Shopkeepers in Pretoria’s city centre barricaded their stores on Friday as a few thousand protesting students, demanding free education, marched to Pretoria Station after handing over a memorandum to education officials.
The students, belonging to the Congress of South African Students (Cosas), earlier demanded to hand over a memorandum to Education Minister Naledi Pandor, but were told she was not at the office.
At about 2pm, the students blocked Schoeman Street in front of the department’s offices, vowing not to disperse before they saw the minister. However, they finally handed their memorandum to an education official.
Pandor was attending a national executive committee meeting in Johannesburg on Thursday and had already indicated she would not be available to receive the memorandum.
Cosas president Kenny Motshegoa said they want free education throughout the country, something he said has not yet been achieved. Cosas also wants the government to nationalise private schools, saying these have become reclusive hideouts for the rich.
The protesting students vowed to return to Pandor’s office if she does not concede to their demand for free education. Motshegoa said her department has 14 working days to respond to the students’ demands, failing which they will return for a bigger protest.
The students caused havoc for about two hours by toyi-toying and chanting songs while blocking Schoeman Street — one of Pretoria’s busiest streets. The students also beat up fellow students and robbed street vendors. Rubbish was strewn all over the street.
A police helicopter and heavily armed police officers were monitoring the situation. Earlier in the day police used pepper spray on some of the marchers who tried to rob a man selling ice lollies.
Motshegoa denied that Cosas members were involved in the incidents, saying as far as he was concerned, the protest action was conducted peacefully.
Cosas last week declared March 16 as the national day of militant action against the Education Department in demand of free and compulsory education.
The students said the African National Congress-led government had failed the nation by not providing free education in all public schools.
The students demanded that all private schools be nationalised, the provision of free education in all public schools, history be made a compulsory subject, and a productive, working-class-perspective curriculum. — Sapa