Miss South Africa 2020, Shudufhadzo Musida raises awareness and educates South African citizens about mental health in her #MindfulMondays series on Instagram.



By Aphiwe Mhlangulana (Varsity Contributor)



World statistics estimate that between 12% and 48% of people are living with mental illness. Between 8.4% and 33.6% of those living with mental illness are from low- and middle-income countries. In South Africa, mental health is on the periphery. This has resulted in mental health issues not receiving the necessary attention and those suffering from mental illnesses not getting quality treatment. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the already challenged public health care system, and those who suffer from mental illnesses have felt the effects. Reports on the relationship between COVID-19 and mental health state that 45% of South Africans were fearful, while 33% were depressed and 29% felt lonely during the country’s first lockdown. Many South Africans have reported that this period has been a very emotionally and mentally testing period.



One of the crucial problems faced about mental health is the stigma often attached to having a mental illness. To help address this, Shudufhadzo Musida, Miss South Africa of 2020, started a series of conversations titled #MindfulMondays on her Instagram account @ shudufhadzomusida in collaboration with the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG). These conversations are held every Monday and focus on questions and myths around mental health, bullying and access to mental health facilities in South Africa.



In one of her most recent series of #MindfulMondays, she touched on the accessibility of mental health care in South Africa and where individuals can seek assistance. The Department of Health has listed 53% of the hospitals in the country as providers of 72-hour assessments of psychiatric emergencies. However, SADAG has proclaimed that many of these hospitals often do not have the staff or capacity to meet mental health care needs. In a conversation with Shudufhadzo on #Mindful Mondays, Zamo Mbele, a board member at SADAG, estimated that the current ratio is 1.00 clinical psychologists to 100 000 people. This displays the extreme shortage of healthcare staff and the inaccessibility of these resources for South Africans who need mental health services. It is also worth acknowledging that many South Africans, especially those living in rural areas, cannot access these facilities. Individuals in these areas must travel long distances to access health care.



The #MindfulMondays series has become an educational platform for some and presented validation for others. Seeing Black professionals having conversations about how mental health affects the Black community has helped address some of the myths and the stigma attached to mental illnesses, especially in the Black community. #MindfulMondays is a starting point that can be used to encourage more conversations around mental illnesses and how they affect our communities.



While the reign of Shudufhadzo as Miss South Africa has come to an end, I hope that the series will still continue and that more people will gain exposure to these impactful and educational conversations.

Shudufhadzo Musida: Breaking Mental Health Stigma Through Educational Conversations

As the academic year ends, students often reflect on their experience at UCT and share new insights they have gained throughout the process.



By Manoa Andriamiharisoa (Features Editor)



This year marks the first time since students have had to adjust to some form of blended learning in a pandemic: attending some in-person lectures and practicals or writing tests and exams on campus. For many, 2021 has been challenging, taking a toll on their mental health. When asked about what this year has taught her, Fiqah, a second-year undergraduate student majoring in English and Linguistics and a resident in Tugwell, reflected on the importance of staying on track with work, as difficult as it is. “You have to know yourself academically […] and plan as much as you can […], so when the time comes, you do not put so much pressure on yourself”, says Fiqah. She regrets previously putting aside some of her course content when assignments and final submissions are due. In her opinion, catching up on lectures puts an immense strain on people, and it is hard to focus on something for a long time. As a student living in campus accommodation, it does not help when she isolates herself for several days because of work. “The four walls are daunting, […] get out as much as you can&#8221;, she notes. Fiqah is introverted by nature and does not regularly speak to people inside her campus student accommodation. Although she talks to people on her phone, she knows that this only works to some extent because people have their own lives and busy schedules. “If you do not have someone to talk to in res, you may lose it”, Fiqah says.



Looking back at everything that has happened so far, she would have liked to practice more self-control in certain situations. It could have helped her plan for circumstances better. When reflecting on what UCT has done in the learning space this year, Fiqah mentions that faculties have problems. Although she acknowledges that it is sometimes difficult to get timely feedback due to the changing environment these last two years, she highlights the importance of getting feedback from lecturers and faculties as a whole, particularly for students who struggle with mental health and stress. “We do not get the feedback we need to progress”, mentions Fiqah. She elaborates further that mistakes constitute the best learning process. To avoid these scenarios from repeating themselves next year, Fiqah urges faculties, lecturers, and tutors to talk to their students and communicate more openly and freely with them.

