The student leadership at Medunsa campus claimed victory after the university gave in to some of its demands yesterday.
Calm is expected to return to the campus in Ga-Rankuwa and students and parents have been urged to continue with registration which had been suspended as a result of the protests.
Students had called on Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande to intervene in the chaos at the campus, which has seen the presence of police and the boycotting of classes since last week.
The registration of first-year students at the campus was halted on Monday and there has not been any learning or teaching since then.
Students stepped up their action yesterday and the atmosphere remained tense with police monitoring the situation.
Waste bins and tyres were burnt and the entrance to the university barricaded with concrete blocks.
A memorandum was handed over to the management last week in which students complained about the lack of accommodation for post-graduate students and fee increments, among others.
However, SRC president Tiisetso Ntsie said the students had won their fight after the management announced yesterday that all students would be accommodated at its residence regardless of their level of study.
The management also announced that students facing academic exclusion could appeal and the SRC had been given an opportunity to send proposals about the rules governing this process.
According to Ntsie, the fee increments issue had been referred to the university council and the students would have an input in this.
Earlier in the day Sasco president Mbulelo Mandlana said the separation of the education department into two - basic education and higher education - had not yielded the intended results.
“The shortcomings in the higher education sector show that the split is not satisfying the needs of students. We are not happy about the pace with which problems in this sector are resolved, if at all.
“We have communicated with the office of the minister and we are waiting for feedback because the situation at this campus is a matter of urgency and he needs to intervene here,” said Mandlana.
Addressing students who had packed the campus auditorium during the protest, Mandlana said the fact that there were student protests looming at various institutions across the country was proof that there was something wrong with the entire system.
“It is not a coincidence that students at different universities are complaining about the same issues of accommodation, fee increments and academic exclusions.
“This shows there is something fundamentally wrong with the higher education system in this country. Universities have failed since 1994 to acknowledge that there are great numbers of black students who are enthusiastic about getting into universities, and therefore have failed to create necessary space for them,” he said.
“It is in the interest of the university community that normality be restored so that academic activities can resume without interruptions. We urge all parents of the prospective students to continue with the registration of students at the Medunsa Campus as from today at 7.30am,” said the vice-chancellor and principal, Professor Mahlo Mokgalong. - Pretoria News