All students consulted about language policy at Stellenbosch, says SRC

ALL students at Stellenbosch University had been consulted in an extensive process about the institution’s language policy, the university’s Student Representative Council’s (SRC) chairperson Stefan Laing said yesterday.

Laing rubbished claims by Open Stellenbosch (OS) that the SRC was not representing them or their views in the light of recent transformation debacles at the institution.

The accusation by OS, a collective formed to fast-track transformation at the university, prompted Laing to clarify the SRC’s undertakings yesterday.

OS spokesperson Greer Valley said that it was clear that the position of the SRC did not represent the views of students.

Laing said: “The extensive process we employed in consulting all students on campus included having our constituent bodies discuss the policy, its shortcomings and the students’ lived classroom experiences within their respective meetings.

“After these meetings we also asked them to discuss the same matters within those respective constituencies as well (i.e. their residences or private student organisations, societies or faculty committees).

“Forums were then held for the chairpersons and heads of those meetings to report back on the outcomes of their discussions.

“We also encouraged students to e-mail us their grievances,” he said.

Laing said the SRC had used a truly representative dataset.

“This nullifies OS’s argument that it is not representative of the view of students.

“As the SRC we have unanimously reiterated that we still represent all the students who form part of Open Stellenbosch – even though they do not agree with us.

“We acknowledge and agree that there are students on cam-pus who face challenges with regards to the spoken language in classrooms and other spaces,” Laing said.

Asked to respond yesterday, Greer said the SRC’s supposed process of broad consultation was irrelevant.

“The only question that needs to be answered is, are students discriminated against by the current language policy? And the answer is yes,” she said.

Greer said OS had pointed out that the language policy was discriminatory and that “safeguarding” Afrikaans was a central theme of the university’s language policy.

“The suggestion that the language is under threat is ludicrous, but Stellenbosch University continues to maintain the privileged status of Afrikaans, undermining transformation and marginalising non-Afrikaans speakers,” she said.