A 16 year-old boy is in hospital with stab wounds following a violent clash outside Baby love bar at the weekend.

The boy was stabbed seven or eight times in the chest in the early hours of Sunday morning. The incident took place as part of a large-scale brawl involving twenty people, which began after the close of Baby love’s Halloween Party night and continued onto the High Street.

The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is currently being held in the John Radcliffe hospital in Headington, where his condition is described as stable.

A 25 year-old man was arrested by police in connection with the stabbing and has been released on bail pending further enquiry.
The fight took place after Baby love closed, and it is not known whether those involved had attended the club night.
A manager of Baby love said, “We have no idea who or what it involved, because everything happened outside the bar. Nothing happened inside. We know as much as you.”

He added that the management were currently examining CCTV to assist the police with their enquiries.

Katie Carver, a second year student at Christ Church, said, “I go to Baby love regularly and this incident has really upset me.
“It’s shocking to think these things are happening almost daily now. I think as students we’re at risk because after nights out we’re not aware of the dangers.”

Police are working to discover what happened prior to the boy being injured and have appealed for witnesses.

Detective Inspector Helen Roberts, who is investigating the incident, said, “Thankfully, the 16 year-old suffered injuries that were not life threatening.

“But it was a serious incident and many people would have seen it. There may well be people injured who we do not know about. If anyone saw anything or was injured please contact us.”

The incident comes as the latest in a string of violent attacks in Oxford. Earlier the same night two people were hospitalised after a fight outside the Bridge nightclub, which left a man with serious head injuries.

Somerville students were left disappointed last weekend, as the College’s Hallowe’en bop was postponed by a week because of a late licensing application.

Hallowe’en will instead be celebrated on Saturday 6th November, while most other colleges are out at Bonfire Night events.
“There was no decanal reasoning for stopping the bop,” said Entz Rep Joe de Sousa.

“We submitted the alcohol licence application a day late and as such it did not come through in time.”

The Entz Reps declined to say why the application for one of the first bops of the year had been made too late in the first place.
The reaction around the college to the delay was mixed.
“It’s absolutely crap,” said one second year, who preferred to remain anonymous.

“The phrase ‘piss-up in a brewery’ comes to mind.”
However a number of students claimed to have had no intention of going to the event in the first place.

“Being a second year, I wasn’t really interested,” said Jake Shelley. “It gets dominated by the freshers, really.”

Anne Taylor, a Somerville fourth year, was more outspoken. “Of course hardly anybody apart from a handful of first years was going to go,” she said. “There’s just no spirit of camaraderie in the JCR.”

“It’s ridiculous that the Hallowe’en bop will be happening after Bonfire Night,” she continued, “but then it’s equally ridiculous that our college bar is losing money.”

Meanwhile, JCR President David Railton sent round an email promising the JCR that the bop would go ahead this Saturday.

“Look on the bright side,” it read, “you’ll get an awesome costume at half the price in the sale now.”

Brasenose college JCR received no nominations for Executive positions in the run up to its annual elections.

There were no applicants for the positions of JCR President, Vice President and Treasurer for 2011 by the deadline at midnight this Monday.

Returning Officer Rebecca Hill, who is organising this year’s JCR elections, said that she had been “surprised by the lack of enthusiasm” and that it was “unusual”.

JCR President Paul Gladwell agreed, “Having no nominations was disappointing, but I think it reflects that people are apprehensive about taking on such a time commitment. Also, people often just don’t want to run and lose.”

The news has caused concerns about the fate of the JCR among some Brasenose students, and one second year student suggested the lack of applicants was the result of negative student opinion about the JCR.
He said, “As the Cashmore affair proved, the JCR is toothless and that maybe a reason why people are not running.

“It’s a shame that no one put themselves forward originally and any one that does the job probably does not want to do it out of conviction. This is not what we want from our JCR.”

However, Gladwell dismissed the comments, saying that this is “a ridiculous idea that devalues both the good relations between the JCR and the SCR and college staff and the respectful and casual student atmosphere at Brasenose.”

The application deadline was extended to Wednesday night and Gladwell confirmed that there have now been multiple applicants for each position.

He said, “What is good is that we now have some solid candidates who are keen to build on what the JCR has already achieved.”

Thirty people forced the Vodafone shop on Cornmarket to temporarily close on Saturday, in a protest against corporate tax evasion.
The protest came after Private Eye magazine revealed that Vodafone negotiated a deal with Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, agreeing to let the company off a large amount of tax.

The actual figures are unknown, although Vodafone have denied a reported figure of £6 billion.

Protesters sat inside the shop from 2pm for two hours, while others held banners reading, “Vodafone’s Tax Dodge: £6bn; Welfare Cuts: £7bn.”
The protesters were eventually removed by police, and one Oxford Brookes student was arrested after refusing to leave.

The protest formed part of a national day of action against Vodafone’s tax evasion, with sit-ins happening in stores in eight cities across the UK.

Oxford’s Vice-Chancellor announced last week that the University’s international fundraising campaign has collected over £1bn. The money will go to fund undergraduate teaching, new buildings and student scholarships.

