The University of Cape Town has set up special examination venues, crowd-control perimeter fencing and has stepped up security ahead of examinations starting tomorrow (Wednesday).
Security personnel, dressed in riot gear accompanied by guard dogs, were clearly visible on the campus on Monday.
UCT brings ‘apartheid police dogs’, erects exam ‘concentration camp’ tent | UCT e tla ka… https://t.co/CYM0I41p8Q pic.twitter.com/bXR0xIiriD
— VERNAC NEWS (@VernacNews) November 12, 2017
Following the recent protest action, access to the campus is being strictly controlled. The university’s vice-chancellor Max Price, said these measures have been put in place in order to ensure examinations are conducted in a “safe, quiet and calm atmosphere”.
“We have taken this unusual step as a measure of our firm commitment to the huge majority of students who want to write their exams and see the academic year through to its end. A small number of protesters remain determined to see the university shut down, and have disrupted tests and exams over recent weeks in their attempts to do so. We will do our level best to prevent such incidents from recurring,” said Price.
UCT is currently building a whole entire electrodome just so that we can write exams lmaoo pic.twitter.com/FTVCKejDZn
— Jade (@jade_dupreez) November 11, 2017
He said the presence of security within the exam perimeter was reduced to minimum, and Campus Protection Services officers would be in the exam tents.
“This is to enable the interception of any protesters who are students, and therefore may be entitled to be in the exam venue, from attempting to disrupt any exams. In terms of the current interdict, any protesters attempting to disrupt exams will be handed over to the South African Police Service for arrest,” he said.
SRC President, Karabo Khakhau, said that expecting students to write exams in the presence of police dogs was inappropriate.
“Some students have phobias of dogs, the environment is not conducive they need to introspect and talk to us to find solutions that will make satisfy everyone. We will meet (on Tuesday) to discuss what they call a militant environment on campus.”
Photography viwe_t on Twitter