The Judge has spoken out, well ahead of the Vice-Chancellor who remains officially ‘mum’. He’s not saying this out of left field – we’re ALL disgusted with the fires caused by the students’ lawless behaviour in our public streets; and with the lack of collective responsibility shown by the University of Otago and City authorities.
It is intolerable that Dunedin emergency services, performing their roles responsibly, are having to bear the major burden year in year out.
The University of Otago Council plonkers and senior ‘ivy-leaguers’ need a wake-up call. Too shrouded in their own mist and comfy salaries, every one an island? Precious loves.
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### ODT Online Wed, 23 Nov 2011
Fears publicity harming varsity
By Matthew Haggart
The University of Otago might face a decline similar to Otago’s sports teams, as a combination of regional demographics, tertiary underfunding, and ongoing publicity about student unrest hit home, a university council member has predicted. The comments from Judge Oke Blaikie came out of left field at a university council meeting yesterday during a discussion on the institution’s budget for 2012. Judge Blaikie, who is also chairman of the university’s disciplinary appeals board, said ongoing publicity about student unrest and fires was contributing to a negative perception among parents of potential students.
Read more
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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr
What if? Dunedin... 
### ODT Online Thu, 24 Nov 2011
Campus alcohol ban to continue
A campus alcohol ban, brought in for the Rugby World Cup games in Dunedin in September, will continue at the University of Otago until a suitable replacement is drafted by lawyers. A proposed repeal of the Alcohol on Campus Statute 2011 was to have taken effect on January 1. However, the repeal has instead been put off and now, under a revised university Administration Statute, there will be two sets of legal regulations governing alcohol on the campus next year.
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The delightful Ward/McLauchlan duo never left town.
### ODT Online Fri, 25 Nov 2011
Chancellor reappointed
By Matthew Haggart
University of Otago chancellor John Ward has been reappointed to the head governance role on the university council for 2012. He will be joined at the top table next year by Stuart McLauchlan, who has been reappointed to the pro-chancellor position.
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Sonny and Cher, Abbott and Costello, Burke and Hare….
Does the whole council vote on and appoint them? Or does a select committee?
### ODT Online Tue, 7 Feb 2012
Students slam liquor ban plan
By Rebecca Fox and Debbie Porteous
Students opposed to a permanent liquor ban in North Dunedin say the street drinking culture is “one of the main attractions” of studying at Otago University. […] The ban was not supported by students from Castle and Leith Sts spoken to by the ODT yesterday, who called the idea ridiculous and said it would be impossible to enforce and would do nothing to change drinking culture in the area.
Read more
### ODT Online Wed, 8 Feb 2012
Editorial: Perils of an extended liquor ban
It looks as if the Dunedin liquor-ban area might well be extended from the central city to cover North Dunedin. A powerful array of forces – the police, the University of Otago and Otago Polytechnic – are all in favour and that could influence city councillors. When the issue has arisen over the past seven years, councillors were divided and an extension has been rejected.
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Report – PEC – 08/02/2012 (PDF, 609.4 KB)
Extension of Liquor Restriction to North Dunedin
### ODT Online Thu, 9 Feb 2012
Extended liquor ban gets DCC tick
By David Loughrey
The Dunedin City Council, police and the University of Otago have student street parties like the Hyde St keg party – which Mayor Dave Cull yesterday labelled “too dangerous to continue” – firmly in their sights. The council yesterday agreed to a liquor ban that would permanently include the North Dunedin student area, allowing police to end the keg party.
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I regret to say my Pitt St apartment building is likely to be situated in the DRY zone, for god’s sake.
Thank goodness. We were sick and tired of you getting trolleyed and burning your furniture, Elizabeth. You could at least have invited a few of us around for nice sociable puking and bottle-breaking sessions on Couch Tuesdays.
Hype, they didn’t say hard drugs weren’t allowed – we will make do :D
Oh that’s OK then. My turn to bring the jammy scones. It’s one of the good things about banning stuff, it forces us to become more resourceful. I wonder what the Hyde St party will morph into.
