The University of KwaZulu-Natal students and staff who engaged in a racial war of words on Facebook are to be "dealt with accordingly" by the institution. "The protest at the Westville campus has nothing to do with race, gender or social class. All those making racial remarks will be dealt with accordingly. Racial remarks do nothing but incite hatred and will do nothing to resolve the problems on campus," the university's spokesman Nomonde Mbadi said yesterday.
The flurry on racist posts on the university's Facebook page came on Wednesday after a student posted: "Indians will never understand us blacks because we are raced [sic] differently. We are born to kill that why tomorrow we will wipe out all Indians on campus. Don't come otherwise you will go straight to heaven". Tensions were already running high as students and staff had to flee the campus on Monday and Tuesday morning when violence erupted during a strike over financial aid and accommodation. Coupled with their anger against the university over confusion about when lectures would resume, students and staff, who said they were offended by the post, then began racial name-calling. One student said "Blacks are stupid and want everything for free", while another wrote: "Kill the Indians and the whites. This is our country". The posts have since been removed.
"We are extremely disappointed that at this point in our democracy young students, who are the future leaders of our country, are engaging in racial slander on a social media network. The protest action was not about racial prejudices," Mbadi said. She said the university prided itself as a diverse institution of higher learning where different cultures are welcomed and celebrated. "The emancipation of South Africans has given us the freedom to embrace each other, to understand each other and to show tolerance of the highest order. The university's transformation charter aims to heal the divisions of our nation's past, bridge racial and cultural divides and lay the foundations for a university that is united in its diversity," she said.
The university's pact, Mbadi explained, commits every staff member and student to treat each other with respect and to abide by the rules and regulations of the institution.
The South African Human Rights Commission said that it had not received any complaints. "People must understand their inherent respect as they engage in such important platforms. We call on people to use these spaces more responsibly. Our doors are open to anyone who wants to bring a complaint and we will seek to address the issue," the commission's spokesman Vincent Moaga said. "We are hoping the Department of Higher Education, which has always [addressed] the problems affecting students, will continue to engage with the relevant authorities to address such issues."
Source: Mail & Guardian
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