/ 11 March 2008

ANC to take on UFS, the ‘illustrious demon of racism’

Total transformation is needed at the University of the Free State (UFS), the African National Congress (ANC) in the Free State said on Tuesday.

Provincial party spokesperson Playfair Morule said the recent ”dehumanising video” which surfaced at the university was just the tip of the iceberg of racist tendencies at the university.

”This disgusting, heinous, barbaric situation has called for all progressive forces to unite and confront this illustrious demon of racism,” Morule said in Bloemfontein after a meeting with unions and student bodies.

The video, which caused a national outrage, features black university employees on their knees eating food which had apparently been urinated on by white students.

It was filmed last year by students from the Reitz men’s residence and depicted a mock initiation of five staff members into hostel activities.

Morule accused the university of double standards in handling the situation on campus since the video surfaced.

He said while the university management condemned the racist acts at the institution, it had at the same time interdicted students and workers ”who have borne the brunt of the untold experiences of naked racism” from participating in peaceful marches.

Morule said a protest march was planned for March 14 to the university by the ANC and its alliance partners to condemn the making of the video.

Present at the meeting on Tuesday were ANC members, representatives from the the South African Students’ Congress, members of the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union.

Morule also indicated that the ANC had asked its lawyers to try and get the interdicts, which barred all protests on the Bloemfontein campus, set aside.

The ANC was also looking at ”political intervention” at management level to allow the protest march to take place on the campus. – Sapa