Thumbs up for behaviour so far

Both police and the University of Otago are happy with behaviour in the student quarter on the first night of O-Week, with no arrests made and parties praised for having a ''generally good atmosphere''.

Otago University student services director David Richardson said parties in the student quarter on Monday night were ''generally all managed within acceptable limits''.

''Last night the campus was alive with students reacquainting with each other. There were parties with a generally good atmosphere,'' Mr Richardson said.

Campus Watch staff had spent both the day and night speaking to students and assisting flats with ''their host management responsibilities''.

However, some flats would have had ''some clean-up work to do'' yesterday after the previous night's partying.

Acting Senior Sergeant Damion Rangitutia, of Dunedin, said police officers were ''busy'' dealing with students in the campus area and wider Northeast Valley on Monday night, although no students were arrested.

Officers were able to report students to the Otago University proctor, as part of a ''close relationship'' between police and the tertiary institution, he said.

''Let's say, for example, we got reports of someone throwing bottles at a flat, but there were a number of people at the address and we could not identify a sole offender. We could report that flat and those occupants to the campus cop or the proctor.

''A lot of the time they wield a lot more power than we can through the court.''

Acting Snr Sgt Rangitutia said he was not aware of any incidents this week in which students had been reported to the proctor by police.

''So far, student behaviour has been relatively OK,'' he said yesterday morning.