#FeesMustFall: SAPS wont use unreasonable force
Police undertake not to use ‘unreasonable force’ on student protesters as a result of urgent court action
After a day of negotiations, the South African Police Service has agreed “not to use unreasonable force to disperse peaceful gatherings relating to tuition fee increases at South African universities.
This was stipulated in a draft order made by agreement at the Western Cape High Court on Thursday.
On Wednesday night, ten applicants launched an urgent interdict against police to prevent them from using excessive force against protesting students.
Thousands of South African students have taken to the streets in protest over plans to increase university fees for next year.
The ten applicants included one parent and nine students, and represented a larger student body.
The respondents in the case were the Speaker of Parliament, the Minister of Higher Education, the Minister of Police and SAPS.
A lawyer for SAPS, Renata Williams, said that she’d prefer “not to comment on the matter” as she left the Western Cape High Court.
But, Mercia Andrews, a parent and applicant in the court action told journalists she saw it as a “victory”.
She said that “through this application we are getting the State to restrain the police and protests around education will not be dealt with violently”.
She said “(Higher Education Minister) Blade Nzimande is responsible for making sure there is no violence against students protesting peacefully”.
Andrews said the draft order was only applicable in the Western Cape, but she hoped “other student protest movements around the country would make similar applications”.
The draft order sets out a number of undertakings including that applicants wishing to demonstrate would not do so “without first obtaining permission to do so in terms of the Regulations of Gatherings Act”.
It also states that “insofar as gatherings and/or demonstrations at or near Parliament, courts and other national key points are concerned, the applicants shall observe the 100 meter radius and the demarcations as per schedule 1 and 2 as referred to in the RG Act”.
The Minister of Police and SAPS agree, “insofar as the applicants comply with the Regulations of Gatherings Act”, that they will “not use unreasonable force” when policing peaceful gatherings.
The applicants also agree to respect the national key points, “as defined in the National Key Points Act.”
Earlier, one of the applicants, 22-year-old Robynne Whitfield told African News Agency that she had been “very scared” at the protest action at Parliament on Wednesday.
She said “it was really chilled in the morning and it just escalated really quickly”.
Waiting for the draft order to be made final, on the steps of the Western Cape High Court, the third year University of Cape Town student said emphatically “education is for everyone”.