AfriForum’s legal team warns UFS against abolition of Afrikaans as medium of instruction

AfriForum has warned the senate and management of the University of the Free State (UFS) by means of legal correspondence that if they continue with steps to eliminate or abolish Afrikaans as medium of instruction at the University, AfriForum will proceed with legal proceedings to protect the language rights of Afrikaans students. This follows after the board of the UFS gave the green light in December 2015 that English will become the University’s primary medium of instruction as well as the language of administration.

After complaints from students regarding problems with classes that suddenly anglicised in 2016, AfriForum and AfriForum Youth directed a lawyer’s letter to the University on 26 February 2016 to request that the right of students to Afrikaans mother tongue education is acknowledged.

In the meantime it came to AfriForum’s attention that the senate of the UFS is meeting today to discuss the University’s language policy. A second letter was subsequently directed to the senate and management on Friday to request that the process is placed on hold in light of the sensitivity of language matters currently prevailing at the Bloemfontein campus, but also countrywide, and the protection of the language rights of students.

According to Alana Bailey, Deputy CEO of AfriForum responsible for language matters, the standpoint of both AfriForum and AfriForum Youth is that Afrikaans must be retained as the University’s medium of instruction and administration language. “AfriForum feels strongly about the fact that Afrikaans students cannot be deprived of their right to mother tongue education, but rather that the University must do more to offer mother tongue education to other students as well.”

“It will be in the best interests of everyone not to decide now on the language policy in respect of the ideological pressure, but rather when feelings have calmed down, with due allowance for insets from independent experts to take informed, reasoned and objective decisions that will be in the best interests of the University and its community as a whole.” 

We are currently awaiting the University’s reaction to the letters from our lawyers.

Statement issued by Alana Bailey, Deputy CEO: Heritage and Language Matters, AfriForum, 7 March 2016