Last year students promised the fight to improve
access to tertiary education would continue and on Monday multiple
universities saw protests. GREG NICOLSON was at the University of the
Witwatersrand.
Wits,
the University of Johannesburg, and the University of South Africa saw
protests on Monday, disrupting 2016 registrations and leaving some new
students and their families confused as protesters seek to build on last
year's momentum and reduce the financial, racial and class barriers to
accessing university education.
At
Wits, students shut down face-to-face registrations and the university
closed administration offices leaving youth, hopeful of studying at
Wits, and their families waiting and confused as a small group of
students occupied Solomon Mahlangu House, the centre of the Fees Must
Fall campaign at the university that closed its Braamfontein campus in
October and November.
Both
the Wits Student Representative Council (SRC), led by the Progressive
Youth Alliance (PYA), and the Fees Must Fall group at Wits issued lists
of demands. SRC Secretary General Fasiah Hassan said the key demands
relate to fighting student exclusion, clearing debt, which prevents
students from graduating and registering, and ensuring no one who
qualifies academically to study at Wits is turned away. The university
is allowing students to sign up for a payment plan, which allows them to
pay their registration by the end of March, but the SRC wants an
assurance that even students who cannot pay by then are not excluded
from their studies. The SRC also wants the university to create a road
map towards achieving free education, and for agreements last year
relating to workers and students to be honoured.
Sarah
Mokwebo, speaking for the Fees Must Fall collective, said the key demand
is the scrapping of historical debt that prevents students from
registering. The group's memorandum includes demands such as free
education (now, it emphasises), the scrapping of the registration fee,
fresh SRC by-elections, as the group says the last elections, where the
Economic Freedom Fighters were barred from contending, were
unconstitutional, and for no police to be present on campus. (On Monday a
number of police vehicles were at Wits.)
Responding
to the disruptions, Wits said face-to-face registrations would be
delayed until Wednesday. It encouraged applicable students to register
online and has set up a telephonic registration process for certain
courses. Student leaders on Monday said they were yet to hold
discussions with the university. A statement from Wits on Monday said:
“We respect the right to protest and we support the call for free
education for poor students. However, we cannot allow the financial
sustainability of the university to be compromised. We urge all students
to allow the registration process to continue undisrupted.”
It
noted the presidency's announcement that the financial debt of students
on the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) in 2015 will be
settled by the state, but said other students must still pay their debts
before registering. “We would have liked to make a concession in this
regard, but the historical debt of these students amounts to over R100
million and if we were to make such a concession, the university would
be thrown into a financial crisis that would compromise the education of
all students,” said the university.
As the
Fees Must Fall protests spread to most universities across the country
last year, President Jacob Zuma announced fees would not increase at
tertiary institutions in 2016 and engagements were held between students
and the state. During the ANC's January 8 statement this weekend, Zuma
highlighted the state's efforts on improving access to university
studies and noted the influence of students.
On
Sunday, Universities SA, representing the country's universities, called
for increased state funding of the sector. On Monday, Higher Education
and Training Minister Blade Nzimande said over 500,000 post-school
education opportunities were available this year for learners across
universities and technical and vocational education and training
colleges. “We need to ensure, over the medium to long term, that
sufficient financial aid is made available to support all academically
deserving but financially needy university students though income
contingent loans and bursaries, and at the same time to strive to keep
university fees affordable,” said the Minister, who was criticised for
his response to last year's protests.
Government
has committed an additional R6.9 billion to fund the university system,
said Nzimande, above the R10 billion already marked for the NSFAS. Of
that increase, R2.3 billion is to cover the zero percent fee increase.
The Minister emphasised NSFAS students do not need to pay upfront
registration fees, but suggested a planned inquiry on the accessibility
of tertiary education will look into the issue of students who don't
qualify for NSFAS but who still can't afford their fees. After protests
last year led to increased state efforts in improving access to tertiary
institutions and agreements at campuses across the country attempting
to address issues such as financial exclusion, the outsourcing of
workers, and a lack of African content in the curriculum, at Wits
students are keen to keep the momentum up. Both Mokwebo and Hassan said
the plan is to continue protesting until their key demands are met.
