FALLISM
Public universities are society’s key institutions for developing knowledge through their role
in research and teaching. By fulfilling these functions, institutions contribute to social,
economic, cultural and intellectual development. For this to happen there has to be an
enabling environment which includes financial, infrastructural and intellectual resources.
#feeesmustfall was a student led movement that started in October 2015 after the minster
of higher education and training Dr Blade Nzimande announced that there would be a 6%
increase in university fees in 2016. Students engaged on this movement to call for a radical
re-imagination of the higher education space. University students in Cape Town marched to
parliament to demand that there should be no increase in University fees. Within the space
of a few days, tens of thousands of students from universities across South Africa had joined
the protest movement calling for no rise in tuition fees. The student protest continued
throughout 2015 and 2016.
#Feesmustfall came after a very powerful movement that took place earlier in the year 2015
#Rhodesmustfall and other student protests which were demanding for infrastructural
development, NSFAS and the payment of registration fees, the end to exclusion and the
clearance of historic debt. The student mobilisation was massive and student leaders put
aside the entrenched culture of putting one’s own political affiliation and agenda first. The
main demands of the students were: 1. Free decolonised education for all 2. The immediate
clearance of historical debt and 3. The end of outsourcing of all allied workers. Students
were also pressing for the following:
The de-commodification of higher education
Racial, class and gender justice
The reversal of the damage caused by South Africa’s neoliberal economy
The elevation of the self-reliance and self-determination of the black working class
The protest sparked a wildfire that could not be easily quelled. However, these protests
were often violent and led to clashes between protesting students, the involvement of the
police and securities, the damaging of university property, the disruption of exams and
other university operations. It also led to arrests and suspension of student leaders. Some
students got injured and even landed to hospitals. Free higher education is not an end in
relief. Rather it’s an essential for the achievement of the social, political, cultural and
transformative goals of a society characterised by the legacies of racist oppression and
exploitative social relations.
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