00:00 Six student leaders in the University of Santo Tomas withdraw their candidacies for the upcoming
00:05 Central Student Council elections as the campus administration continues to draw flak for
00:10 alleged suppression of academic freedom.
00:13 In a statement released Wednesday, March 20, six of the seven CSC candidates say they felt,
00:18 quote, "compelled to take a principled stand against participating in a system resistant
00:23 to reform."
00:24 The move is the latest blow against campus officials of Asia's oldest university, which
00:28 is grappling with allegations of student censorship.
00:31 The issue was reignited as the Office for Student Affairs forced takedown of a photo
00:35 uploaded by student-led media organization Tomasino Web in February.
00:39 In that same week, philosophy student Raven Braceles received a show-cause notice from
00:44 university officials asking her to defend her role as chairperson of a national democratic
00:48 mass organization.
00:49 (upbeat music)
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