On Thursday night, hundreds of students gathered on the Rooiplein at Stellenbosch University (SU) for what was supposed to be a silent protest against Gender-Based Violence (GBV).
After expressing their grievances about GBV at the university, students shared their complaints about SU management not addressing the sexual allegations made against male staff members and students.
Students initially gathered on the Rooiplein with candles to protest against gender-based violence on campus. From left: Jacqueline Roux and Wilné van Rooyen. PHOTO: Marecia Damons
Post-Graduate LLB student at SU, Darren-Lee Carolissen (22), says the University’s management needs to be held accountable and speak out in order for everyone to follow:
“The fish rots from the head. If the leaders aren’t raising their voices and standing up for the issues and speaking up against gender-based violence, then they’re protecting it. If they’re protecting it, they’re harbouring the perpetrators of it.
“They are deepening the problems, they’re hiding the roots and that’s what’s infesting our society right now,” Carolissen adds.
BA Social Dynamics student at SU, Jacqueline Roux (21) says, “I think it’s ridiculous. We’re going into 2020 and nothing has changed. How can we have the advancements that we do in the world, but we can’t have equality? We still have violence based on class, gender and race.”
Students then marched to the Campus Security building to deliver their grievances to the Director of the Centre for Student Communities (CSC), Pieter Kloppers. Kloppers informed the crowd that he was unable to answer their questions as he had lost his voice the previous evening.
Students marched down Merriman street to the Campus Security building to address their safety concerns. PHOTO: Marecia Damons
“I’m tired of doing this. I’ve been doing this ever since coming to SU. It’s sad that we’ve been protesting this for so many years and nothing has been done. We’ve been waiting for change and we’re still waiting,” says Wilné van Rooyen (22), newsreader at campus-based radio station MFM.
Following Kloppers’ failure to respond to the students, the group was addressed by former #FeesMustFall activist, Nompendulo Mkhatshwa (26) who says she will take on the role to address SU management on what it is doing to make students feel safer on campus.
“I know what it’s like for a res head to say they will come and then they don’t show up. I only observe students at these gatherings, I don’t see anyone else.
“The state is putting in money and fees are being paid, yet security services are not doing their job. Campus Security’s number is not toll-free and the university is not even present here today. This is not a class issue. It is an issue of gender-based violence,” Mkhatswha adds.
Students also expressed their complaints about SU being one of the only universities in the Western Cape to not shut down this week.
The evening concluded with students marching to several SU men’s residences including Huis Marais, Huis Visser, Dagbreek and co-ed residence, Metanoia.