The University of Cape Town, (UCT), has been the subject of national and international media attention as a result of sustained student protest over the presence of a statue at the entrance to the main campus, of the arch British Imperialist and supporter of racism, Cecil John Rhodes. To the uninitiated UCT is the leading University in Africa and amongst the top one hundred institutions of higher learning in the world. It has a proud history of opposing apartheid, specifically in education, and now it is in the vanguard of “transformation”. The latter is a process whereby the University attempts to make itself relevant to the post apartheid society in terms of its student and faculty composition, curriculum content, culture and the needs of that society.
It also needs to be noted that the University, which under apartheid, struggled with the Nationalist Government to have ten percent of its student body representative of people of color now have approximately 70 percent of its students from that demographic. Also all the constituencies of the University from the Governing body to the Student Representative Council all have African leadership.
MANDELA AND RHODES
The very fact that Africanization is an evolutionary process is as a result of the culture created by the non racial deal hammered out by Mandela who saw the need not to destroy the existing infrastructure of the country while simultaneously demanding, cajoling, persuading and legislating the Africanization of the new South Africa. While he was uncompromising on the fact that the majority would rule he believed in reconciliation.
Rhodes bequeathed the internationally recognized Rhodes Scholarships. The Rhodes Foundation in South Africa joined with the Mandela Foundation to create the Mandela Rhodes Foundation. The stated objective was to build exceptional leadership in post apartheid South Africa. One of the criteria of being a Mandela Rhodes appointee, besides academic and leadership skills, was a commitment to reconciliation - Mandela’s core narrative.
It has to be no coincidence that the number of Mandela Rhodes Scholarships awarded increased dramatically the number of South African youth going to study at Oxford and gain international experience. In I902 there were only 5 South African Rhodes Scholars, who could only be, as stated in his subsequently overturned will, "white Christian males". The Mandela award was initiated in 2005 with the objective to have never less than 30 appointees per year. In 2015 there were 40 Mandela Rhodes Scholars. The 2015 class had only 8 of the 40 scholars that were white. Not only has the number of scholars increased in the post apartheid years the number of those previously discriminated against and were never chosen are now in the overwhelming majority.
So Mandela did not feel uncomfortable about associating with the Rhodes name if it achieved the objectives of Africanization, reconciliation and transformation. As a visitor and speaker on the UCT campus he had to have noted the Rhodes Statue but he obviously did not regard it as a priority.
(For the record Jay H. Ell believes, regardless that the University is built on the land that Rhodes bequeathed to the State, the statue is not nor ever was an appropriate symbol for a University that is committed to social justice and Academic Freedom. Even though it was erected nearly 80 years ago heavens knows what the University Council was thinking then and more importantly what have they been thinking about ever since).
Indicative of the bohaai the incident caused, the Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, who was on a controversial visit to South Africa, quipped to the merriment of his hosts, President Zuma and 20 of his cabinet ministers, that Zimbabwe had Rhode’s corpse and South Africa could keep his statue.
THE 2015 UCT STUDENTS
It is understandable that students can aim for it all. They are at a stage in their lives where the unhindered, uncompromised pursuit of truth, as they perceive it, is fair game. This unadulterated position has often served society well as students have spearheaded change and have acted as the conscience of society. At a riveting student body meeting, called to discuss the removal of the Rhodes statue the predominantly black assembly gave it a full go and in effect were giving the University management hell for not transforming the University fast enough. Furthermore if the statue went, which it did, this would be a victory for the students and by definition for all the forces of good.
This group of students have to be seen in their context - they are not a simmering justifiably angry group of students in an apartheid world in a designated “white” university who are supposed to be grateful to those fighting on their behalf, nor are they in the immediate post apartheid class only to grateful that the world has changed. No, they are over a decade post apartheid and they are in a traditionally “white” institution, whether it opposed apartheid or not or whether it is “transforming” or not, that they perceive the white establishment are still calling the shots. What rankles is their belief that the white infrastructure is still in place.
THE STUDENT ASSEMBLY MEETING ON THE RHODES STATUE
The meeting was held in the historic Jameson Assembly Hall. A venue that has hosted University Mass meetings for generations on all the issues of the day both within and without the University. Jay H. Ell’s own memory stretches back to the meetings he was involved in on as the head student at the University, on Academic Freedom, segregation of social events within the University, apartheid and the abrogation of the rule of law. Jameson Hall’s podium has hosted internationally recognized statesmen, politicians, academics from time immemorial including Robert Kennedy in what is considered his greatest speech ever, Mandela, Smuts, Obama, Eric Erickson and recently the Chilean Premier have all given seminal orations there.
