gair rhydd
FREE
CARDIFF'S STUDENT WEEKLY
freeword - EST. 1972
ISSUE 916 FEBRUARY 22 2010
Living legend
PHOTOS: Jake Yorath
PHOTO: Christina Mackie
Features gets up close and personal with Sir David Attenborough >> page 14
Say a little prayer Emma McFarnon News Editor The University has made provision for quiet rooms after years of campaigning from religious students. as part of the University’s Equal Opportunities Policy, the rooms have been established to provide space for students and staff to study, pray or reflect. Two of the University’s buildings, Humanities and Trevithick, will now have a dedicated quiet room and quiet space respectively, whilst other buildings, including at the Heath Campus,
will be timetabling quiet room space during the working week. The University hopes that the rooms will enhance the quality of working life for all members of the University. The University’s Islamic Society have been campaigning for prayer rooms for many years. In 2007, rhydd revealed that Muslim students felt humiliated after having to pray in communal areas due to the lack of prayer space available. In 2006, Cardiff rated second to last for prayer facilities in the International Student Barometer, a survey of international students in 30 top universities.
Muslims pray five times a day, and students have long complained that the lack of designated rooms in University buildings means their studies are disrupted, as they have to go home to pray. Many students are often forced to pray in hallways and stairwells. In 2007, the University set up a Quiet Rooms Working Group to consider the feasibility of assigning more space to prayer rooms. A report carried out by the group concluded that additional facilities were necessary, and they began taking steps to ensure that suitable venues were provided. Now, three years on, the University
has agreed to provide specially designated rooms across the University campus where members of staff and students can pray, reflect or meditate. A member of the Islamic Society, Abdul-Azim Ahmed, said: “The Islamic Society and Muslim students in general have been campaigning for more prayer facilities on campus for a very long time, so the new quiet r– –ooms will be warmly welcomed and really improve the student experience of Muslims, and no doubt of all religious students. continued on page 2
Going for gold Sport meets Olympic Gold Medalist Ben Ainslie >> page 33
Right-winger Michael Howard tells Politics how to win students' votes >> page 18