The Democratic Alliance (DA) will on Thursday be at the Grahamstown Police Station for an “unscheduled visit” to investigate claims of heavy-handedness during student protests.
The party said it is “concerned with increasing evidence of excessive force used by members of the South African Police Service (SAPS) at Rhodes University”.
This was announced after five students arrested by police during protests at the university were on Wednesday morning released by the Grahamstown Magistrate’s Court.
Chaos erupted when students‚ protesting over what they call a rape culture at Rhodes‚ barricaded roads and closed entrances to campus. Police reacted by arresting some of the protesters and using teargas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds.
Wednesday was the fourth day of protests‚ under the hashtag #RUReferenceList‚ following the posting of a “reference list” containing the names of 11 students accused of rape on social media.
In emotional scenes on Wednesday‚ panicked students were filmed inside police vans as Rhodes University vice-chancellor Sizwe Mabizela appealed to police to release arrested students and lecturers tried to calm the students in the vans.
“The DA fully respects the rule of law‚ and does not support people taking the law into their own hands‚ or disrupting valuable learning opportunities for other students‚” a statement said.
“However‚ given the sensitivity around the very serious issue being highlighted‚ we urge the SAPS not to take action that will further escalate tensions at the university.”
The party said police and university management should “work together to bring calm to the situation and find a real solution to what is a very real problem for many South Africans”.
“We are equally concerned about the health and wellbeing of students who have been arrested‚ given videos that have emerged on social media.”
The five students‚ who were arrested under the regulations of Gatherings Act‚ have been released on a warning to appear in court again on July 20 for further investigation.
They have been warned not to take part in any unlawful protest actions until their next appearance and not to leave the Eastern Cape without notifying the Grahamstown police station. — Tiso Black Star Group Digital/The Herald
DA: ‘Increasing evidence of excessive force by SAPS at Rhodes'
The party said it is “concerned with increasing evidence of excessive force used by members of the South African Police Service (SAPS) at Rhodes University”.
This was announced after five students arrested by police during protests at the university were on Wednesday morning released by the Grahamstown Magistrate’s Court.
Chaos erupted when students‚ protesting over what they call a rape culture at Rhodes‚ barricaded roads and closed entrances to campus. Police reacted by arresting some of the protesters and using teargas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds.
Wednesday was the fourth day of protests‚ under the hashtag #RUReferenceList‚ following the posting of a “reference list” containing the names of 11 students accused of rape on social media.
In emotional scenes on Wednesday‚ panicked students were filmed inside police vans as Rhodes University vice-chancellor Sizwe Mabizela appealed to police to release arrested students and lecturers tried to calm the students in the vans.
“The DA fully respects the rule of law‚ and does not support people taking the law into their own hands‚ or disrupting valuable learning opportunities for other students‚” a statement said.
“However‚ given the sensitivity around the very serious issue being highlighted‚ we urge the SAPS not to take action that will further escalate tensions at the university.”
The party said police and university management should “work together to bring calm to the situation and find a real solution to what is a very real problem for many South Africans”.
“We are equally concerned about the health and wellbeing of students who have been arrested‚ given videos that have emerged on social media.”
The five students‚ who were arrested under the regulations of Gatherings Act‚ have been released on a warning to appear in court again on July 20 for further investigation.
They have been warned not to take part in any unlawful protest actions until their next appearance and not to leave the Eastern Cape without notifying the Grahamstown police station. — Tiso Black Star Group Digital/The Herald
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