Parliament - Parliament's portfolio committee on higher education on Friday urged protesting students at the University of Cape Town (UCT) to desist from violent protests and allow year end examinations to proceed without further disruption.
The chairperson of the committee, Connie September, condemned damage to infrastructure and said students should be allowed to complete the academic year.
“The Committee will never support a situation where university infrastructure is burnt in a moment of anger. This is what the students need to safeguard so that their children inherit a good institution,” she said.
September said the committee, which conducted an oversight visit to the university on Thursday, and the UCT management remained committed to engaging with students on their concerns.
“We need to continue to engage. There can never be a substitute for engagement. We have more success in remaining at the negotiation table. Indeed, our hard-won freedom comes from negotiation."
Protests have continued at UCT in recent weeks, with students demanding government release the Heher Commission's report into the feasibility of free higher education.
Protesters were arrested, windows broken and bus tyres slashed.