terrorism

noun terrorism \ ter-r- i-zm\

: the use of violent acts to frighten the people in an area as a way of trying to
achieve a political goal

Over the past few weeks the University of Cape Town has been host to a whole
array of protesting. From the somewhat harmless walking around and chanting to
the more violent with acts of aggression and intent to do bodily harm.

At the core of the protesting is the #FeesMustFall movement which has since
evolved into #FreeEducationNow. There have been a few new additions of fragment
groups such as the #ScienceMustFall and #MaxPriceMustFall in the interim.
In the middle, caught between the protestors and riot police, sit the staff of this
academic establishment. These staff members had to endure verbal abuse,
extraordinarily high levels of stress and anxiety, and, at times, even varying levels of
violence.
And standing at the helm of this juggernaut of an institution is the Vice Chancellor
who is determined (whether by plain ignorance or stupidity which I will explain just
now) to get the academic year finished come hell or high water or even terrorism.

The reason I added those two descriptive words in (which can often be on the same
side of the coin) is because at what point does the luck just run out. The message
which is given loud and clear across campus is that we will strive and complete the
year irrespective of what is going on around us.

If you take a wonder over to any of the twitter feeds related to the protestors you will
see a vast media entourage of protesting, interviews and even violent skirmishes.
Now, look at the UCT website, all it states is that the academic year will resume. It

seems that UCT is trying to maintain a positive public image even with the walls
burning around them.

This level of chaos and protesting should never have happened. It happened last
year and one would be forgiven for assuming we learnt our lesson the first time.
Management of UCT are obviously running out of ideas at an alarming rate to now
even put amnesty on the table for all protestors to ensure the academic programme
resumes.
What does this say to the protestors, and to the public in general? And when does
UCT start to value the life of their staff members as much as their own agenda?
When you are the only person trying to empty a sinking ship with a bucket and
convincing yourself the situation will get better; it is time to revaluate your situation.
But in the meantime, please, pay a thought to the rest of the staff who are involved
in this. We understand the need for the academic programme to continue, but at
what expense will the blind lead the blind in this war.