Wits threatens shutdown if protest continues
Witwatersrand University management said the academic programme for 2016 could be shut down if student protest action continues.
|||Johannesburg - Witwatersrand University (Wits) management on Monday said if protest action continues the academic programme for 2016 could be shut down.
“We doing a review of what happened today (Monday). Many staff members were intimidated and threatened and told to leave their buildings,” Wits spokeswoman Sherona Patel said.
“Management is deciding whether to resume with the academic programme tomorrow (Tuesday). And the decision would be communicated to staff, students and the media later today (Monday).”
On Monday, protesting students declared that the university institution would not be open until their demands for free education were met.
Patel said that management had met with student groups and political parties over the weekend, and had agreed that the Wits would support the initiative to get quality free education. Wits would hold a general assembly and if required public protests would be organised.
“Students didn’t keep to their word.”
She said that management had approached students and they said their fight was national and were sending a message to government.
Security on campus will be increased on Tuesday if the academic programme continues as planned despite students and lecturers not wanting to learn with an environment with heavy security.
“If we lose this week, [the] 2016 academic programme will in be jeopardy, if we close or shut down it means we won’t finish the 2016 academic programme. Thirty-seven thousand lives are at risk and some students won’t graduate,” she said.
She added that there were 75 000 spaces for next year and if the academic programme was postponed the institution would not be able to accept any students for 2017.
Earlier using a microphone a student activist, who did not give his name, asked staff and media to leave the venue because the university “was not open today and wouldn’t be open on Tuesday and would remain closed until they have free education”.
The students then marched to various sections of the institution singing struggle songs.
African News Agency