Tukkies res accused of racism
2005-08-07 09:42
Mariechen Waldner
Johannesburg - If you are not a man, an Afrikaner and/or a member of one of the three Dutch Reformed sister churches, you are not entitled to accommodation in Huis Voortrekker, a Hatfield residence for students of the University of Pretoria.
This is what the huge black letters on Huis Voortrekker posters on the lampposts in the streets surrounding Tukkies declare.
The posters have enraged some of the university's black students who regard it as blatant "racial discrimination".
They have asked the SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) to take action against this "clear infringement of the dignity of black students and all others unfairly discriminated against".
The complaint was lodged by the Pan Africanist Student Movement of Azania (Pasma).
"It is very much clear that it is the policy of the house to admit only white Afrikaans students to the exclusion of all other students, especially black students," Pasma national president Mametlwe Sebei wrote to the SAHRC.
Jan Hendrik Kay, Huis Voortrekker's spokesperson, denied that the residence's admission policy constituted racial discrimination. Kay is also one of the Vryheidsfront members on the Tukkies' student representative council (SRC).
"We are just a bunch of guys who like to do things together," he stated .
Kay said Huis Voortrekker's admission policy did not exclude students of colour.
He said the house rules did not refer to race, and an Afrikaner not of the white race would theoretically be welcome in the residence. Yes, Kay admitted, it was true that such a "species" had to date not turned up on Voortrekker's front stoep.
He admitted that no "black, Afrikaner, Christian, male" student had ever occupied rooms in the residence.
Huis Voortrekker, administered by the Hervormde Kerk, has been exclusively white since it opened its doors more than eight decades ago.
About a third of Huis Voortrekker's residents are theology students, future Dutch Reformed sister church preachers, destined to instil the great commandment of "love thy neighbour" into Afrikaner congregations.
The residence's admission policy is not only a source of anger in the ranks of black Tukkies, it is also not acceptable to the university's management. The privately owned residence is not allowed to participate in official Tukkies activities.
"The university's policy is that the residence must be open to all groups if it wants to participate in official activities," vice-principal Chris de Beer said .
This has had a severe effect on the campus love life of the almost sixty "Afrikaner, Christen mans-studente" who inhabit Huis Voortrekker.
Their attempts to participate in ancient campus traditions by making official dates for "socials" with women residences have been forbidden .
They have also been denied access to official sports activities on campus.
Attempts to negotiate with the authorities have failed, Kay said.
Kay was not aware of the Pasma complaint lodged at the SAHRC. He denied Pasma's charges, stating that Huis Voortrekker's admission policy did not specifically exclude blacks.
Black student problems regarding accommodation on campus will be alleviated next year by two official steps taken by the university.
Forty-one percent of first-year accommodation in official Tukkies residences will be reserved for black students.
The demographic profile of every residence on campus will have to reflect the fact that 43 percent of the university's students are now black.
New "affordable" residences are also under construction.
- City Press