Trade union Solidarity contemplates a lawsuit against the University of the Free State (UFS) after the university said the vaccination for students and its employees remains mandatory.
This despite the government scrapping all of the remaining Covid-19 regulations last week.
According to Solidarity head of communication Morné Malan, the university’s policy of mandatory vaccination cannot be justified. Malan said higher education institutions have responsibilities “towards the public to give effect to constitutional rights such as those related to the right to education”.
He shared: “Universities, public universities in particular, cannot in any way justify such awful discriminatory practices.
“The unfair burden the university places on its students and employees, especially in the South African context where almost two-thirds of young people are unemployed, is both unlawful and immoral.
Malan continued: “No council or committee can simply give itself the power to decide who may exercise their constitutional rights and who may not.”
Malan said although employers have the powers to regulate health and safety policies in the workplace, they do not have a right to “enforce large-scale violations of rights”.
“Such policies originated in a time of major practical and regulatory uncertainty, but that is now over and done with. When the rest of the country is finally pursuing normality and reasonableness, our universities should be at the forefront of the road to normality.
“Yet we now see the UFS is even lagging behind the government in this regard. In South Africa, compelling people is a thing of the past. Of course, the UFS can issue any recommendations in this regard, but to threaten the future of young people and staff members for the sake of draconian, irrational measures is totally inexcusable,” said Malan.
Siduduziwe Mlambo, 23, a final-year B.Ed Bachelor of Education student, is among many others at the university who believe that the mandate should be scrapped.
Mlambo claims she was hospitalised for three days in 2021 allegedly after taking her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine. She told Sunday World that she developed an allergic reaction.
“My whole body was burning and had weird zits coming out because of irritation. I was weak, I even struggled to talk,” she said.
She has since been reluctant to take another dose or try an alternative vaccine by Johnson & Johnson.
Mlambo further shared that the health minister was not supposed to scrap the regulations completely, noting that she feels the process could have been phased in to ensure there is no risk at all, and added that although she agrees vaccination should be optional, she also believes masks should still be worn.
On Wednesday last week, Health Minister Joe Phaahla repealed the Covid-19 regulations including the wearing of masks which was only compulsory in enclosed spaces including public transport, and a 50% mandate on gatherings.
In a leaked memo to health MECs dated June 20, the minister argued that the regulations “no longer need to be in place”. Phaahla said the country had exited the recent spike in cases, or the fifth wave, that the current regulations were promulgated to mitigate.
Lacea Loader, University of the Free State director: communication and marketing, concomitantly announced that the wearing of masks on campus is no longer compulsory. However, the university resolved to keep its vaccination mandate in place for health and safety precautions.
Loader said in a statement at the time: “The UFS Covid-19 regulations and required vaccination policy has created an environment that the university management regards as safe. This, together with yesterday’s [last Wednesday] announcement by the minister, was considered and a decision was made that the wearing of masks on campus or in any building on campus is no longer compulsory.
“However, the UFS Covid-19 regulations and required vaccination policy remains in place. Campus access control is still in place, and staff, students, and visitors are expected to upload a Covid-19 vaccination certificate or a negative PCR or antigen test result to obtain access to the campuses.”
Two-hundred and twelve new Covid-19 cases were reported on Monday, bringing the cumulative number of cases to 3 992 661 while nine deaths were reported, which brought the total to 101 740 deaths.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa. To Subscribe to Sunday World, click here.
