News

Make Grahamstown a better place for all, say protesters

About 100 people gathered in front of the Grahamstown City Hall to protest against the xenophobic violence that has hit the town and surrounding townships for more than a week.

By

News | 30 October 2015

Fired newspaper employee wins settlement award

Bongani Fani, the newspaper deliveryman dismissed by Independent Newspapers, has accepted an award of R34,000 (the equivalent of three-months gross pay) after a hearing at the Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA). It took seven months to reach the settlement for an amount slightly less than the R40,000 his lawyer had asked for.

Bernard Chiguvare

News | 30 October 2015

Do what you believe is the right thing, 1980s activist tells students

Activists are always in a minority, 1980s student leader Llewellyn MacMaster told students in Cape Town last night.

GroundUp Staff

News | 30 October 2015

Students march to parliament

A few hundred students and workers from the University of Cape Town (UCT) marched to parliament this afternoon demanding an end to outsourcing at all universities, protesting against police brutality, and calling for free education.

Ashleigh Furlong

News | 29 October 2015

Women living in terror plan march in Grahamstown

In the blistering hot conference room of the Masifunde Education and Development Project Trust, 14 women with determined calm put together a statement: 'The police have told us that we must not go ahead with our planned protest at the City Hall on Friday as they cannot guarantee our safety. We cannot and will not back down'. The Voices of the Foreigner’s Wives represent a large number of women still too afraid to leave their homes after the spate of xenophobic violence that shook Grahamstown a week ago.

Hancu Louw

News | 29 October 2015

UCT commits to “insourcing” - and other reports from the #FeesMustFall protests

The University of Cape Town (UCT) has agreed, in principle, to employ its workers directly, and charges were dropped against 23 protesters. But at Wits, students and reporters were intimidated by protesters. Here are reports of today's protest activities from Cape Town, East London and Johannesburg.

GroundUp staff

News | 28 October 2015

When are universities writing exams?

Many universities have postponed exams due to protest action. Here is an update of the situation at various institutions based on their official communications as of 16:00 on 28 October.

Ashleigh Furlong

News | 28 October 2015

Angry Masiphumelele residents to march on magistrates’ court

An uneasy calm has returned to Masiphumelele, but residents say they are preparing further protests on Friday, when a community leader charged with murder is due to appear in court.

GroundUp Staff and Bernard Chiguvare

News | 28 October 2015

Mother accuses principal of caning her son

Despite the South African Schools Act prohibiting the use of corporal punishment, caning continues in many schools. Now a Pietermaritzburg mother has had enough, and she's laid a complaint with the police against her son's school principal.

Ntombi Mbomvu

News | 28 October 2015

Nyanga policing: Will promises be kept this time?

In October 2012, then Western Cape police commissioner, Lieutenant General Arno Lamoer, promised that a new satellite police station would be opened in Nyanga. Three years later, the promise has not yet been kept. Nor is it clear what steps have been taken to address a multitude of problems raised by a parliamentary committee a year ago.

GroundUp staff and Tariro Washinyira

News | 28 October 2015

I can’t afford to send my children to university, says campus worker

Moedie Motlanke, 53, who works for a catering company which has a contract with the University of Cape Town, has been involved in the student protests since they began last week.

Ashleigh Furlong and Pasqua Heard

News | 27 October 2015

Fort Hare students vow to continue protests

University of Fort Hare students have vowed to continue with their #FeesMustFall protests after an exchange of letters with Vice-Chancellor Mvuyo Tom.

Nombulelo Damba-Hendrik and Siphesihle Matyila

News | 27 October 2015

Khayelitsha teenagers start radio show

Learners from the Centre for Science and Technology (COSAT), Khayelitsha, aired their first high school radio show last week. And they’re not shying away from difficult topics. The group, known as the Optimistic Youth Reporters (OYR), debated teenage pregnancy in a twenty minute live broadcast for staff and their fellow students in the school hall.

Pasqua Heard

News | 27 October 2015

Universities closed and exams postponed

Exams and classes have been postponed indefinitely in a number of universities, as student protests continued. The main focus of demonstrations is shifting to the issue of outsourced workers at tertiary institutions. Differences among students about how to proceed have come to the fore. At some institutions accusations and counter-accusations of intimidation were made between students representing opposing views.

GroundUp Staff

News | 26 October 2015

Tense wait for silicosis decision

Mineworkers with silicosis and TB will have to wait a while to find out whether they can be represented as a class in legal action for damages against the gold mines which employed them.

Pete Lewis

News | 26 October 2015

Masiphumelele residents angered by arrest of community leader

While the student demonstrations were taking place, the sporadic protests that have been taking place in Masiphumelele resumed in the early hours of Friday morning after a community leader was arrested.

GroundUp Staff

News | 26 October 2015