S'bonakaliso
Nene, a Wits student active in last year's protests, said, “The greater
goal that we're pushing for is free education in South Africa now – not
later, not soon, not in the future, not in our lifetime; Now! We need
to start pushing for that. We need to see tangible, comprehensive steps
taken by government, by all those in power, to show us the ways and
means in which they are trying to attain this. We don't feel like a zero
percent increase is good enough. That's merely just a start, because if
you look at it those people who couldn’t afford fees, they still can't
afford fees now.”
“Genuinely
I feel like last year was a spark to the movement and how things are
going with our generation,” he continued. “I think this year's going to
be a whole lot more robust. I think there is going to be a lot more
interaction in regards to issues that have been swept beneath the
carpet, like race.” Nene predicted that as long as black people continue
to be oppressed in South Africa and at institutions like Wits, future
classes of students will continue the fight.
Some
people who came to register on Monday, however, felt frustrated by the
disruption. Busi Shongwe, who left Nelspruit in the early hours of the
morning to register her 18-year-old daughter Charmane Mashabane to study
occupation therapy, said she was sympathetic to the protesters. But the
family felt confused as students were giving them different takes on
what would happen and Shongwe had not heard anything from management.
She said they cannot afford to stay in Johannesburg to wait until they
can register.
“I'm
afraid or sceptical that my child might not be registered. What will
she do for the entire year because of the strike?” she asked, suggesting
students were shutting the gate on new learners. Her daughter,
Mashabane, said was excited to register when she arrived at Wits, but
added, “I feel really sad now that I'm going back home and I can't do
anything about it now, but I'm hoping they'll get back to me and respond
because I'm hoping to study this year and not just sit at home.”
Asked
about those who were disappointed on Monday, the SRC's Hassan said, “A
revolution is going to be inconvenient. We know that it's not going to
be smooth sailing for everyone, but I ask that those people bear with us
because we're trying to change a system and we're trying to change the
face of this country as the youth of South Africa post-1994 and it's
going to be inconvenient and there are going to be times where everyone
is frustrated with us but remember that we're doing it for the
betterment of society, and the betterment of not just us but for future
generations. Because if there's one thing we can give them it is free
education to change their lives.”
Mokwebo,
from Fees Must Fall, said she understands the inconvenience, but noted
how she and other protesters are also inconvenienced, by the system and
by making sacrifices for their aims. “I'd like to say we are all
frustrated. I'm also frustrated as I speak to you right now.” She called
on prospective students to find out about the movement and join in.
While
the first day of protests at universities this year has already affected
three institutions, it's unclear whether students will be able to
achieve the mass momentum they built in 2015. At Wits, one challenge is
the division among students. Solomon Mahlangu House, where the Fees Must
Fall group were established, included the banners “SRC sux” and “Fuck
ANC”.
Among
that group were a number of EFF members. The SRC's Hassan, whose PYA is
aligned to the ANC, suggested political opportunism was at play. “I
think we must just be cognisant of the fact that a local government
election is upcoming in the next few months and there are very
opportunistic situations and parties and groups seeking to hijack
things,” she said outside the building.
Mokwebo,
speaking inside the building, said the SRC viewed the Fees Must Fall
group as enemies when it continued protesting after Zuma's announcement
following the march to the Union Buildings last year and the
relationship is still strained. Both groups said they hope to find
common ground going forward.
Speaking
inside Solomon Mahlangu House, Wits sociology Professor David Dickinson
said it's no surprise the protests are continuing after the key aim
last year shifted towards free education. “I think we have got to
recognise that the students understand their own power now. That's
something that they had not understood for years,” said Dickinson,
noting many staff members are behind the students. “We're here to
educate the nation. We're not here to educate only those that can afford
it.” DM
Photo:
A protester at Wits lies on a mattress in Solomon Mahlangu House on
Monday, the centre of the student protests at the university last year.
(Greg Nicolson)