Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Categories
UFS News Media Release Research
Years
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Months
January February March April May June July August September October November December
Previous Archive
04 August 2020 | Story Dr Nitha Ramnath
Apart from its devastating impact on people’s lives and livelihoods, the COVID-19 pandemic has also affected the nature and quality of our democracies – democracy read in its widest sense here as collective and individual self-determination. Formal, institutional democracy has beencurtailed through the imposition of states of emergency or disaster and the logistical difficulties associated with social distancing. Extra-institutional democratic work, such as protest and social-movement activity, has suffered from prohibitions imposed by law and through state suppression related to ‘lockdown’. The nature (and perhaps democratic quality) of public conversation has changed – for better or worse – from increasing reliance on ‘science’ and ‘scientists’ to justify public choices. The crisis has brought to the fore already existing characteristics of our democracies, such as the prevalence and power of special-interest bargaining, the extreme inequality of our societies, and chauvinist nationalisms that force us to ask whether we have ever had democracy at all. What will be the long-term effects of these impacts of the crisis on our democracies? What will democracy look like post-COVID? What does the crisis teach us about what our democracies have always been?

Join us for a discussion of these and other democracy-related issues in these troubled times by a panel of four hailing from Colombia, India, South Africa, and the USA.

Date: Thursday, 13 August
Time: 14:00-16:00 (South African Standard Time – GMT +2)

 

Please RSVP to Mamello Serasengwe at serasengwemsm@ufs.ac.za no later than 12 August 2020 upon which you will receive a Skype for Business meeting invite and link to access the webinar

Panel

Prof Natalia Angel Cabo (University of Los Andes, Bogota, Colombia)

Dr Quaraysha Ismail-Sooliman (University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa)

Dr Usha Ramanathan  Independent Law Researcher  (Delhi, India)

Prof Katie Young (Boston College, Boston, USA) 

Moderator

Prof Danie Brand (Free State Centre for Human Rights, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa)   




News Archive

Student leaders' hard work rewarded
2013-05-01

Four student leaders on our Bloemfontein and Qwaqwa Campuses each received a scholarship of R15 000. Handré Hay, Estine Cronje, Tsepang Lenka and Jean Vermaas were rewarded for the positive impact they had on the student community in the past three years or more. Student Affairs' scholarship programme acknowledges the contribution of student leaders in the upliftment of the student community.

Read what the four have to say about leadership:

Handré Hay:

Handré Hay, a third-year BSc Physiotherapy student who holds several leadership positions on our Bloemfontein Campus, served for two consecutive years on the committee of Armentum residence. He was also a member of the executive council in the Students' Representative Council (SRC) and served in two SRC portfolios. "Leadership is about being able to serve. When people see that you are willing to put other people's interests above your own and that you are willing to serve unselfishly, despite a position of authority, you will get far," said Handré.

Estine Cronje:

Estine Cronje is the current prime of Marjolein residence. This was the second time the fifth-year Psychology student were re-elected to this position."Leadership is very important to me. One needs leaders in everything you do. I believe a leader should never think herself better than the rest and should work as hard as her team. She should command respect, be disciplined, an example to others, accessible and open to the opinions of other people.

Tsepang Lenka:

Tsepang Lenka is the SRC President of our Qwaqwa Campus. Tsepang, who was twice elected as prime of his residence, has already obtained his BA degree in Public and Business Management. He is currently working on his Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE). "To me leadership means to serve. As a leader you don't lie to people when things are taking the wrong direction, you stand firm and tell the truth; in that way, people don't lose trust in you. The scholarship inspires me to work even harder," Tsepang said.

Jean Vermaas:

Jean Vermaas is a former SRC member who is currently studying for his LLB degree. Some of Jean's achievements include leadership positions of the Juridical Society and the Broad Students' Transformation Forum. In 2012 he was a founder member of the Student Elders' Council."Leadership is of extreme importance to me. It formed me into the person I am now. Leadership isn't always easy, but in the challenges you face you grow as a leader and as an individual."

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept