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Scottish university bans students from starting pro-life club

Strathclyde University, Jordanhill Campus | Wikimedia Commons/Businessschoolgrad2011

Pro-life students at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, Scotland have been banned from forming an official group affiliated with the students' union.

The ban would prevent pro-life students from obtaining university funding for promotional events or attend conferences, according to The Herald Scotland. The pro-life students argued that the ban is a violation of their right to free speech under the European Convention on Human Rights.

The University of Strathclyde Students' Association (USSA) asserted that the pro-life groups are using "intimidation and fear tactics" on people who are trying to enter abortion clinics.

"The establishment of anti-choice groups would directly contravene equal opportunities policy by giving them a platform to harass students. This in turn violates their safe space," the USSA stated in its meeting minutes.

"Allowing an anti-choice group to form would be a barrier to freedom, equality and body autonomy for those with uteruses on campus and therefore not only violate existing standing policy, but also act against the interests of a large amount of the student population," it continued.

The pro-life students were told that they have to affiliate with the student association before they can have access to funding for their events. The association then passed a motion to ban "anti-choice" groups.

Pro-life college students in other parts of the U.K. are also facing hostility and censorship from pro-abortion advocates in their schools.

The Alliance of Pro-life Students reported last month that it is working with students at Strathclyde and two other universities where new pro-life clubs are being prevented from forming, and the ones that already exist are being disbanded.

In Newcastle, a motion was proposed to urge the Newcastle Students Union to de-ratify Life Society and prevent other pro-life groups or campaigns from forming on the campus. However, the motion failed to pass, and Life Society became a fully ratified society.

There were similar attempts to de-ratify the group known as Students For Life in Cardiff University. The petition that demanded the disbandment of the group claimed that it "serve to exploit the trauma of abused women to satisfy their own self-interested political and religious agendas."