Professor Hamilton described the generosity of philanthropic donors as “fundamental to Oxford’s future” and thanked them for continuing to give despite the economic downturn.

He also highlighted the long term need to make the tutorial system more ‘financially sustainable’ in the face of a permanent decrease in government funding.

The Campaign for the University of Oxford is set to continue until it reaches its final target of £1.25 billion.

Central to the fundraising has been Dame Vivian Duffield, chairman of the campaign since its official launch in 2008, who recently decided to step down. She is thought to have played a pivotal role in achieving this milestone.

A man selling fake qualifications, including masters degrees claiming to be from Oxford University, has been jailed for three years.
David Fox, 51, was found guilty of four counts of fraud and pleaded guilty to twelve counts under the Trademark Act and Copyright, Designs and Patents Act.

Mr Fox sold novelty diplomas and certificates through his website www.businessdigest.co.uk, which he claimed were “Better than the real thing and with much better grades!!”

Certificates for an Oxford master’s degree were available for £69.90.The website cautioned that its diplomas were “intended for novelty use only” and that businessdigest.co.uk “took no responsibility for their use in any matters perpetrating to unlawful behaviour.”

However, the website still boasted that “Our replicas are so good that they are often used as a replacement for an existing document” and that “our products have been subjected to the highest level of scrutiny and proven their value time and time again.”

A prosecutor said that Fox indicated that he knew what his degrees were being used for, because he frequently followed disclaimers with a “;)”.

Prosecutor Mark Jackson asked Mr Fox in court, “How funny would it be to prank your friends on the basis that you had got a BTEC higher national certificate in electrical engineering, do you wonder?”

Mr Fox was caught after Birmingham’s trading standards agency began investigating his company after a certificate claiming to be from the National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health – a health and safety examining board – was redirected to them by the Post Office.

The trading standards agency investigated Mr Fox by having an officer from the department pretend to be a student named ‘Christina McCullogh’ and order a Grade A chemistry GCSE certificate, a 2:1 chemistry degree from the Open University and a masters degree in chemistry from Oxford.

Recorder Abigail Nixon, sentencing Mr Fox at Wolverhampton Crown Court, said, “The potential damage from your behaviour … is immense.” She added that his actions might have damaged “the fabric of society.”

News of the availability of fake degree certificates provoked a mixed reaction from students around Oxford.

One second year said, “It is immensely frustrating that someone could convince an employer that they had the same degree as me without putting in any of the work.”

Sammana Ladha, a first year student at Oriel College, said, “Its hard to believe that employers would mistake a dodgy certificate from an online business for a real degree.”

A new centre dedicated to China Studies is to be built on St Hugh’s College grounds, thanks to a £10 million donation from Hong Kong based philanthropist Dickson Poon CBE.

Dickson Poon is the founder of one of Hong Kong’s largest and most profitable retailing enterprises and is the owner of the Harvey Nichols Group in the UK.

The benefactor has said that he hopes that through a “balanced and dispassionate” understanding of Chinese culture, the new centre “will generate practical innovations and strategies to enhance the growing relationships between China and the West.”

St Hugh’s Bursar, Mary Kerr, said that the 6,600 square metre building would also serve to provide more accommodation for students.
Kerr said that the college had been planning to increase facilities, but that “it is extremely difficult to interest donors in such projects.
“Whilst discussing our plans with potential Hong Kong and Chinese donors, the Principal realised that planning a building that could also house China Studies would be a more attractive proposition.

“He was absolutely right and so far we have received donations and pledges of £13 million, but we need another £7 million.

“This is very exciting for St Hugh’s in terms of both increased facilities and prestige.”

The building is expected to house 70 ensuite rooms, a lecture space, study areas and kitchen and dining facilities.

Andrew Dilnot, the Principal of St Hugh’s, has said the he hopes that the Centre will enhance the College’s international credentials, and said he is anticipating scholarships for “outstanding students who want to study this fascinating and increasingly important part of the world.”

The China Centre will build on a 400-year relationship between Oxford University and China. The Bodleian Library acquired its first Chinese book in 1604, and there are now more than 40 academics involved in China-related study.

Construction on the China Centre will begin in 2012. In recognition of China’s increasing economic, political and cultural influence, the Centre will encourage collaboration between academics in Oxford and the East.

“Oxford already has more academics who work on China than any other European university and over a wider range of subjects,” Dr Rana Mitter, Acting Director of the China Centre, told Cherwell.
“Now the Centre will help us use that expertise to build further bridges to China’s major institutions through conferences, exchanges and new projects.”

“What happens in China will help to shape the century to come,” said Lord Patten, Chancellor of Oxford University and the last UK governor of Hong Kong.

“In Oxford we wish to be ever more involved in studying that exciting process.”

The country’s prominence is also reflected in the university’s large Chinese contingent. There are currently 750 Chinese students in Oxford.

“It is considered fashionable to study abroad. Eleven students from my local school alone received Oxbridge places this year” said first year student Kate Zhu.

