Several universities around the country remained closed yesterday because of student protests. Here's how the confrontations with students demanding free tertiary education for all played out on several campuses.RHODES UNIVERSITYThe protest chaos in Grahamstown resulted in a number of students being arrested. The police fired rubber bullets and threw stun grenades at protesters.Rhodes announced on Tuesday the academic programme would resume yesterday - but the student representative council told students to stay away. Entire year could be lostIf students protests don't cease by the end of next week the entire academic year could be lost, resulting in dire consequences for students and the country.Though hundreds of students heeded a call to return to lectures, small groups of protesters went to lectures to urge continuation of the boycott. Lectures were abandoned.At the Barratt lecture theatre complex a fire alarm went off.FORT HAREThe university was closed and students were ordered to vacate residences by 5pm today after a call to return to classes was ignored by "disruptive students". In a letter to students the university management said it had noted students had not returned to classes "with the exception of a few in East London, who were intimidated by the disruptive students".UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWNVice-chancellor Max Price said that if the protests continued for much longer the academic programme would not be completed this year.WITS UNIVERSITYStudents marched to the Chamber of Mines to hand over a memorandum of demands. Wits SRC deputy secretary-general Fasihah Hassan said the march was the first phase of an intensification of the students' campaign for free education."The private sector has not played a big enough role and it has not contributed to or developed higher education. So, we have targeted the Chamber of Mines for starters and we plan on marching to Treasury," she said.UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURGA graduation ceremony at the University of Johannesburg continued despite clashes between private security guards and students attempting to disrupt it.Some female students at the Auckland Park campus said they felt unsafe because of threats by security guards.Students went from Auckland Park to Doornfontein campus in an attempt to mobilise others. They were met by security guards, who threw stones at students and journalists.Security personnel slapped journalists, made them sit down, pepper-sprayed them and hit a female journalist in the face with a baton.Kaamini Reddy, UJ's senior manager for strategic communications, said she had received complaints about the harassment of journalists.DURBAN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGYStudents surrounded the entrance to a hotel in Overport at which DUT management and Department of Higher Education officials were in a meeting with student leaders.DUT management suspended lectures and assessments this week.LIMPOPOThe academic programme has been suspended indefinitely following outbreaks of violence.The university's management instructed students to vacate the campus by 5pm yesterday.According to reports three students were arrested and charged with public violence at the campus after skirmishes broke out between security guards and students on Tuesday night.Violence broke out and a student residence was torched during the fracas...