The death of father of four Mthokozisi Edwin Ntumba at the hands of police during a student protest in Braamfontein last week is an opportune moment to pause and reflect on the eighth of the 10 principles of the Freedom Charter as adopted at the Congress of the People at Kliptown on June 16 1955.
It has been seven years since 2015 and the genesis of #EverythingMustFall, precipitated by #FeesMustFall, followed by #RhodesMustFall, culminating in the decolonisation movement. Since then SA has witnessed annual student protests linked to exclusion on financial grounds, leading to annual disruptions at universities.
From the days of Sizwe Nxasana’s National Education Collaboration Trust, which involved all social partners, the expectation is that by now common cause and common ground should have been reached to deal decisively with the issue of historical debt. Especially because the cabinet has already agreed that a comprehensive review of student funding policy is urgently required.
For us, the biggest injustice was exclusion. If 2020 was the year of the digital revolution, let all of us join hands in making 2021 the year of Ark — bringing people in. To empower universities to become inclusive centres of excellence. To be awake to still persistent inequalities and how these continue to shape our sense of belonging, ownership, identity, access, language, symbols, attitudes and expectations.
Source: Education Headlines (educationheadlines.net)