UCT accused of ‘silencing’ student activists
WHILE Rhodes Must Fall (RMF) yesterday claimed that UCT had already begun charging students for “illegally occupying” a campus building, the university has expressed concern that some of the alleged culprits are not UCT students.
This comes after RMF issued UCT with a fresh ultimatum this week to rename three buildings and remove a bust of Jan Smuts from the university grounds.
”This is very political,” said RMF activist Chumani Maxwele. “The university is intimidating and silencing students who are standing up for the right cause.” He added that the university had not yet committed to meeting RMF’s demands.
UCT vice-chancellor Max Price said the students had occupied Avenue House (referred to by RMF as Azania House) for more than two weeks, disrupting staff.
UCT spokesperson Gerda Kruger said the university was deeply concerned about the operational impact of the occupation.
“We are also concerned that some of the members of this group are not UCT students. While we respect any individual’s right to protest, we reject the notion that an individual has the right to simply occupy a space where paid employees work, interfere with daily operations, and refuse to vacate the building even after they have been given an alternative venue of their own,” she said.
Kruger rejected the “baseless” accusations of intimidation and of not observing rights.
”Many of the students were given amnesty for other protest-related activities. It is regrettable that they have refused to come to the table, and that they have continued with their unlawful occupation.”
Yesterday morning, ANC national executive committee member and AU Commission chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma threw down the gauntlet when she challenged Price about transformation at UCT.
Speaking at a colloquium on China-Africa relations at the university, she said stock needed to be taken about gender transformation in government and other institutions, including those of higher learning.
The AU has dedicated this year to women empowerment. She said she had hoped Price would state the number of female professors and researchers whoworked at UCT.
While she was speaking, Price was on his phone getting the information. He said of UCT’s 751 academic staff, 329 were women and they had 80 academic staff from across the continent.
When queried, UCT spokesperson Patricia Lucas said of the 329 women, 11 were African, 44 coloured and 24 of them Indian. She added that 53 percent of students were women – 26 percent of whom were black.