Reflecting on 2021’s academic year through the eyes of a UCT student

“Your mind is part of everything that you do.” Mental health is a vital part of the well-being of an individual and importance should be placed on what sort of services the University provides for students who are experiencing problems in said area.



By Ilham Choonara



Staff Writer



With October being mental health awareness month, it is not only pertinent to increase our daily awareness of mental health in our lives, but also to raise awareness of the services at our disposal for relief to life’s issues and stressors. In an especially stress-inducing context, such as university for young adults, UCT’s Student Wellness Service (SWS) is one of several structures available for students to receive support with challenges they face.



In recognition of World Mental Health Day on the 10th of October, the SWS organised the Run/Walk 4 Mental Health in which participants ran or walked for 1.5, 3 or 6 kilometres around the UCT Rugby field. Before the start of the event, the SWS executive director spoke on the importance of being mindful of your health. Awareness means not only being aware of mental health existing for others, but also aware of your own emotional and physical state. This emphasizes the known phrase “there is no health without mental health.” An SWS psychiatrist echoed this sentiment, saying, “We are mindful; we are not alone.” The event was attended by 250 participants and appropriate COVID protocols were put in place.



UCT’s Student Wellness Service offers health services as well as counselling services. The SWS stated that there has been an overload of student requests for sessions and support in high-demand times such as the exam season. These periods of high demand usually render many students unable to access the services offered due to the sheer volume of requests. Therefore, the Independent&nbsp; Counselling and Advisory Services (ICAS) On-The-Go Crisis App has recently been created as well as a 24-hour phone counselling service offered to try and reduce accessibility problems. The on-the-go app provides secure and live text messaging with an ICAS professional, or the option to call a professional for free. These features are offered in 11 languages and ideally at any time. The App also has stress assessments, articles, and short videos providing health and wellness aid. UCT students can download this app on the Google Play Store and Apple Stores and register using the company code: UCT001.&nbsp;



The South African Depression and Anxiety Group’s UCT Student Careline can be used as an additional measure to help ease the overload on the SWS in related issues. SWS has urged students to make use of this especially if they are on the waiting list for a counselling appointment and require immediate support or guidance. To book a counselling or psychotherapy appointment through SWS, students can follow the link below (some of the options offered are charged at a fixed rate per hour):&nbsp;



<a href="https://outlook.office365.com/owa/calendar/STUDENTWELLNESSSERVICEPSYCHOLOGICALSERVICES@mscloudtest.uct.ac.za/bookings/">https://outlook.office365.com/owa/calendar/STUDENTWELLNESSSERVICEPSYCHOLOGICALSERVICES@mscloudtest.uct.ac.za/bookings/</a>



One in six South Africans are faced with mental health challenges. Additionally, academic stress and emotional distress are experiences which should not be stigmatized and no one should have to suffer alone. Mental health awareness and support services are evidently needed in quantities larger than those currently catered for. Awareness of one’s own wellbeing can aid all to live more tolerant of the many people living with ill mental health, and become more compassionate people in an often stressful world.

Student Wellness Services and Mental Health Awareness

When tradition impacts the freedoms and rights of children, society needs to step up and fight on behalf of the children for those rights.



By Khumbulani Jali (Varsity Contributor)



Every year, around twelve million young girls fall victim to the archaic practice of child marriage. Widespread throughout East and Southern Africa, as well as South Asia, these forced unions are often planned and executed without the girls themselves knowing. Currently there are numerous cases of children in marriages and the conditions they face not only violate their human right to a childhood, but also compromise their health, safety and identity.



