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09 September 2019 | Story Valentino Ndaba | Photo Charl Devenish
Silent march
Students and staff marched in solidarity with other South African universities against gender-based violence.

“Now is a time for us as men to say from the bottom of our hearts that indeed we are ashamed. Not only are we ashamed, we will speak and act against any form of violence. The very same people you see here are the very same people we need to protect, and if we do not protect them then we are rotten fruits,” said Katleho Lechoo, President of the Student Representative Council (SRC) at a silent march against gender-based violence held on the Bloemfontein Campus.

On Friday 6 September 2019, the University of the Free State (UFS) executive management and the SRC suspended all academic activities on its three campuses as a gesture of solidarity with the national movement opposing the rape, murder, and abuse of women across the country. A prayer service was also held on the Qwaqwa Campus. The UFS community came out in numbers to mourn victims and stand in support with survivors and those affected by gender-based violence

Remembering Uyinene, Jesse, and many others
Prof Francis Petersen, UFS Rector and Vice-Chancellor, said the recent rape and murder of 19-year-old Media and Film Studies student at the University of Cape Town (UCT), Uyinene Mrwetyana, and the murder of University of Western Cape (UWC) student, Jesse Hess, are painful reminders of the pervasive nature of misogyny and patriarchal violence that impedes the freedom of women in South Africa. “The UFS stands in solidarity with UCT and UWC and all other SA universities that are currently steeped in this national crisis,” he said.

Prof Petersen then called on the Department of Higher Education, civil society, the business sector, and all other roleplayers to actively contribute to efforts to eradicate gender violence. “As a university, we call specifically on the city of Bloemfontein, the mayor, members of local government, the South Africa Police Service and all inhabitants to assist us in making our city safe.”

Reading from the statement of commitment declaring the position of the UFS, Prof Petersen said: “In light of the ongoing violence against women and the recent surge of femicide in SA, the UFS commits itself to challenge, fight, and eradicate all forms of gender-based violence on its campuses and in our country.”

Cry our beloved country
At the end of the proceedings, Prof Puleng LenkaBula called for change, following emotive addresses by student leaders. “The poem and the speeches that have been made are demonstrative of the woundedness of our hearts, of our souls, of our bodies, and the fact that women’s bodies have been made a battleground. Therefore as a university it is important that we recommit ourselves to ensuring that our legs and our thighs do not define us but who we are as human beings is respected,” said the Vice-Rector: Institutional Change, Student Affairs, and Community Engagement.

“Enough is enough!”

Related:


University of the Free State's position on Gender-Based violence




News Archive

UFS appoints top academic
2010-05-13

 
Prof. Kwandiwe Kondlo


The University of the Free State (UFS) has acquired the services of a well-known political analyst, Prof. Kwandiwe Kondlo, as a Senior Professor in the university’s Centre for Africa Studies (CAS).

Prof. Kondlo, who worked for the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) prior to this permanent appointment, is an accomplished researcher and a well-heeled scholar in issues of transitional democracies, governance and social justice.

“I joined this university particularly because of its difficult history and what I have observed to be a sincere orientation to transform,” he said.

“I think that under the leadership of Prof. Jonathan Jansen (Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS) and his team we are going to see a very interesting rebirth of the University of the Free State. And some of us who believe in ideas of reconciliation in negotiated democracies as part of nation formation actually feel we should throw the best we have into the transformation process and support this great guy.”

“I see my appointment as part of the excellence aspect of the transformation journey because the UFS, even though it does good work in certain areas, is not highly rated in terms of academic excellence and publications. That is why I was glad to be appointed to make a humble contribution,” he said.

“I think it is going to be useful to the UFS to have more people of high academic standing because the idea to improve scholarship is very central and of course shifts the focus to scholarly discourse. Let scholarly excellence reclaim the centre of the debate as the leadership deal with legacy issues and genuine transformation.”

“Let us see academics from this institution stand up to articulate key issues that are relevant to state formations and transformation in the country. Let us debate our role as academics in supporting the consolidation of our young democracy”

Prof. Kondlo sees his key role within the CAS as improving research output.

“In other words, I see myself as leading the way in the generation of journal articles, books and also national and international seminars,” he explained.

He said a lot of work still needed to be done, though, to profile the CAS nationally and on the continent as it was still a new initiative and thus relatively unknown.

“We will need to be very innovative in terms of research initiatives and identification of research associates in order to profile the work of the Centre,” he said.

“I think the UFS will claim its seat in the greater African academic family by virtue of the quality of its products. We do not want to re-invent the wheel; we want to come up with products that are unique and in that way help this university to claim its rightful position within the greater African academic family.”

Prof. Kondlo has also worked for, amongst others, the Department of Land Affairs, the National Prosecuting Authority and the South African Chamber of Commerce, as well as being involved with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt@ufs.ac.za  
13 May 2010
 

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