The hall for this historic meeting was packed to the rafters and after initially being addressed by the Vice Chancellor and Principal, Max Price and the President of the Student Representative Council, Ramabina Mahapa, was then opened to the student body and Faculty
The meeting which bubbled over in excitement and anger was well managed by the polished co chairmen - one a representative of the Convocation and the other the Chairman of the Student Parliament. The level of debate was of a high standard and the participants articulated succinctly their views. The audience behaved tolerantly to all opinions. While Rhodes was vilified and action as to the removal of his statue was called for, the participants used the meeting for an attack on the Vice Chancellor and his administration, the culture of the University which did not jive with their world view of how transformation should be handled and the plight of black students in post apartheid South Africa. Also most students were not in the mood for compromise on anything and some saw this as being asked to do so just to make the “liberals comfortable”. The Principal’s call for non divisiveness was greeted with suspicion and disdain.
UNIVERSITY PRINCIPAL AND VICE CHANCELLOR MAX PRICE AND PREDECESSORS
Max Price the white principal and Vice Chancellor of UCT has a thankless and daunting task which he has undertaken since 2008. He has the academic and political credentials for this position. It is not that he is a vestige of the University policy making body trying to hang onto white control as he was preceded by two notable Africans. In 1996, just 2 years after Mandela had been inaugurated as the first post apartheid President, a brilliant anti apartheid activist and academic, Mamphele Rampele was appointed. She was the first black woman to run a University in South Arica. She took a leadership appointment with the World Bank in 2000 and was then was succeeded by the noted African writer and educationalist Njabulo Ndebele who was the head of the University till 2008 when he was appointed to a higher academic position at another institution.
So Dr. Price just had to have been the best man for the job by far. He has many UCT constituencies to answer to besides his volatile student body. Most central to his existence is the governing body of the University, the University Council which is incidentally now headed by Archbishop Ndungane. Then there is his Convocation, the body of all graduates, chaired too by an African, Professor Barney Pityana. In addition there is the Senate consisting of the full professors and the body representing the rest of the academic faculty. Finally the body of non academic employees would be allowed to weigh in.
He consulted all of these prior to arranging for the removal of the statue.
CHANCELLORS
Just for the record the University has had the most impressive list of Chancellors from the Prince of Wales, Edward V111, (come back Rhodes all is forgiven); Field Marshall Smuts the South African Premier who was the only Founding Member and author of the charters of both the League of Nations and UNO; A former Chief Justice of South Africa Centlivres whose seminal ruling from the bench forced the Nationalist Apartheid Government to gerrymander the electoral college of the Senate in order to change the Constitution to disenfranchise those of color already on the voters rolls and perpetuate white rule for another 50 years; Harold Oppenheimer mining magnate and philanthropist who almost singlehandedly pay rolled one of the white opposition parties during apartheid and most recently international humanitarian Dame Graca Machel, former first lady to the Premier of Mozambique and wife of Mandela form 1998 till his passing. She is the only woman in history to have been first lady in two countries.
ALUMNI
So although by most standards transformation has been proceeding apace the students and several members of the teaching staff are unhappy. Dr. Price, however, has to worry about the lifeblood of a University - its alumni. They have to be the sternest critics and potentially the most resistant to change. The alumni, not just the few who pitch up to Convocation meetings, want sameness, tradition and nostalgia - they want to see the University as they remember it. Some of their attitudes will be rooted in prejudice but most want to gather and soak in the surroundings and culture as they experienced them. Some might be resentful of those who want to knock the symbols that were part of their fondest memories, whether it be Cecil John watching them on the playing fields or the antique stiff paintings in the library. They might fear that their classrooms, their residences or their sports teams will go by the wayside as new priorities shape up.
Alumni are usually the big donors and Price needs them. The needs include new residencies for the dramatic increase in the student body, subsidies for students and money for research. Price is the chief interface between the nostalgic alumni and the University. He has to explain the fact that many of the white alumni are not going to see their children being admitted to UCT and thus are directly being impacted by change, He frequently visits the USA for example where there are literally thousands of UCT alumni. Just a few days ago he spoke to a poorly attended meeting in New York explaining the Rhodes decision to the faithful and being tremendously empathetic to the student position. Of course on his USA agenda would be visits to the US Foundations who have been very supportive of UCT’s efforts which are also directed at meeting the African continent’s needs.
So all this is on the Vice Chancellor’s agenda as well as keeping the University in the top 100 academically in the world while continuing with the most ambitious affirmative action program imaginable.
AT THE END OF THE DAY
Jay H. Ell, while respecting the highly articulate student opinion as to the role and narrative of the University of Cape Town believes their non yielding approach, in part, clashes with the vision and reconciliation approach of Nelson Mandela . This controversy takes place to the backdrop of the overall political climate in South Africa which is tense and uncertain. It would indeed be a tragedy, if what could turn out to be a lesson for mankind both in tolerance and change was sabotaged. For the moment, the students need reminding in the words of Mandela, rightly or wrongly, it is a “Long Walk to Freedom.”
It is instructive and important to report the students well thought out feelings and this will be done in a future blog.
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