Handfuls of students have gathered at the Prince Alfred Street/ Somerset Street entrance to the Rhodes University campus in Grahamstown throughout the morning since around 6am on Tuesday 20 October.
Handfuls of students have gathered at the Prince Alfred Street/ Somerset Street entrance to the Rhodes University campus in Grahamstown throughout the morning since around 6am on Tuesday 20 October.
Around 8am, one group told Grocott’s Mail that the other students were making their way from residence to residence, gathering sleepy students for the day’s action in the national #FeesMustFall action by students at institutes of higher education.
The students said they would join students from Eastcape Midlands College for a joint march to the city hall today Tuesday 20 October at 1pm, where councillor Mabhuti Matyumza had been called on to resolve problems around bursary funding. Eastcape Midlands College management would also attend the meeting, sources said.
Yesterday police used stun grenades and a water canon to disperse protesters gathered outside the Eastcape Midlands College’s St Aidan’s Avenue campus.
Police today confirmed that five stun grenades were used to disperse protesters at the College, where the Public Order Police unit from Port Elizabeth were brought in to control the crowd.
Grahamstown Crime Intelligence Officer Captain Milanda Coetzer confirmed that a water cannon was also used.
Coetzer said so far two cases of public violence had been opened in connection with the protests at the College – one on Friday and one today.
Today Public Order Police from East London are on duty, Coetzer said.
At Rhodes, starting yesterday, the action began around midnight with students blockading all entrances to the campus.
Following a day of mass meetings and behind the scenes negotiations with the Student Representative Council, the University management agreed to changes in fee arrangements for 2016.
In a statement released late yesterday, media relations officer Catherine Deiner said a decision regarding the fees for 2016 had not yet been finalised, as the University was in the process of preparing its 2016 budget.
“The budget process at Rhodes University is open to all University staff and students,” Deiner said.
The Rhodes Finance Committee is due to sit for their final meeting on 30 October 2015.
“Legally, Council can only approve a balanced budget,” Deiner said. “The proposed 2016 budget will then be considered and approved by Council.”
Of the minimum initial payment (MIP), Deiner said students had requested that what is known as the MIP could in future be referred to as registration fees.
Deiner said senior management had agreed to reduce the MIP from 50% to 20%.
“The remaining 80% can then be settled over the subsequent 10-month period. Another option available to students is to make an initial payment of 10% of the fees before the end of January and a further 15% before the end of the first quarter. The remaining 75% can then be settled in three equal instalments (25% of the full amount) in the remaining quarters.”
Deiner said the University had undertaken to benchmark against other universities to assess payment options for International Students. The issues that will be benchmarked are the International MIP and the International Levy.
Students at university campuses across South Africa have vowed a nationwide campus shutdown tomorrow (Wednesday 21 October) and a provincial action is planned for Friday.
The protest unfolds – watch the video here:
Also read: ‘Private sector should support tertiary education – Rhodes VC’ at: bit.ly/GrocRhodes3
