Students and management of the University of the Witwatersrand met on Thursday to finalise an agreement to resolve a financial aid dispute which disrupted the campus for five days.
The Student Representative Council (SRC) and management met at 4pm and were expected to negotiate into the evening, to iron out the details of an agreement reached on Wednesday night, university spokesperson Shirona Hassim said.
Earlier Hassim said in a statement: ”It was agreed that the university and the students need to engage jointly in seeking alternative sources of funding, including loan funding, to cover the shortfall between what students were expecting and what the university was able to allocate.”
Hassim said if these efforts were unsuccessful, students would be allowed to carry the debt owed to the university until they graduate under certain conditions.
The SRC met with the student body on Thursday to present Wednesday’s agreement and get suggestions from students. The SRC and management were expected to present a joint proposal to the university council for approval on Friday.
”This is just a start. There is still a lot to be done from here,” Hassim said.
The protest started after students were given letters last week informing them their financial aid would be cut by up to 50 percent.
About 3 000 students were involved in demonstrations which disrupted a large number of lectures on Monday and Wednesday.
Twelve students, who were arrested for public violence while protesting, were granted bail of R1 000 in the Johannesburg Regional Court on Thursday.
The students, aged between 17 and 28, were arrested on Wednesday as a group of about 3 000 angry students ringed by riot policemen protested at the institution.
Hassim said the university had not laid charges against the students but warned they might face internal disciplinary action. – Sapa