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05 September 2019 | Story Prof Francis Petersen (UFS Rector and Vice-Chancellor)

In light of the ongoing violence against women, and recent surge in femicide in South Africa, the University of the Free State (UFS) recommits itself to challenge, fight and eradicate all forms of gender-based violence on its campus and in the country.

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 the Western Cape (UWC) student, Jesse Hess, are painful reminders of the pervasive nature of misogyny and patriarchal violence that impedes the freedom of women/womxn in South Africa. The UFS stands in solidarity with UCT and UWC, and all other South African universities that are currently steeped in this national crisis pertaining to gender-based violence.

The UFS perceives this as an enduring manifestation of patriarchy that results in women’s/womxn’s subordination, inequality, and violation of bodily integrity. These horrific events underscore the extent to which attempts to address women’s/womxn’s inequality and gender-based violence nationally, and more pertinently at universities, have failed. Recent discussions have underscored the issue of ‘belonging’ as a concern in Higher Education contexts. Belonging is often couched in the language of ‘access’ and ‘transformation’. However, these terms often provide limited substantive change for students who experience a sense of marginalisation and alienation at South African universities. Decolonisation discourse challenges the nature of hegemonic knowledge production that excludes voices of alterity.

Epistemic violence is central to decolonisation discourse referring to the nature of hegemonic knowledge production that excludes voices of alterity. The extent to which knowledge production manifests in universities is, however, not only white and Western, but also male and masculine. South African universities are therefore confronted again with the urgency of recognising and responding to the issue of women’s/womxn’s subordination, with specific emphasis on their safety and freedom.

The UFS is committed to creating a university space where all our students feel that they belong, by broadening current epistemologies and including women’s/womxn’s voices and lived experiences. More pertinently and in a practical manner, curriculum change should include diverse intellectual perspectives and incorporate an ethics of care in teaching practices. The UFS acknowledges that more must be done as a space of higher learning to investigate the causes that underlie the continuance of sexual violence against women/womxn.

On Friday 6 September 2019, the UFS held a day of mourning, standing in solidarity with other universities in their attempt to respond to the present crisis. In mourning Uyinene and Jesse’s death and all other victims and survivors of gender-based violence, the university will critically self-reflect on the multi-layered demand for transformation and consciousness needed for deep change.

The UFS calls on the Department of Higher Education, civil society, the business sector and all others to actively contribute to efforts that will eradicate gender violence. As the UFS, we call specifically on the City of Bloemfontein, the mayor, members of local government, South Africa Police Service and all inhabitants to assist us in making the city safe for all.

Prof Francis Petersen
Rector and Vice-Chancellor
University of the Free State
5 September 2019


News Archive

Mpofu-Walsh inspires with music, word, and wisdom
2017-08-22

Description: TEDxUFS   Tags: TEDxUFS

Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh shared with the audience the
creative process of writing a song at the 2017
TEDxUFS conference.
Photo: Voxomnia

“Sometimes it’s the parts of us that give us the most agony, the parts of us that we think we need to change to conform to other people’s expectations, which are actually the gateways which allow us to make an impact in the world.”

This encouragement from Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh was one of the highlights of the 2017 TEDxUFS conference. According to the author, musician, and activist, we should embrace every part of ourselves. We should understand that the way in which each of us can change the world, is by becoming one with all the different parts of us which people think can’t come together.

Audience hears project for first time

For the first time ever, Sizwe shared material from his project Democracy and delusionwith an audience at the 4th annual TEDxUFS conference in the Odeion Theatre at the University of the Free State on 5 August 2017. Other speakers included the likes of Murendeni Mafumo, founder of Gentle Giant, and Elijah Djan, CEO and inventor of Nubrix.

The event also included TEDx videos, breath-taking performances, and cutting-edge technological exhibitions. The theme was Prism of Possibilities.

Launching a book and album together

Sizwe shared how he, while studying at the University of Oxford, embarked on an ambitious project where he combined his passion for academics and music: To release a book and album about the same things at the same time.

The project is a reflection of the political landscape in South Africa. Sizwe showed how he created a song about student protests by putting different layers of music together.

“The only way to do something that will leave you truly remembered is to do something different. It is to take all of yourself and pour it into the creative pursuit that you produce.”

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