Detention of arrested students ‘asking for war’

PROTESTING students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) have proclaimed that the incarceration of their fellow students has done nothing except to “fuel” their fight.

Eleven students arrested during violent clashes with police at the Pietermaritzburg campus last week appeared briefly in the city’s magistrates court on Friday charged with public violence, malicious damage to property and interfering with police officers.

On previous occasions, students arrested during violent protests were released on warning. But on Friday, the state indicated it would be opposing bail, as these particular students pelted police and firemen with stones as they attempted to extinguish fires at university residences, and therefore posed a threat to the public and property.

The violence at the campus escalated on Thursday, with students torching entrances to the various residences in an attempt to stop others from attending lectures and tests.

Students are protesting against the proposed tertiary fee hikes. Lectures at the campus were suspended on Thursday due to the ongoing violence. Roads around the campus were blockaded by students.

Students packing the court gallery on Friday erupted as their peers were led back to the cells after their appearance.

One student said that the state was “asking for war” by keeping the arrested students in custody. “We are not criminals. We are educated youth fighting for a cause. We will not back down.”

The 11 students will appear again on Friday for a formal bail application.