International Union of Students
The International Union of Students ( IUS ) - in English sometimes as International Student Association (ISB ) or World Federation of Students (WSB) called - is a worldwide federation of national student unions. It includes claims to own 150 member associations in more than 115 countries around the world and sees itself as the largest non-partisan student organization at the international level. It represents the social and educational interests of students and is beyond the world for democracy, freedom, peace and development.
History
The IUS was founded after the end of World War II on August 27, 1946 in Prague as a successor to the 1940 resolution Confédération internationale des étudiants ( CIE). In the following years the organization was, however, increasingly dominated by the communist organizations of the Eastern bloc and made repeated the mouthpiece of the Soviet foreign policy. In response, many pro-Western oriented countries refused participation in the IUS from and met since 1950 every year to own conferences (International Student Conference, ISC), which since 1952 also a permanent secretariat ( Coordinating Secretariat - COSEC ) talked Leiden, the Netherlands. As part of the ISC, the Austrian National Union of Students ( Student Union ), the Association of Swiss student bodies (VSS ) and the West German Association of German student bodies worked with (VDS ), while the East German state youth organization Free German Youth was a member of the IUS.
Between the two organizations, a veritable race to the sympathies of becoming independent third world countries, but decided not uncommon for double membership or observer status in both camps developed.
In the late 1960s came the ISC into crisis after it was revealed that their work had been for years largely financed by U.S. intelligence agencies like the CIA. Then came numerous associations, including the West German VDS to from the ISC. This was without the CIA agent is no longer able to continue their activities, and was finally dissolved in 1969. In order to continue at least a small part of the practical cooperation in the social, political and cultural education, several Western European organizations joined in 1982 again into a loose network together, emerged from the later today European Students' Union ( ESU).
The IUS in turn opened after the end of the Cold War for the Western organizations, joined the communist state associations from a few exceptions (North Korea, Vietnam, Cuba), and led by structural reforms. Nevertheless, the organization came in the following years into a severe financial and human crisis that continues today. The IUS is now highly indebted and no longer to be able to regular conferences and the like for years. Attempts to intensify work through closer cooperation with regional organizations such as the ESU have so far failed.