Child marriages are defined as either a formal or informal union between a child below the age of 18 and an adult, or another child. Often at times, children will be forced into marriages by their parents, usually through culturally sanctioned practices in the areas where this occurs. Poverty, destitution, and limited access to education help foster the conditions that allow for this practice to continue. The idea of marriage is often coupled with lobola/dowry, a bride price which parents receive from their new in-laws upon the marriage of the child. Effectively this can be viewed as selling off their child into marriage, in the inappropriate case of child marriage.



The young girls are often told that these marriages are necessary to secure their futures, or to maintain their social honour of the family within community. However, the marriages threaten their lives in a variety of ways. A usual consequence is having to leave school due to an inability to mix marriage life and education. Other effects include abuse from their “spouses”, and separation and isolation from friends and families. The cruellest possibility is that they are raped by the men they are forced to marry; and with the brides being minors it is statutory rape. In a situation such as this, they are confronted with the increased likelihood of complications during pregnancy and childbirth. 



In response to the crisis and to protect the rights of these girls, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) launched the Global Programme to End Child Marriage in 2016. The programme aims to both curb new child marriages from occurring and to assist those children already in these forced unions. The programme is active in 12 countries across Asia and Africa, providing life skills education and economic empowerment to children, and improving access to healthcare, protection, and education services. Community engagements are also carried out, involving parents, community leaders, religious leaders, and schools. This is done in collaboration with grassroots organisers, who often include survivors of child marriages. Across the different countries, they will respond to news of planned child marriages by meeting with parents and working to convince them to cancel the unions through education on the ramifications of such unions on the future of their children. The programme also works to strengthen legislative frameworks within these countries and ensure that the rights of children are observed and protected.



The continued existence of this practice reveals the persistence of problematic gender norms that dehumanise women and girls. The children that are forced into these marriages have predetermined futures to be child bearers and housewives for the men they are married off to. They lose the ability to plot the course of their own lives and, as such, their individuality and sense of self. Existing gender stereotypes within society are in lockstep with the roles these child brides are compelled to assume. Paramount to current realities, it is important for members of society to resist these detrimental beliefs and traditions when they contribute to the continued abuse and marginalisation of the worldwide.

Forced Child Marriages

On the 16th of October, members of the UCT Council approved a proposal for mandatory Covid-19 vaccinations for campus access. 



By Josh Raynham (Staff Writer)







 During a meeting on the 16th of October, the UCT council concluded that by December 2021 the university executive will be required to produce a diverse constitutional panel to plan and develop the operational details needed to see the mandatory vaccination proposal carried through its various stages.



Brought forward by Professor Linda-Gail Bekker, who later told News24 that “it was important to get classrooms and laboratories up and running again,” the proposal sees that from the 1st of January 2022, the University of Cape Town will require all staff as well as students to provide adequate proof of vaccination against the Covid-19 virus in order to be allowed to return to campus. The decision, however, came after many weeks of deliberation and with the help of both UCT staff and students. 



The UCT senate voted overwhelmingly in support of mandatory vaccinations, with 83% of respondents voting in favour of it. Outgoing SRC president, Declan Dyer, commented on the approval of the mandate by stating that while it has been accepted, there still remain concerns around the exclusionary aspect of such a mandate in practice.



On Wednesday the 20th of October, Vice Chancellor Phakeng sent out an email announcing the induction of the mandate as well as words of encouragement towards students still hesitant to get the vaccination.

UCT Approves Mandatory Vaccines

Abyi Ahmed, Prime Minister of Ethiopia declared war on the East African country’s Tigray region after the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) seized a federal military base in late 2020. The resulting humanitarian crisis has left thousands without food or aid.



By Ernst Calitz (Staff Writer)



A joint coalition of Ethiopian and Eritrean forces have invaded parts of Tigray in a desperate attempt to contain the so-called rebellion. These forces have instilled multiple blockades that hinder food and foreign aid from entering the region and helping the civilian population, according to UN reports. 



