UPDATE: Unizulu main campus reopens – with strings attached
The campus was shut down following violent protests by students
THE University of Zululand main campus in KwaDlangezwa near Empangeni today reopened after its closure last month.
The announcement was made on the university’s Facebook page yesterday afternoon.
‘Following the closure… the University, management and SRC is aware of the hardship imposed on the majority of our students who wish to succeed in their studies,’ read the statement.
‘Whilst the circumstances on campus remain largely unchanged regarding the NEHAWU strike [which] continues – we have decided to reopen the campus as from Tuesday, 13 September (today).’
Lectures would resume on Wednesday (tomorrow).
The campus was shut down following violent protests by students amid an ongoing strike by the union after wage talks collapsed.
While the reopening is good news to the majority of students, the statement came with a dire warning.
‘We urge all students to take this opportunity to focus on their academic studies and to complete their semester, year and even degrees, successfully.
‘If there is any repeat of the violence and intimidation experienced previously, the University management will not hesitate to reclose (sic) the campus indefinitely,’ read the statement.
‘Being so close to the year end this will likely mean that no students will be able to complete their semester successfully this year.’
Some students commented on the post, saying the university was now threatening them and questioning the legitimacy of the statement.
The university responded however, confirming that is was an official communication signed off by the Vice Chancellor, Professor Xoliswa Mtose.
Ongoing strike
The union has meanwhile reaffirmed that they will not budge in the negotiations which cover a wide range of grievances relating to financial management, staff contracts and wages.
‘In the past four weeks, workers at UniZulu have shown their salt to management,’ read a statement issued by NEHAWU Unizulu deputy secretary Hlakaniphani Jamile on Sunday.
‘We are not run-overs. We know what we want. We are not going to stop telling them what we want until they deliver. We told them what we want verbally for 19 months and they could not understand.
‘We are now telling them by way of industrial action. They will understand – the language of a strike is a universal language that is understood by all and sundry,’ concluded the statement.
The university meanwhile advised students that the strike would still affect some normal on-campus services, such as catering.
‘Existing additional catering services will continue, but these are unlikely to be adequate,’ the university said.
A teaching recovery plan was in development and would be communicated to students by tomorrow (Wednesday).
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