Johannesburg - “There is a silenced majority that believes in and supports the #FeesMustFall movement but we don’t agree with violent protests on campuses.”
This was the collective feeling of Wits students who spoke to The Star.
With 36 300 students on campus and only about 1 000 protesting, students said that while they support the cause, the majority of students shouldn’t be held to ransom by a minority.
Buhle* said the idea of #FeesMustFall was good, but “how people go about exercising it” was problematic.
“There is no way we can be able to run large institutions like Wits at no cost. I know some of us cannot afford the fees, but it doesn’t give us the right whatsoever to destroy property or inconvenience classes. I think the university needs to use an iron hand in this matter and stop entertaining the students,” he said.
“I feel the strike is just a tactic to reduce the workload, honestly I had a lot of deadlines this week and I've been 'saved' in a way,” Buhle added.
Kate*, who works two jobs to pay her fees, shared these sentiments. She believes the militant element within the protesters were students who were failing.
The students said the more militant students have threatened and intimidated those who don’t take part in protest action.
“The very people who you are fighting for are the same people you’re threatening and attacking. When protesting students come into lecture halls or libraries and throw our things around because we’re trying to study, it’s not okay,” Kate said.
Elizabeth* said that #FeesMustFall, while a noble concept, meant that she’s actively told: “I have no place on this campus.”
“Don’t get me wrong, students who cannot afford education but academically deserve a place in the university, shouldn’t be excluded for financial reasons. (But) striking and alienating your peers is not a solution,” she said.
Elizabeth added that intimidation tactics to gain support for the movement was not the answer.
“It’s the fear of voice messages threatening you late at night. It is fear that the standard of your education is being compromised for this ‘noble’ cause. It is fear of the fact that the people who claim to speak on your behalf are actually dictating what you believe,” she added.
“Just because we’re not on the frontlines, doesn’t mean we don’t support the movement, we just don’t agree with how it’s being handled,” interjected another student, Dimpho*. “I feel like we’ve lost the root focus and the core of the movement, we’re destroying the very places we’re fighting to attend.”
Some students felt that management at universities “needed to come onto the scene” and that allowing police on to campus didn’t help the situation.
“I understand that the university needs to protect its property, students and staff but having police on campus angers and provokes students, it sets the tone,” said Emmanuel*.
“The students get disruptive, the police try and disperse them, then the students start throwing rocks at them, then there’s rubber bullets - there’s this back and forward fight and that’s when people get hurt,” he said.
Dimpho said that management needed to communicate properly with students, “come down to our level”, hear their grievances and “speak to us directly”.
She added that students also needed to “calm down” and find a non-violent way forward.
But those who spoke to The Star also strongly believe that the government should not have passed the blame on to universities and should do something more drastic to make free education feasible.
“Government is 95 percent of the problem, the amount of money we lose to corruption could be going towards free education for so many students,” Kate said.
While peaceful protests should be allowed to continue on campuses, the students said that it’s problematic that it causes a total shutdown.
“In the end we still have assignments to submit and lecturers still want us to do and we can’t miss out,” Buhle said.
“We have exams coming up and the majority of students want to go back to class to finish out the year,” added Elizabeth.
Looking for a way forward Emmanuel said that there didn’t seem to be one at this stage.
“Protesters want zero fees and the universities need the increase. There’s no halfway here. The only way forward is for a third party, namely government to personally get involved and stop passing off the blame,” he said.
*Not their real names
@Lanc_02
The Star