/ 22 February 2005

Protesting Jo’burg students stone leaders

Protesting University of Johannesburg students stoned their leaders as they tried to call off a protest march and extend class boycotts on Tuesday.

”They expect us to boycott classes. They are mad,” said one student as he ran for cover.

Earlier, student representative council president Xolani Fakude said student leaders took advice from the Department of Education and decided to call off the march.

The student leaders were expected meet at 2pm to discuss the matter further, but in the meantime, classes will be boycotted.

Students who had been gathering the whole morning for a march to the nearby Kingsway campus in Rossmore were angered by news of the class boycotts and heckled and booed other leaders who tried to address them.

Some suddenly started picking up stones and throwing them at the leaders.

The incident was over quickly and students appeared to be dispersing.

The students were highlighting grievances related to the merger of the Technikon Witwatersrand and the Rand Afrikaans University to form the multicampus University of Johannesburg. — Sapa