adminJohannesburg — A group of students protesting at the University of the Witwatersrand swore at vice chancellor Adam Habib while others threatened to beat him up before he addressed them yesterday morning.
A group cried: “Voetsek, we don’t want you here”, as the protesters gathered around Habib. Several security guards close to him were keeping a watchful eye over the crowd. Habib was expected to address the students after protests led to the suspension of lectures and academic activities.
Habib was later seen chasing members of the media out. He took a photographer’s camera and left it outside the campus gate, saying all media must go.
“Why is there private security while we have campus security, who is paying for them, they are not going to protect you,” protesting students said.
Students were heard saying that by chasing media out, Habib “wants to lie to us, we are not animals”.
On Wednesday, students began blocking access to the university’s entrances, in protest against a fee increase of 10.6 percent due to come into effect next year. Lectures were suspended.
The protest continued on Thursday and yesterday morning, while lectures were still suspended.
Students said yesterday that they were keeping Habib waiting outside in the sun for more students, because he allegedly said there were only 200 protesters.
Others said they were the ones who were going to talk to the vice chancellor, while he had to listen.
The university said earlier: “Wits University is doing all it can to diffuse the current situation on campus and are making another attempt to engage with the students at the main gates on the Braamfontein campuses now. We are confident that the students will stand down from the main gates shortly.”
Online Reporter