Ann Eveleth
THE University of Zululand campus became a war zone this week as police and students clashed following the alleged rape of a female student in a campus residence last Saturday.
Campus security fired teargas canisters on Tuesday to disperse students demanding the immediate suspension of Jabulani Msweli, the campus security guard charged with the rape, and police reinforcements fired rubber bullets as the situation escalated and one student allegedly fired a shot from a 9mm pistol.
University spokesperson Carl de Villiers said students “went on a rampage” on Tuesday night after unsuccessful attempts to gain entry into the campus security offices. He said students damaged buildings and cars on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning while demanding the suspension, although this had already taken place: “I don’t know why (the students) weren’t informed of the suspension. I cannot give an explanation for that,” he said. De Villiers said students “continued to wreak havoc on Wednesday morning, police were called in and used rubber bullets after a student fired a 9mm.”
Student’s Representative Council president Vusi Mahaye said the rape of a woman student had “raised strong emotions” at an extraordinary student meeting called after the student reported the incident to the SRC.
Mahaye said the case was aggravated by claims the alleged rapist had approached the student’s residence matron to try to prevent her from filing charges, followed her when she went to report the crime at the Mtunzini police station, and subsequently wrote a letter in which he claimed the student was his girlfriend and that she had “been enticing him”.
Mahaye said students were also informed by campus security head Ken McKaye that Msweli had requested three days leave and that this was granted by the univeristy management.
“Then we escorted the woman to Mtunzini, and two SAPS officers refused to take her statement and told her to go back and negotiate with her attacker. We had to take her to Empangeni to report the crime and to see a district surgeon,” said Mahaye.
Mahaye said the woman was taken to another doctor on Monday, after which students held a meeting on Tuesday where they resolved to demand Msweli be barred from campus and suspended immediately without pay.
About 1 000 students went to demand that McKaye protect the woman from intimidation. Mahaye said McKaye was not there, and the second-in-command was unable to give the assurance. “One of the guards told the other students if they didn’t stop singing and chanting he would shoot,” Mahaye claimed.
Mahaye said the guards then fired teargas into the crowd and called the police Internal Stability Unit, who then fired rubber bullets at the students: “This caused the situation to escalate. When we managed to finally get the students together at 8pm the police fired teargas to disperse us.”
Students agreed to return to classes on Thursday after being informed of Msweli’s supension, but marched to Mtunzini to demand the suspension of the two police officers.