The Rhodes Student Representative Council (SRC) is concerned about the university’s delayed action against students who assaulted a campus security guard in early February this year.
The Rhodes Student Representative Council (SRC) is concerned about the university’s delayed action against students who assaulted a campus security guard in early February this year.
The SRC has sent an open letter to Vice Chancellor Saleem Badat expressing concern about the lack of information provided to the student body regarding the assault.
They are demanding that the students are charged for the assault, suspended from the university, and that the university releases a public statement on the incident.
Read the SRC’s open letter
Read the Vice-Chancellor’s statement
The assault took place in the early hours of the morning, when Campus Protection Unit (CPU) guard David
Douglas was walking home and saw the students kicking a lamp post.
He identified himself as a guard and attempted to stop the students from vandalising campus property. They knocked him to the ground and started kicking him and then ran into a nearby male residence which forms part of Kimberley Hall.
Douglas sustained cuts and bruises, but did not want to contact the police as he was confident that the university would deal with the matter.
SRC president Eric Ofei said: “when Prof Fackson Banda and his family were racially abused last year, the university immediately informed all students about the incidentand was prepared to exclude the students involved.”
The university adopted the Rhodes rejects racism campaign shortly after this. The SRC believes that overlloking the incident is a hierarchy of value.
“It is class prejudice,” said Ofei. “When a CPU guard is physically assaulted, the university doesn’t do anything about it”. A similar incident occurred last year, when another CPU guard was bitten by a student. “The university did not deal with this either,” said Ofei.
Manager of CPU Dave Charteris explained that the guards have to be physically fit, “but we are not hiring bouncers”.
Ofei expressed his concern about the effects that these incidents will have on campus security. “CPU guards are going to be afraid to confront students,” he said.
According to Charteris, the students attended a disciplinary hearing last week, the outcome of which has not yet been revealed.
“They have had their day in court,” he said. Meanwhile, the SRC has been waiting for the university to release a public statement.
“There are a lot of rumours going around campus. Students need to know what is going on. The public can’t react to something they don’t know about,” said Ofei.
Deputy Vice Chancellor of academics and student affairs, Dr Sizwe Mabizela, said that the case is still under investigation.
“We do have the intention to release a public statement as soon as the process has run its course,” he said. Ofei commented: “In the case with Professor Banda, the students involved had not even been identified before the university released a statement”.
The hearing will continue next week, and the SRC has been invited to attend. The SRC will be petitioning for support on this matter.
“We are not trying to get those students into trouble,” said Ofei. “We just want the matter to be dealt with fairly.”
