Johannesburg - Wits University was worried about the safety of those attending its now- postponed General Assembly
The university announced this morning that the assembly would not take place as planned on Friday because negotiating parties has failed to reach consensus about the resumption of classes next week.
This comes after weeks of sometimes violent protests, which have interrupted the academic programme. Wits management invited students, staff members and alumini to a general assembly scheduled for Friday.
The General Assembly hoped to reach a consensus on resuming the academic programme on Monday.
“It is with deep regret that we announce the postponement of the General Assembly that was to be held today,” Wits said in a statement.
“This week, we suspended the academic programme and dedicated all our resources towards building a consensus within the University community in order to be able to resume the academic programme on Monday. We had reached consensus with all University constituencies including Council, Senate, Convocation, labour and staff, but not with the protesting students.”
A congregation of the General Assembly is called when the University community has reached consensus on a particular issue.
Wits said despite all its attempts and the energetic engagement of former Black Student Society and SRC leaders, the mediation process with the protesting students was unsuccessful.
“The protesting students effectively want the General Assembly and the march to the Constitutional Court to continue, without committing that the academic programme will commence on Monday, as previously promised,” Wits said.
Wits said one of the latest demands of the protesting students was that Wits and all other universities should be shut down until government agreed to free education.
“In addition, there has been no agreement from the protesting students on the format of the General Assembly. They are seeking direct engagement from the floor,” Wits said.
“Our concern in this regard is that it may create unnecessary tension between students themselves and other stakeholders, raising security risks and serving as a symbol of disunity for the University.”
There is also a risk that the safety and security of those attending the General Assembly could not be guaranteed.
“We will postpone the General Assembly until consensus is reached and the conditions for such an Assembly are met. We remain committed to the pledge and the march, and should conditions enable this, we would be happy to proceed.”
Wits said a Council meeting would be called this weekend to determine the way forward.
A pledge that was to have been read out the Assembly reads as follows:
"The University of the Witwatersrand holds General Assemblies at crucial times in South Africa’s history. We are gathered here today in order to present a united University position with the aim of contributing to resolving South Africa’s ongoing higher education crisis.
"The Wits community agrees that free, fully funded, quality, decolonised higher education is possible. We are committed to finding effective measures to achieve this goal.
"South African education, including higher education, is in a systemic crisis. It is a crisis that is born of our colonial and apartheid history, but has been exacerbated by poor policy choices in the post-apartheid era. Since 1994, South Africa has been growing its higher education system, expanding the student base from 420 000 to just over one million. Yet the per capita subsidy for higher education has declined in real terms. This has forced universities to increase fees in an effort to maintain quality. The net effect has been to price higher education outside of the hands of ordinary South Africans.
"This is a systemic challenge that has to be addressed, in part because it will enable us to heal our fundamental divides, including the poverty and inequality of our society. Education and higher education is one mechanism through which to draw individuals, families and communities out of the poverty trap, and to provide people with opportunities to fully participate in society and the economy. It is a basis on which to heal and create an inclusive society. The quest to enable access to universities for all of our students is a noble cause.
"The University of the Witwatersrand therefore pledges our support for the goal of free, fully funded, quality, decolonized higher education. We pledge to approach government with a united voice for the realisation of this goal. We pledge to deploy our intellectual resources towards finding the best solutions. We are also prepared to support peaceful advocacy activities in this regard.
"Ultimately, our efforts will be part of creating a new educational pact for South Africa that will be premised on a single principle: No student should be prevented from continuing and completing their studies because of a lack of finance."
African News Agency, IOL