The High Court in Cape Town has ruled that mediation should take place between the University of the Western Cape and students following a dispute regarding accommodation.
Students filed an application to have them return to their Hector Peterson Residence from an alternative private accommodation provided by the university to students who remained on campus during the holidays.
The court also ruled that the university provides accommodation with shelter, privacy and amenities at least equivalent to that of the Hector Petersen Residence.
“The University is very pleased to advise that its request to mediate was acceded to and the issues surrounding the relocation of some of its postgraduate students from the Hector Petersen Residence to alternate accommodation has been referred to mediation before Judge Nathan Erasmus, the Chairperson of the University Council.
“The mediation will take place on 28 December 2021. The University is adamant that there have not been any evictions and that the relocation was a necessary annual operational requirement exacerbated by the need to comply with new COVID-19 protocols,” says UWC spokesperson Gasant Abarder.