The Centre will bring together academics from across the university’s currently fragmented China Studies department. The venture is directly supported by both the Humanities and Social Sciences Divisions.

Jesus college JCR committee members have been fighting back this week against the college’s new reputation for lacking fun.
This follows a protest staged last month by Jesus students against stringent new academic policies imposed by college authorities.
Jesus’ “climate of fear” has been determinedly challenged, with members of the JCR committee leading the way.

Welfare representative Jocelyn Knight revealed to Cherwell that he had spent his Wednesday evening “in the college bar, before going on to throw all manner of shapes on the R’n’B floor at Park End.”
A motion passed during a JCR meeting at the start of term claimed that Dr Alexandra Lumbers, Jesus’ Senior Tutor, was using “scare tactics” to raise academic standards.

The motion suggested “that all members wear black armbands” in remembrance of fun, and was passed with one abstention and no votes against it.

However, another committee member, Jesus JCR’s Access representative Michael Lisanti, was keen to assure Cherwell that he is resisting the much feared “death of fun”. Lisanti went as far as to claim admittance to John Radcliffe hospital for “exhibiting dangerous levels of fun”.

The Access rep said that he had been treated for “defunning”.
He described the process as “difficult and complex” and continued that it was “not dissimilar from that which is utilised following an overdose of methylated spirits, in which victims are weaned off slowly in order to minimise shock to the system.”

JCR President Alex Mohan, previously explained the successful motion in an email to students, saying that while the students’ actions were a “light hearted and tongue-in-cheek mourning of fun,” it marked a “protest against the changing attitude of the senior members of staff in the College towards what is expected of students.”

He said, “The tone of this year’s freshers’ week and the increased use of special and penal collections over the past year are detrimental to this healthy balance, pushing the emphasis too far towards work at the expense of welfare and enjoyment of the university experience.”
However, Knight told Cherwell that he rejected the claims made in the otherwise uncontested JCR motion and defended the social scene at Jesus.

“I am having a lovely time. Perhaps you need to examine just how much fun you’re having in your life.”

Lisanti also argued that a night in Park End nightclub was still “the archetypal central case of undergraduate living at Jesus College.
“For the true Jesus experience, one simply cannot beat flailing one’s sweaty, naked torso about the Cheese room whilst belting out “Living on a Prayer” or some other suitably inspiring and stirring morsel of popular music.”

Welfare rep at St. Anne’s college Saras Mane warned against the dangers of excessive drinking.

He said, “Binge drinking and late nights certainly have their toll on one’s general well-being, as well as academic performance, and the maintenance of a healthy work-life balance is a vital part of student welfare.”

However, Knight assured Cherwell that there was no cause for concern.

He said, “Thank you so much for showing so much consideration into the welfare and wellbeing of the members of Jesus College, I am genuinely touched at the heartfelt emotion being expressed by yourself and your contemporaries at The Oxford Student. However I can assure you that your worries are misplaced.”

The Senior Tutor at Jesus was unavailable for comment on whether the perceived academic push has encouraged the behaviour of the JCR committee members.

The university’s annual Science and Engineering Fair was disrupted by students protesting against BAE Systems this Wednesday.
BAE Systems, who had a stall at the fair, is the second largest global defence company.

The protest was organised by the Oxford Anti-War Action.
At around 6 pm five students entered the Town Hall, where the fair was taking place. Once inside, they put on “death masks” and held a large sign that read “BAE sells Israel kills.”
One of the protesters stuck a red tear drop indicating a number of Gaza victims on a BAE Systems representative.
The representative then grabbed him by his shirt and is alleged to have said, “If you don’t get out now I’m going to thump you.”
The BAE employee, who refused to give his name, later explained to that “these are private premises, people have paid to be here.”
He later told Cherwell “if they are trespassing then they are here for unlawful purposes.”

One of the protesters was thrown out by a security guard but later managed to get successfully back into the fair.
Police arrived at the scene and told the protesters that they would be liable for arrest if they did not leave the fair.

A police officer stated there was a need “to balance their right to protest with those of a lawful company”.

The reaction sparked criticism from students at the fair. One postgraduate Chemistry student, Liz Raiment, who attended the fair, commented that the reaction to the protesters was “not fair on students.”

However, the police representative rejected the comments, saying, “If you’ve got a problem with that, speak to Prime Minister David Cameron.”

The security guard who threw out one of the protesters told Cherwell that he was “‘just doing [his] job” and had “no opinion on the politics.”
One of the protesters, Ben Hudson, a first year student at Regent’s Park, felt that “not only is BAE Systems’ business immoral and unacceptable, but it is also incompatible with the beliefs of the student body to have them advertise at careers fairs.

“Their arms are not licensed for exports and they sell to countries like Israel, condemned by the UN for human rights violations.”
Kate Halls, another protester, told Cherwell “they said we are obstructing a lawful business but unfortunately it is an unlawful business.

“The university is not only willing us to do business with them but our fees are feeding directly to deaths of Palestinian children.”
Oxford Anti- War Action describe themselves as a group of student activists who are “outraged by the wars being fought by the UK and its allies”.