The spokesperson of the university, Lacea Loader, told OFM News in a written response that the matter is sub judice and cannot respond to questions that were sent to her for now. 

Meanwhile, the university revealed on Monday that it would soon be taking a few measures to increase the security of students on campus. University rector, Professor Francis Petersen, told members of the media during an engagement over lunch the UFS will be increasing campus security visibility, upgrading the residence security, and possibly even installing more CCTV cameras.

We are also taking that message quite actively into the residences and with that, we are also looking at safety - to what extent and how safe are our students on campus, specifically our female students?

Petersen also revealed that the university would also soon be finalising its policy on Mental Health, which ties in with its focus on addressing gender-based violence (GBV) on the campus and addressing the mental health component of this scourge which is growing more and more on student campuses around the country. Petersen said that the University would be working with the Student Representative Council (SRC) on this policy and also said that this would be part of the University’s way of doing its part to ensure that its students are not only physically safe but have added support with regards to several matters which may threaten their mental health.

His announcement comes in the wake of World Mental Health Awareness Month, which is observed in the month of October and is generally a month where awareness is brought to mental health issues around the world and mobilising efforts in support of mental health. As the issue of mental health on campuses is a national issue, Petersen said that he believes that Minister of Higher Education, Naledi Pandor, should in her own way find how this issue can be addressed on a national scale and look at solutions to this problem which has plagued various campuses around South Africa.

Meanwhile, Pandor told OFM News last month, while she was visiting the Central University of the Free State, that her Department is finalising a policy document on gender-based violence and hopes to soon release it for public comment to be adopted as a public framework later. She further emphasised that there was an alarming number of violent incidents at institutions of higher learning and that safety at schools is becoming an issue government can no longer ignore. Referring to the rape of Rhodes University student, Khensani Maseko, who later committed suicide, as well as the recent stabbing of two students in KwaZulu-Natal, Pandor said she was saddened by these occurrences and hoped something could soon be done to help change the behaviours of the students implicated in these violent attacks.

OFM News/Pulane Choane