The rallying cry might once have been "Students unite. You have nothing to lose but your chains" - bicycle chains, that is.
However yesterday's student protest at the University of Limerick was about parking spaces for their cars and campus security. More than 100 were on the picket lines at any one time over a three-hour period.
Criticised by the college authorities as an "ill-judged protest", it started at 7 a.m. when two entrances to the college were blocked for staff cars, creating tailbacks on the Dublin Road side of the city.
"We apologise for the people affected in the wider Castletroy area. The intention was to get management to the table and listen to what we have to say instead of paying us lip service", Mr Michael Phelan, the student union president, said. Mr Phelan said about 400 students out of 10,000 had cars, but unlike staff they had to pay a £1 daily parking fee along with visitors in a 385-space car-park. A £20 clamping fine is imposed for cars parked illegally. "There are a lot of issues out there which have to be addressed. They seem to have forgotten the basic needs of students," he said.
Students are also concerned about the lack of security provisions around the campus.
"The lights are not always working. The female students, in particular, feel the necessity to walk around with beepers. Most people will not walk around on their own," Mr Phelan said. He said many students drove so they could commute long distances.
The college spokesman said that more parking spaces were provided in the college than in any other university in the State.