
Against BAE Systems on the Careers Fair at the university of Essex


An arms dealer, BAE Systems, alongside the British Army, Navy and Air Force have been invited to the Careers Fair which is taking place on Monday 29th of Oct. The University of Essex takes great pride in the Human Rights Centre which is internationally recognised. Therefore to invite BAE systems, a company that profits out of death and destruction in international armed conflict under the guise of supplying defence systems, is a morally repugnant decision. Its portfolio includes fighter aircraft, warships, tanks, armoured vehicles, artillery, missiles and small arms ammunition. BAE's arms are sold indiscriminately around the world. The company has military customers in over 100 countries and around 95% of its sales are military (SIPRI). A notorious recent deal was the sale of 200 Tactica armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia. These vehicles were used by Saudi troops helping to suppress pro-democracy protests in Bahrain in March 2011. BAE has over 5,000 staff in Saudi Arabia and provides operational support to the armed forces including the Saudi air force, which bombed Yemen in 2009, and the Tactica armoured vehicles. BAE Systems produce drones which are used by Western military powers in Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Yemen in attacks, of which as many as 75% of the casualties are civilian. In light of this we will not tolerate the presence of BAE systems on our campus. Furthermore we find the presence of the British Army, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force a further insult to our student body and the principles supposedly held by the University. We will not allow them to recruit students to die defending corporate and imperialist interests around the world.
Comment