#FeesMustFall protest rolls on with Cosatu support as Wits closes its doors

AFTER a week of protesting against imminent fee increases for the 2017 academic year, the #FeesMustFall movement has gained the support of trade union federation Cosatu.

The hundreds of students who came from the university’s main campus in Braamfontein and the education campus in Parktown met on Empire Road, where they marched, under a heavy police guard, to the Cosatu headquarters in Braamfontein yesterday to hand over a memorandum.

“We want to make a clarion call to the working class through Cosatu, being the largest trade union federation in the Republic of South Africa, with a long history of involvement in civil society, community and even student struggles, to live up to this in supporting our #FeesMustFall protests around the country,” the memorandum read.

The memorandum was accepted by the trade federation’s acting general secretary, Bheki Ntshalintshali, and the second deputy general secretary of the SACP, Solly Mapaila.

Cosatu will join the students in a march on October 14.

Meanwhile, Wits has announced that university activities will be suspended until further notice. It is unclear what impact this will have on the end-of-year examinations that were due to begin at the end of October.

“If conditions conducive to the delivery of the academic programme do not improve, Wits may have to consider the closure of the university, including the residences, in the interests of the safety and security of our staff, students and property,” it said.