party on board!

What could socialism have to do with student fees. Well, as it goes, quite a lot. But the point that was being made, which who?, like most myopic trots misses, is to do with PRAXIS; meaning that people can learn from the struggle itself, and that the struggle,in turn develops as a result of PROCESS.

So, in other words, people actively engaged in struggle to improve the material conditions of their daily lives don't need- and certainly don't fucking want- some evangelical muppet waving a copy of "the Truth" under their noses while they're doing it. It, like, really really doesn't help, ok?

And what you actually end up doing is turning people off your sect/politics IN DROVES. So if you can't think of anything better to do, stay in and watch EastEnders. "Socialism" is better off without you.

There is a place for the endless debates on Leninism and the dialectic. But an occupation on the issue of tuition fees should be primarily about tuition fees, not an academic discussion on political theory. I can only speak from experience when I say that one of the aspects of the SOAS occupation that turned students off was the seminars on everything BUT tuition fees run by every group BUT the students who were taking direct action.

I think everyone should respect that the students are the ones who are putting themselves on the line in an occupation, not the SWP, WRP, RCP, CPGB or any other acronym that represents a particular shade of Trotskyism. Therefore, students should be supported, not lectured to, when they take action.

I am just coming up with some ideas for those students thinking of taking action, from the basis on my experience. You can ignore it or take it on board, it's up to you.