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The special task team met today (23 April 2018) to discuss the feedback received from the Free State Provincial Heritage Resources Authority (FSPHRA) regarding the task team’s submission to obtain a permit for the possible covering of the statue until the formal review process on the position of the statue in front of the Main Building on the Bloemfontein Campus has been concluded.
The special task team submitted a submission to the FSPHRA on 17 April 2018, in which the following three possible options were proposed to make the statue topical in a way that would symbolise the seriousness and urgency of the review process and stimulate engagement on the issue:
1. fencing in the statue;
2. creating an exchange of information around it; and
3. covering the statue.
Options 1 and 2 emanated from the consultation process with the university community on the possible covering of the statue.
The Permit Committee of the FSPHRA approved Option 2 during its meeting on 17 April 2018, as it cultivates opportunity for scholarly engagement. The committee indicated that the statue should still be visible, ‘uncovered’, and accessible and granted the UFS a permit on 20 April 2018 to make the MT Steyn statue topical while the review process is underway.
Permit document
The special task team welcomes the decision of the Permit Committee and supports the conditions stated in the permit, as it protects the credibility of the review process.
According to the National Heritage Resources Act No 25 of 1999, members of the university community and other stakeholders have 14 days from the date of issue of the permit (i.e. 17 April 2018) to appeal directly to the Permit Committee regarding its decision to grant the permit.
The way forward regarding the review process:
- While the decision of the Permit Committee is open for appeal, the special task team is refining the detailed feedback and alternative suggestion/view on Option 2 made by the FSPHRA to ensure the practical execution thereof. This conceptional framework of Option 2 (creating an exchange of information around it) will be shared with the university community once completed.
- The UFS has appointed a heritage consultant to conduct a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA).
- Once a preliminary report from the HIA has been submitted by the heritage consultant, it will be made public for a minimum period of 30 days for input from the university community and other stakeholders, during which a public participation process will commence in order for the university community and others to deliberate about the preliminary report. During this time, various opportunities for engagement will be created on all three campuses to afford the university community and other stakeholders an opportunity to engage with the report.
- The heritage consultant will submit a final report to the special task team after the engagement period has been completed.
The specific dates and timelines of the public participation process will be shared when finalised.
Released by:
Lacea Loader (Director: Corporate Communication and Marketing)
Telephone: +27 51 401 2584 | +27 83 645 2454
Email: news@ufs.ac.za | loaderl@ufs.ac.za
Fax: +27 51 444 6393
Suspension of the South African Doping Control Laboratory (SADoCoL) by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)
2016-05-04
The senior leadership of the UFS and the management of the South African Doping Control Laboratory (SADoCoL) take note of the decision by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to suspend the laboratory’s accreditation to perform doping control analysis on biological samples of athletes and sportsmen and -women until 30 September 2016. During this time of suspension, all sport-related samples will be sent for analysis to the WADA accredited laboratory in Qatar until the accreditation of SADoCoL is re-established. Analysis according to WADA accreditation will therefore not be interrupted during the period of the suspension of the accreditation of SADoCoL.
The announcement by WADA on 3 May 2016 follows a voluntary decision by SADoCoL in March 2016 to temporarily close the laboratory for some of its routine analytical duties for six months, as from 1 April 2016. The decision was taken in consultation with the senior leadership of the UFS and other role players, especially the Department of Sport and Recreation of South Africa (SRSA) and the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS). SADoCoL is a specialised service laboratory of the University of the Free State (UFS) and has been in existence for more than thirty years.
Due to the ever-increasing demands on the number, variety and analytical sensitivity of compounds to be analysed according to the Prohibited List of WADA, technical and infrastructure adaptations need to be implemented in the laboratory continuously to keep up with the demands. Over the last year, SADoCoL has drastically increased its capacity in both personnel and infrastructure, to a point where these changes can be implemented for optimal performance of the laboratory. This has to be done while normal routine analysis continues, and it became clear that at present, implementation cannot be successfully accomplished together with the workload from normal routine analyses.
The time of suspension will be utilised to implement and test these new systems in order to achieve the standard presently required by WADA, as well as to perform development and improvements. This development will be performed in close collaboration with other role players in the anti-doping movement in South Africa, such as SAIDS and SRSA. Scientific development aid will also be acquired from other doping control laboratories worldwide in order to assure that the high analytical quality is maintained and expanded to meet the fast growing challenges in this field. The progress of the process will be closely monitored, and the upgraded methodologies will then, after rigorous testing, be implemented to ensure that the required analytical quality is maintained so as to obtain re-accreditation by WADA at the conclusion of the suspension period.
Issued by: Lacea Loader (Director: Communication and Brand Management)
Telephone: +27(0)51 401 2584 or +27 (0) 83 645 2454
E-mail: news@ufs.ac.za
Fax: +27 (0) 51 444 6393