Lawyers for Human Rights has defended the legitimate rights of students to protest peacefully‚ claiming that violence and property damage are the work of rogue “conspirators“.
University staff‚ students‚ police officers‚ buildings and vehicles have been major casualties in the fees must fall battles engulfing tertiary institutions.
The latest casualty was the University of Cape Town Vice-Chancellor Dr Max Price who was punched by protesting students on Friday. Price was addressing protesting students and as he was preparing to leave to attend another meeting‚ students started roughing him up and landed two punches. Last month‚ he was held hostage during the fees commission hearing.
Other actions on campus this year that potentially carry criminal penalties include:
- At the University of Kwazulu-Natal‚ the law library‚ a coffee shop and several vehicles were set on fire‚ allegedly by students.
- At the University of Fort Hare‚ a building containing the institution’s equipment was torched. The students were apparently demanding that a security company contracted by the university should be fired.
- Two security guards were locked inside a burning building at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology.
- The University of the North West and Wits also experienced their share of property damage. A building was set on fire at the UNW and students at Wits stoned glass doors and windows of the Great Hall.
But Lawyers for Human Rights have accused police of criminalising the right of students to protest against university fees.
Mameplwe Sebei‚ a coordinator at the non-profit legal aid organisation‚ said most students it had defended were victims of “arbitrary” arrests.
“Most of these arrests are arbitrary... it is an application of the old apartheid law of common purpose‚ where police grab any student they come across‚” said Sebei.
He said students protests were generally peaceful and incidents of violence were perpetuated by a few rogue elements.
“The burning of buildings is an action of few conspirators acting behind the backs of students who are protesting peacefully and in a non-violent manner.”
He said it was wrong for the police to “criminalise” protests.
“Protests are disruptive in nature and the aim is precisely that‚ and you cannot criminalise protests or disruption without drawing a distinction between criminal violence and acts of legitimate civil disobedience and disruption‚” he said.
Most student arrests 'arbitrary': Lawyers for Human Rights
Lawyers for Human Rights has defended the legitimate rights of students to protest peacefully‚ claiming that violence and property damage are the work of rogue “conspirators“.
University staff‚ students‚ police officers‚ buildings and vehicles have been major casualties in the fees must fall battles engulfing tertiary institutions.
The latest casualty was the University of Cape Town Vice-Chancellor Dr Max Price who was punched by protesting students on Friday. Price was addressing protesting students and as he was preparing to leave to attend another meeting‚ students started roughing him up and landed two punches. Last month‚ he was held hostage during the fees commission hearing.
Other actions on campus this year that potentially carry criminal penalties include:
- At the University of Kwazulu-Natal‚ the law library‚ a coffee shop and several vehicles were set on fire‚ allegedly by students.
- At the University of Fort Hare‚ a building containing the institution’s equipment was torched. The students were apparently demanding that a security company contracted by the university should be fired.
- Two security guards were locked inside a burning building at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology.
- The University of the North West and Wits also experienced their share of property damage. A building was set on fire at the UNW and students at Wits stoned glass doors and windows of the Great Hall.
But Lawyers for Human Rights have accused police of criminalising the right of students to protest against university fees.
Mameplwe Sebei‚ a coordinator at the non-profit legal aid organisation‚ said most students it had defended were victims of “arbitrary” arrests.
“Most of these arrests are arbitrary... it is an application of the old apartheid law of common purpose‚ where police grab any student they come across‚” said Sebei.
He said students protests were generally peaceful and incidents of violence were perpetuated by a few rogue elements.
“The burning of buildings is an action of few conspirators acting behind the backs of students who are protesting peacefully and in a non-violent manner.”
He said it was wrong for the police to “criminalise” protests.
“Protests are disruptive in nature and the aim is precisely that‚ and you cannot criminalise protests or disruption without drawing a distinction between criminal violence and acts of legitimate civil disobedience and disruption‚” he said.
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