Reckon the ban is just a smoke screen. Dave Cull is just pissed off still about having his wine tasting interrupted during that notorious toga parade. If anything the ODT is getting its student bashing in BEFORE the circulation bunnies go pimping for subscriptions on campus.
http://salient.org.nz/news/ordinary-night-in-dunedin-somehow-makes-news
Hype; it is my guess it will morph into flagrant disobedience, the council will ‘tut tut’ and there might be a slap on the wrist with a wet bus ticket for a few and life will go on. Same as the Octagon sit in. It did, as these things do, faded away, except it took a lot longer because the authorities huffed and puffed, keeping it in the limelight. Meddlers never improve things, they just get inflated egos thinking that they can.
Calvin – stop meddling in DCC finances, right now!
Is being drunk in a public place still an offence? There used to be rather a lot of laws that could be applied to pissed youf engaged in student colt-chur if anyone could be bothered – if they’re still on the books. Casting offensive matter was one. That used to encompass “natural functions” esp of an alfresco nature in public places. Convictions for puking and widdling wouldn’t look classy on an aspiring fast-food manager’s cv.
Elizabeth- Pooh! why can’t I meddle in DCC finances?
Calvin, perhaps the warning was too late… It will actually take substantial ego to turn the ship around. Cheers!
### ODT Online Fri, 10 Feb 2012
Fears ban will move problem
By Debbie Porteous
An inner-city Dunedin resident is concerned the extension of the liquor ban to North Dunedin will cause more problems in streets like hers – those that border the city centre, but fall outside the ban area.
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The ghettoisation of North Dunedin… caused by the University’s long-time marketing of Otago as a party place to study, contemporary attitudes to alcohol, cheap alcohol available at supermarkets and from liquor outlets targetting students and youth, cash-take landlords (incomes subsidised by central government; under-investment in property upgrades and cyclical maintenance), and social moral decline; and strongly enhanced by Dunedin City Council zoning disasters which favour student rental accommodation in the ‘campus area’ over balanced mixed communities. The University’s campus master plan supports and reinforces the status quo.
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ODT Online Fri, 10 Feb 2012
Police support wider ban
By Debbie Porteous
Extending the Dunedin permanent liquor ban to cover the North Dunedin student area would be welcomed by Dunedin police, as they would be pleased with any measure that reduced alcohol related-harm, the city’s police commander said yesterday.
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Yeah. Right on Elizabeth. The university see fit to invest funds in things like entertainment (the stadium) as opposed to, say, a Design Department or actual, ahem, academically-related investment, and then gets all uptight about boozing and parties? Paint me confused. But the students that move here for the ‘party atmosphere’ are not going to be the bright research geniuses Skeggs and the new vice-chancellor say they want.
Apparently the students are back. Bottle stores are offering 20-50% off today. At least one popular radio station was promoting this during its afternoon show. The same station which runs regular ads for alcoholism. Also one of many stations afflicting listeners with obnoxious messages from the DCC environment health team (this advertising must be costing you and me a crap load!) Media services are like politicians – willing to take money from both sides and ignore the collateral damage.
Anonymous: “Apparently the students are back. Bottle stores are offering 20-50% off today.”
Your comment should be sent Cc to DCC, Proctor, Vice-Chancellor, and Dunedin police. Just an idea.
### ODT Online Tue, 14 Feb 2012
Editorial: Transparency and accountability
Criticisms from a University of Otago council member about the perceived bias of media when reporting about student disciplinary matters appear out of touch with the tertiary institution’s own restrictive communication policy. A report on student disciplinary incidents is to be tabled at a meeting of the university council today, three months after the head of the institution’s disciplinary appeals board raised personal concerns about how such matters were not being followed up appropriately by media. The report is to be discussed behind closed doors at a public-excluded session of the meeting, despite previous assurances that such disciplinary matters would be open to media.
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### ODT Online Wed, 15 Feb 2012
University blames non-students over fires
By Matthew Haggart
Non-students living in North Dunedin flats have been blamed by the University of Otago for a marked increase in the numbers of fires being lit last year in the student quarter. The majority of disciplinary action taken against unruly students at the University of Otago last year arose from complaints laid by students themselves, a discipline report from the university says.
Read more
Good one, Elizabeth. Go on Anonymous, make sure they can’t pretend they don’t know about it. I’d include the Minister of Health and leaders of all political parties in the House. I’m often amazed at how often they “don’t know” about things. An email in your Sent folder, and the fact it was Cc’d to all those other people, will make them look a bit silly if they try that one.
I often blind copy myself to make double sure, for ethernet/papertrail purposes