Action against mandatory vaccination for students 

17 September 2921

Solidarity Youth will not hesitate to take action on behalf of its members against any university that wants to make Covid-19 vaccination mandatory for students. This comes after it was reported that the University of Cape Town (UCT) had announced that it was seriously considering it to deny students access to the campus who have not been vaccinated against Covid-19.

“Such action comes down to discrimination. A public university’s aim is to make tertiary education accessible to all in the country. By introducing vaccine passes at these institutions, universities deprive certain students and prospective students of the right to receive education and it grants more rights to others based on those students’ medical conditions. This gross violation of rights cannot be permitted under any circumstances,” Paul Maritz, Solidarity Youth’s manager said.

According to Maritz, Solidarity Youth supports incentives that will motivate students to be vaccinated, but regulations that restrict people’s rights can in no way be supported. He contends that no democratic country has made vaccines outright mandatory as they are aware of the fact that it would increase overall resistance to vaccination, would undermine its effective roll-out and that the right to free choice must be protected at all costs.

“It is shocking that there is an assumption that young people could be denied access to higher education institutions on the basis of their vaccination status, especially in a country where youth unemployment is the already the highest in the world. The government should rather do everything in its power to make universities and other tertiary institutions as accessible as possible rather than preventing students from entering the premises. Solidarity Youth will not hesitate to become involved in this matter and to protect the rights of its members in this regard,” Maritz concluded.

Issued by Paul Maritz, Manager, Solidarity Youth, 17 September 2021