It's so embarrassing that 21 years into democracy, we still have higher learning institutions such as the untransformed Neo-liberal Stellenbosch University, who make it a point to have some classes offered in Afrikaans only. It's not fair that some students will enjoy being taught in their mother tongue, but others have to struggle and make use of translator devices which students at the University have continuously claimed that those devices are not audible and are certainly uncomfortable.
The use of Afrikaans at the university is certainly done deliberately to keep non-Afrikaans speaking students out of the university, especially black students. It makes no sense that classes must be offered in Afrikaans only and certainly shows the lack of transformation in higher learning education.
I therefore commend the good job that the group #OpenStellenbosch is doing at the university, by protesting and disrupting those Afrikaans only classes which should not be allowed to continue because they symbolize apartheid style segregation, and how dare some students who've benefited from Apartheid go around claiming that they're being "disadvantaged" because their Afrikaans only classes have been disrupted. What should happen to the other students who are forever disadvantaged every time the lecturer speaks Afrikaans?
The language policy at the university should certainly be reviewed and should make it a priority that all classes should be offered in English, I mean don't Afrikaans speaking students understand English? It's a universal language.
Stellenbosch University must accommodate all students so that they're all on the same level and have the equal opportunity to succeed academically, and not just Afrikaans speaking students. Like many other "white universities", Stellenbosch University has been at the forefront of racial segregation for many years and therefore should be leading the pack in ensuring a balanced and non-segregated university.
It must also be noted that #OpenStellenbosch and those disgruntled students at the university are not fighting Afrikaans speaking students, and this should never be seen as an attack on Afrikaans speaking students, but those students are merely fighting to be accepted and to be accommodated in an institution which they pay fees at.
The days of having institutions, especially higher learning institutions which prioritize white Afrikaner students only, should've been dealt with during the very early days of "our" democracy. What have our leaders been doing? I mean it's 2015 and we as students are still fighting issues such as the language policy among other things, that's totally embarrassing.
Our leaders have certainly failed us with regards to transforming "our universities" and have left such institutions to continue using their apartheid style segregation tactics while many students suffer.
It's not fair that some students should work two times as hard and make use of devices which have been placed to frustrate students while others enjoy the benefits of being taught in their home language. Does South Africa really belong to all who live in it? Certainly not.
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