Ramaphosa condemns Stellenbosch University racist urination attack

President Cyril Ramaphosa has condemned the racist incident that took place at a campus residence at Stellenbosch University.

Stellenbosch University suspended a white student who urinated on the belongings of a black student in what appears to be a racially charged altercation.

“It is more troubling that such incidents are happening at schools and places of higher learning. A number of the people involved were born after the end of apartheid,” said Ramaphosa.

‘We live with racism daily’

Ramaphosa, in his weekly newsletter, pointed out that racism remains a feature of everyday life in South Africa.

“We know that racism, here and around the world, is driven by feelings of superiority on the part of those who perpetrate it,” explained the president.

“And although racism can be directed against anyone, it is black people who bear the brunt, both in the past and in the present. As the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement has so strongly asserted, we need to systematically dismantle and eradicate attitudes of white superiority,” he added.

‘You met the wrong generation’

Ramaphosa commended young students who voiced their concerns about systemic and entrenched racism during a protest at the Stellenbosch Campus last week.

He drew a distinction between the youth of 1976 and today’s generation, highlighting a quote by 4th-Year Management Sciences student and leader, Kwenzokuhle Khumalo, who told demonstrators “You’ve met the wrong generation this time.”

“It is encouraging and exhilarating to see young South Africans taking the lead in this effort. The thousands of students who have joined protests at Stellenbosch and elsewhere were not responding to just one incident,” said Ramaphosa.

From his weekly newsletter, it’s clear that young Khumalo made a lasting impression on our head of state.

His weekly letter goes on to quote Khumalo’s assertion that ‘it is not black people who are the problem and need attention, but those people who still hold on to ideas of white superiority.’

“It cannot be that the onus must rest with the formerly oppressed as the main victims of racism to advance reconciliation,” said Ramaphosa.

“It cannot be that black South Africans have to continue to prove themselves worthy of dignity and respect.”

The President said there needs to be a better understanding of what is causing racist attitudes to flourish in our schools and universities.

He championed “frank and honest dialogue between people of different races”, saying these conversations need to be had as part of life orientation at schools.

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