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Incident of violent criminal acts on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus on 14 March 2022

14 March 2022 | Story Lacea Loader

The entrance gate to the Qwaqwa Campus of the University of the Free State (UFS) was blocked by a group of students this morning. The group stoned private security guards, entered the campus, vandalised and looted property, and assaulted staff and students on campus.

Two students were arrested by the South African Police Service (SAPS) and more have been identified; the necessary disciplinary action will be taken, and immediate suspensions will be instituted. Similarly, the SAPS will institute criminal charges against those who have been identified.

The university management has ordered an urgent investigation into today's incident and condemns the destructive behaviour of the group. This behaviour is not viewed as protest action, but as criminal acts.

Any violence and criminal acts against staff and students and the disruption of academic activities are condemned in the strongest terms.

The academic programme on the Qwaqwa Campus continues, mostly online for this week, and students will be informed by their faculties about the revised schedule, as well as arrangements regarding tests and assessments scheduled on the campus for this week.

The campus remains open; the university's Protection Services is on high alert and is monitoring the situation on campus closely.

Issued by:

Lacea Loader

Director: Communication and Marketing

University of the Free State

loaderl@ufs.ac.za

23 February 2022

News Archive

Rasool lauds our university

2011-10-24

At the dinner at the residence of the South African Ambassador to the USA, Mr Ebrahim Rasool, were, from the left: Prof. Debra Stewart, President of the Council of Graduate Schools in the USA; South African Ambassador, Mr Rasool; Prof. Jansen; and Prof. Molly Corbett Broad, President of the American Council on Education (ACE).

The Ambassador for South Africa to the United States of America (USA), Mr Ebrahim Rasool, recently hosted Prof. Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector of our university and a group of representatives from major science councils, foundations and universities at his home in Washington DC. Our university is the first South African university to be hosted at the official home of the Ambassador.

“The University of the Free State has shown South Africa and the world how to work with the past and how to make the past work for them. “You are a thought leader who had the privilege not to be comfortable with your own ideas of history; you understood the need to change and embraced it. You have moved the fastest towards racial and human togetherness of all the South African universities,” Mr Rasool said.

Prof. Jansen responded by saying that Africa needed strong academic universities and that had to be the focus of tertiary institutions across the continent. “We must create opportunities for people to be together and to learn from each other. The UFS is an experiment of human togetherness – and this experiment is taking off,” he said.

During his visit to the USA, Prof. Jansen also discussed research partnerships and new placements for UFS staff and students through exchange visits.

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