PhD students and student unions demonstrated against the new Aliens act

Elis Wibacke, President of SUS, during his speech on Sergels torg on Sunday.

On Sunday, SUS participated in a demonstration on Sergels torg against the changes in the Aliens act. The purpose was to highlight the issues that the changes to the law have created for PhD students who would like to continue their work in Sweden.

The Aliens act regulates immigration law. Last year, changes were made to the Aliens act which entail that that there are now new demands on those who are looking to get a permanent residence permit in Sweden. For PhD students from outside the EU, this means that it is difficult to get a permanent residence permit after the postgraduate studies. According to the changes in the law, one now needs an employment of at least 18 months after the studies, which is hard to achieve within the academy. This also affects students on all levels, as PhD students are often teachers to those who are studying on entry or advanced level.

Therefore, PhD students and representatives of student unions gathered during Sunday in order to protest against the changes made to the Aliens act. The demonstration was arranged by the PhD chapters of KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Karolinska Institutet. Among others, SUS’s president Elis Wibacke and Medicinska Föreningen’s president Lovisa Hagenfeldt held speeches.

– This is an issue that concerns all students, since Sweden as a nation of knowledge will suffer when fewer foreign PhD students come to Sweden. Together we can make our voices heard. Together we can make a difference, says Elis Wibacke.

Read more about the demostration in #studietid (English) as well as in Syre (Swedish), where Elis is also interviewed.