Dear colleagues and students
This morning the Vice-Chancellor, Dr Max Price, presented the University of Cape Town’s submission to the Commission of Inquiry into Higher Education and Training (The Fees Commission), which is looking into the future funding of higher education. The presentation went smoothly and was well received. The commission had several questions and the Vice-Chancellor spent over an hour in discussion with the commissioners.
· View the UCT presentation...
· Read the UCT presentation notes...
After the presentation, a group of people – including UCT students, some of whom are interdicted by the Western Cape High Court for allegedly engaging in serious criminal activities during the Fees Must Fall protests earlier this year – arrived at the hearings and disrupted the proceedings. The group demanded that the Vice-Chancellor immediately withdraw the interdict and any other disciplinary charges against currently interdicted students.
The Vice-Chancellor explained that the interdicted students face serious charges due to their alleged criminal conduct during the Fees Must Fall protests and that due legal processes must follow. He explained that the students need to make their individual cases to the relevant disciplinary tribunals and that it is not in his power to immediately withdraw either the interdict or the disciplinary charges. He further explained that the students were not interdicted for their participation in protest action and reiterated that thousands of students protested without any action being taken against them, so the claim that they were being victimised for protest action had no basis.