UCT Vice Chancellor Dr Max Price said protests which led to the suspension of lectures on Monday were mostly focused on the fate of five students who had broken the law. Price said in a letter to students and staff that the disruption of classes late last week had been “traumatic” with rude and insulting behaviour displayed by some protesters. “When protest escalates rapidly‚ we unfortunately cannot guarantee that you will be able to remain focused on your work and protected from those who disrupt‚” he said. “We have no access control on this open campus. Many protesters are not UCT students – some are from other campuses; there are farmworkers from Robertson‚ schoolchildren from Khayelitsha‚ and others.”The institution had elected to keep security low-key to avoid confrontation and criticism of a more assertive security presence‚ he said.“There are times when protest is for a widely supported cause‚ as it was a year ago in support of increased government funding for universities. And‚ of course‚ the wider context of the current student action remains the issue of fees.“But this current series of protests is focused more immediately on the fate of five students who have been found by tribunals and courts to have contravened the law. Two of the five have been expelled but are appealing their sentence. The other three were in a tribunal held on Thursday last week and the outcome is expected shortly. Three of the five are also interdicted by a court from coming onto campus‚” he said.Voicing a degree of frustration over why two of the interdicted students were back on campus‚ he said each time an interdict was breached‚ this was reported to police who had the authority and responsibility to enforce it.“But‚ up to now‚ they have chosen not to act – except to open another charge against the interdicted students‚ which then has to be heard in court.” He maintained that students’ right to protest had been upheld‚ without disciplinary action being taken unless they threatened people or property.He acknowledged that many students were angry about by the suspension of classes on Monday. But this‚ he said‚ was necessary a tensions were expected to be high after Minister Blade Nzimande’s announcement on fees; findings being released by the Student Disciplinary Tribunal on the fate of three students on trial for arson and assault; and a backdrop of “national ferment in student politics” with campuses being burnt‚ closed or occupied.“We are convinced that the disruptions of Thursday and Friday will be repeated throughout today. We know that students from other universities and various other people have been urged to join to make UCT the focal point for the initial protests‚ which‚ if successful‚ will be expanded to other university campuses nationwide. There have been threats of arson attacks that we are taking seriously. There is an explicit plan to occupy the library and possibly branch libraries‚” he said.Price said there were no guarantees about what could transpire on Tuesday...