The Wits University Student Representative Council (SRC) expresses its disappointment at the decision of the University’s Vice-Chancellor’s Office (represented by Professor Loyiso Nongxa and Professor Adam Habib) together with the Wits University Management to charge 11 students (9 of whom are SRC members), for their involvement in a non-violent student protest against an Israeli embassy funded concert hosted at Wits University on the 12th of March 2013. This is a direct infringement on our Constitutional right to protest and to freely express ourselves.
The Wits SRC and other progressive student formations, including the Wits University Student Parliament, have once again come together to reaffirm our commitment to freedom of expression and the right to protest as part of what forms our constitutional basis for democracy; we therefore call for all charges against the students to be dropped with immediate effect by the Wits University Management.
This is the same Wits University Management that allowed discrimination against outsourced workers on our campus; the same Wits University Management that has for years unfairly increased student fees which led to large number of students being financially excluded; the same Wits University Management that has consistently --and shamelessly-- charged any student leadership that dared to challenge unfair university positions; the same Wits University Management which downplayed the safety of students against sexual harassment for years now and only reacted following a Sunday Times article; the same Wits University Management which has continuously subjected our students living in residences to consume sub-standard food. We believe that the Wits University Management resorts to these intimidation tactics because of their disregard of students and other members of the University and do not view us as equal stakeholders in the University.
On the 12th of March 2013 students, led by the Wits SRC and numerous other student organisations, engaged in a non-violent protest action against an Israeli Embassy funded piano concert at Wits University. Prior to this, the Wits SRC had sent several communications and tried to engage with all relevant Wits authorities on the matter in an attempt to resolve the issue and have the Israeli Embassy concert cancelled. These communications were consistently ignored by the Wits University Management.
The Wits SRC strongly maintains that the Israeli Embassy funded piano concert was in direct violation of the cultural and academic boycott of Israel, a standing resolution of the Wits SRC and a global call from Palestinian civil society since 2005.
Following the protest action on the 12th of March, 11 students have been charged for misconduct by Wits University.
The counts of misconduct include absurd charges of ‘singing and/or chanting and/or stomping your feet’. Wits University prides itself on its history as one of the most liberal institutions that fought for access to education for all races during apartheid. Non-violent protest action was a key feature in the international and local struggle against apartheid South Africa. Protest action is a course of last resort to voice dissent and is by its very nature, intended to be disruptive. Charging students for protest suggests intolerance to students as equal players in developing, challenging and/or championing views. We must be led to conclude that the Wits University Management would rather have an apathetic student population that never challenges its authority.
We say very clearly that Zionism and the Israeli lobby will not find friendship in our free South Africa, student fees will not increase without being challenged, we refuse to be silent on any student issue including the quality of residence food and workers will not be discriminated on our watch – we will always resort to protest should the need arise. Our demands are simple; freedom, equality and justice, for students, workers, academic staff and others as well as for our comrades and friends in Palestine and all oppressed people globally.
It is for this reason that the Wits SRC is affirming the right to protest by students through the ‘#Right2Protest” campaign. The campaign began with a demonstration on the 3rd of May to Vice-Chancellor Designate, Professor Adam Habib. Several students have also sent emails to the Wits University Registrar, Ms. Kirti Menon, to drop the charges against the student protesters. This resulted in the subsequent blocking of her email account due to the sheer volume of emails that were sent by concerned students. Students also sent emails to the Deputy Chairperson of University Council to air their displeasure. The Wits University Management still refuses to address the issue and stands firm in their belief that students should be charged for the non-violent protest against the Israeli embassy funded concert.
The Wits University management also rejected the proposed Commission of Inquiry and the calls for a thorough investigation into the night of the protest. The SRC believes that such an investigation will expose how students were verbally abused with several students being called 'terrorists', ‘savages’ ‘barbarians’, ‘monkeys’ and told to ‘go back to the jungle’ by pro-Israeli concert goers on the night. No matter what form or context, for any member of the Wits community to be racially abused is grossly embarrassing for a “World Class South African University” and the silence of the Wits University Management on this further gives credence to the view that the Wits University Management condones and supports such behaviour and attitudes within our campuses.
The Wits SRC will be increasing its protest actions within the next week, with a major demonstration taking place tomorrow (Friday the 10th of May at 15h30) at the Wits University Great Hall with COSATU General Secretary, Zwelinzima Vavi, and Young Communist League National Secretary, Buti Manamela, to demand that the charges against students be dropped with immediate effect This will be accompanied by speeches and statements from well-known anti-apartheid activists, academics, organizational representatives, trade unions and NGO’s who are actively supporting our campaign and demand that charges be dropped. The details of the protest rally are as follows:
