December 2

December 2

https://www.equaltimes.org/south-africa-s-student-protests#.WFDz8YctAZY

            The use of force by police and private security forces is at the forefront of conversations about the increase in violence. The protests were relatively peaceful in 2015, after the victory of having the Cecil Rhodes statue at UCT was removed. But the longer the government kept the protesters in doubt about the future of fee increases and free education, frustrations grew and so did outbreaks of violence that have ultimately created a new tone for the protesters. In addition, the fact that the violence garnered the protests even more media attention, but in a more negative light condemning the violence, the FMF movement has become known in the media as violent and misguided. The ways many media outlets have portrayed the protests detract from the most salient issues surrounding the cause: the need to decolonize curriculum and provide free education. The violent reaction from police is reminiscent of the apartheid era, the excessive tactics and unjustified and mysterious arrests are all too familiar for black South Africans. In this article however, one woman who is a former student representative from Wits University claims she does not see the police as the enemy. Rather, she sees them as caught up in the same struggle, of working and middle class men and women suffering in the drastically uneven socio-economic climate in South Africa, for this woman it is a class struggle. This might be the healthiest way of looking at it if students want to move forward and focus on the real enemy: the state, to whom the police are just puppets doing their dirty work without a choice. As some schools wonder whether or not they will be able to carry out a full school term this year, protesters are in this battle for the long run, for a better future, and they aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

November 17

November 17

http://www.theworldweekly.com/reader/view/magazine/2016-11-17/coffins-tuition-fees-and-the-anc-why-south-africas-youth-are-angry/9408

This article was featured in a magazine called “The World Weekly,” which I’m very glad I discovered because they pick out the most interesting world affairs happing each week and break it down for the reader. This article reports on an incident in which a young black man walking down a tail when two white men approached him with a gun, kidnapped him, and shoved him into a coffin while threatening to lite in on fire with petrol. Crowds of several hundreds then gathered in protest to denounce the horrific manifestation of white supremacy, which homes at the same time as the Fees Must Fall protests, putting South Africa in a state of unrest right now. At this point, I don’t think anyone is denying that the FMF protests are about race, as the tuition fees disproportionately affect black students and families. The article reports that a 2011 government census found that on average, black households earned six times less than white households, which likely has not improved considering South Africa’s economy has experienced high inflation in the last few years. The article then moves into analyzing the recent discontent with the ANC, as youth are frustrated that the government has not fulfilled the promises made by Nelson Mandela. The younger generation born after 1994, the so-called “born free” aren’t feeling as free as they were promised they would. As they enter into the work force, they are experiencing exclusion from certain socio-economic opportunities. The born free generation will no doubt play a decisive role in the 2019 general elections. From the look of the Fees Must Fall protests, he younger generation may be ready for a regime change.

November 10

November 10^th

http://www.enca.com/south-africa/violence-of-feesmustfall-protests-has-damaged-cause-2016-matric-class

This article from an African News Channel is suggesting that, based on feedback from locals in Cape Town, the Fees Must Fall movement might be losing traction due to the violence surrounding the protests. Some people feel the protests have gone too far, and the violence has made people lose sight of the original goal. One girl, aged 18 said “they are causing the universities more money troubles by protesting. The real route is the government who then needs to provide the universities with more money and only then, will things get better,” referring to the millions of dollars of damage done to campuses. I see her point there, if universities don’t already have enough money to make up for the fees, and then have to spend more money for reparations, how do students think this will help anyone?  Another high school student said, “Next year I might not have my opportunity to study due to the actions taken towards the universities and the vandalism. They are taking us 10 steps back,” which is also a salient point. What will these protests mean for the future of higher education in South Africa if, after all the protests, the fees are still increased and the damage is irreparable? Another student pointed out that many incoming applicants to university don’t even know if they be admitted because their applications might have been burnt when protesters set fire to buildings with records in them. While these concerns are understandable, and I sympathize, I still have a hard time fully agreeing with the criticisms of the movement. Because more than anything, I couldn’t imagine being one of the protesters who is fighting for a basic right they were promised. And I wonder if those incoming high school students would really want to attend a university with high tuition fees and social-colonial structures.  Even after this media journal, I will definitely have to keep following this story to see what will happen in 2017.

November 2

November 2

http://allafrica.com/stories/201610270007.html

On October 26^th, Fees Must Fall protesters marched through Cape Town to the parliament building making the same demands they’ve been making for free and decolonized education. The march occurred after the Minister of Finance announced budget increases to dedicate an additional R17 billion to tertiary schools over the next three years, R9 billion of which will go to financing the National Student Financial Aid Scheme and R8 billion will go to covering the fee increases for low to middle income household families. However, just as the march was winding down, violence broke out yet again after protester set fire to a cardboard coffin with an image of the Minister of Higher Education, Blade Nzimande attached to it. The protesters threw it at police officers after setting it on fire and the police responded with stun grenades. Of the several thousand students involved in the march, reports are estimating that only one hundred of them instigated and participated in the violence. It was evident that the police were their target. Additionally, some stores were looted before they could close their doors. This article features a quote from one UCT student saying “its not about the university, we are going to the politicians today,” in reference to why she decided to join this particular march to parliament. I find it interesting but also a positive thing that students are starting to take a more direct stance against the political structures contributing to their struggle. After all, it is the policies and practices the government chooses to adopt that ultimately determine how universities go about their funding. One of the articles I read a few weeks ago featured a quote from a professor who also thought the students were misguided in going so fiercely after university staff and administrators because their hands are also tied. Some of the damage to university property, beside the colonial symbols, could have been avoided if students had decided to take this approach earlier. So far it is unclear if any students were arrested after this particular protest. What is clear is that students are not relenting until their demands are met, and so far these protests are the only thing that seems to force the government to action.

October 26

October 26

http://qz.com/813400/south-african-police-have-arrested-more-than-500-people-during-protests-for-free-university-education/ 

            With many recent arrests being made, the total number of student arrests since 2015 has reached 567. The manners in which these arrests have been made resemble tactics that were used in the apartheid era with overnight raids in the university residence halls. The police are accused of targeting the movement’s leaders. As this article reports, Mcebo Dlamini, a leader of the movement at Wits University, was arrested in a raid on his campus for charges of theft, assault, and many more. The police claim to be cracking down on the criminality that has evolved out of the movement. Students report that they intend to keep protesting, but the surge of recent arrests, particularly those of the movement’s leaders, has left many people feeling demoralized. The escalation of violence in the past month has resulted in increased private security and police on campuses throughout the country.The author of this article, Lynsey Chutel, has been following the protests and the FMF movement for Quartz for quite some time now. In this article she makes the important point that Jacob Zuma was once a political activist himself and he was convicted and sentenced to prison in 1963 for trying to overthrow the apartheid government. In fact, the entire history of the ANC is made up of political activism, particularly by young, intellectual men such as Zuma. It is both surprising and upsetting that Zuma and the ANC government isn't showing more empathy for the FMF movement.