Wits cancels registration on campus

11 January 2016 - 14:48 By Katharine Child
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Students had the courage to challenge their biggest source of hardship - the cost of education.
Students had the courage to challenge their biggest source of hardship - the cost of education.
Image: ESA ALEXANDER

The University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) has cancelled all face-to-face registration for Monday and Tuesday because of a resumption of #FeesMustFall protests.

This was confirmed by Wits’ head of communication Shirona Patel‚ who said that students struggling with online registration should call 011 717 1888 after 3pm on Monday.

Students from the independent #FeesMustFall movement started their protest on Monday by preventing the fees office from opening. They later disrupted in-person registration taking place on the university’s West Campus. The issue appeared to be about students with outstanding debts not being allowed to register.

Spokesperson Fatima Moutloatse said: "The ultimate goal of the protest was free education".

She said they wanted students who owed outstanding fees from last year to be permitted to register.

"In 1994‚ government promised us access to free education. It is 22 years later and this has not happened. Education must not be seen as a commodity."

The Wits SRC was not visible at the protest‚ and is a separate group from the #FeesMustFall group. The SRC and #FeesMustFall group representatives were to meet later on Monday.

Patel said the university announced it was not requiring upfront registration fees in January. Instead‚ students who could not afford to register had to pay R9000 by the end of March or approach the university for assistance.

One student who needed to access the fees office to find out if she had a place at the university‚ as she is on a waiting list‚ was furious.

The student‚ who asked not to be named‚ said she was being denied access to education by protesting students. "How can I get education if they stop me?"

"I think it is selfish and inconsiderate‚" she said. "I want to come to Wits and learn."

A father‚ Augustine Magik‚ who had taken the day off work to help his daughter register‚ said the closure of the fee office was very stressful. "I have taken the day off work. Who is going to give me another day off work?"

Wits students without outstanding debt can register online‚ but one student said she was having difficulty online and needed to access the fees office‚ which remains closed.

- TMG Digital/The Times

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