At the beginning of the conflict, many refugees flooded into neighbouring Sudan through the region’s connecting panhandle to the east. This, however, became increasingly impossible as Ethiopian forces seized control of the easternmost part of Tigray. The East African Country’s Prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019 after ending a decade’s long conflict with Eritrea &#8211; only to become embroiled in a civil war within the following year. Abiy Ahmed distinguished himself from prior Ethiopian leaders by promising and somewhat successfully achieving peace. However, in an attempt to create a unified Ethiopia &#8211; he seems to be falling into the trend of his warmongering predecessors.Mr Ahmed claims that the government’s response to deploy National security forces is more than justified. However, the people of Tigray accuse these forces of acting like juntas.



“The country today is extremely polarised. Social divisions are particularly deep and intense. It’s difficult to see how Ethiopians can persuade Tigrayans to continue to pledge allegiance to the Ethiopian state.” Awol Allo, a senior lecturer in Law at Keele University told Vox news while discussing possibilities of reuniting Ethiopia.



The Ethiopian Government expelled multiple senior UN officials towards the end of November on allegations that they were meddling in the government’s affairs. As a result, the officials were given 72 hours to evacuate. Amongst those who were expelled were the heads of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the head of the United Nations Office, and the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).



Furthermore, the White House press secretary, Jen Paki, informed the press that the United States heavily condemns the expulsion of UN officials and will not hesitate to sanction all the parties complicit in blocking aid from entering the war-torn region.



Since the press statement from Jen Paki many countries have come forward fearing that the conflict in Ethiopia could further destabilize the already fragile diplomatic region, as Ethiopia functions as the diplomatic heavyweight.

Nobel Peace Prize Winning PM Associated With Humanitarian Crisis in Ethiopia&#8217;s Civil War

The San and Khoi Centre, launched just over a year ago, has made tremendous strides in research, activism, and awareness around the First Nations people of South Africa and the importance of acknowledging their place and presence in our current society and culture.



By Amber Williams (Features Editor)



It has been over a year since the University of Cape Town (UCT) launched the San and Khoi Centre in the Centre for African Studies (CAS) Unit. Launched on the 21st of September 2020, the Centre aimed to bring to the foreground, the experiences, languages, rituals and knowledge systems of the indigenous San and Khoi people who have a history as South Africa’s First Nations group, dating as far back as 150 000 years ago, if not more.



UCT itself is situated on the historic Huri ǂoaxa (Hoerikwaggo) mountain, translated as ‘the mountain in the sea’, which was dispossessed from the First Nations’ tribes and is of great cultural significance to these tribes who once called the picturesque mountain and surrounding areas home. The San and Khoi people have faced extreme physical and cultural genocide, social exclusion, forced assimilation, geological dispossession, imprisonment, and violence under European settler rule and colonialism from the 1500s onwards. Many of their descendants still live in and around Cape Town today; some as students, staff, and graduates of the university itself.



Despite being launched at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the San and Khoi Centre has produced novel work that highlights the importance of preserving and recording the knowledge systems and traditions of the San and Khoi people. Dr June Bam-Hutchison has been appointed interim director of the Centre for the past year and has played an important role in the knowledge produced within the Centre, her latest publication being Ausi Told Me: Why Cape Herstoriographies Matter. June’s current research deals mainly with Khoisan identities and their link to social justice in South Africa. Along with leading scholars, feminist activists, community poets, and students, space has been opened up within the Centre for critical debate and reflection around the historiographies of the Khoi and San people and their place in our society and culture today, not only on a local scale but globally as well. 



The Centre has hosted regular webinars throughout the year, with internationally renowned scholars, poets, activists, and community leaders coming together and sharing their understandings and personal stories of their own heritage and ancestral histories. The Centre will work within the Worldwide Universities Network to contribute to global debate and discussion around indigenous communities with other first nations groups in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, to name a few.



With the new constitution set up in 1994, the San and Khoi people have found it difficult to seek validation and expression as a cultural group in South Africa’s Constitution due to a large part of their history being swept away and degraded by centuries of colonial violence. The work done within the Centre will address this centuries old dissolution of their identities and culture as a people. The Centre recently implemented a foundational Khoekhoegowab language short course (one of the languages of the San and Khoi people) under the leadership of activist Bradley van Sitters, with hopes to have the language implemented as an official course within a degree structure in the next five years.



The work done within the Centre forms an important part of UCT’s Vision 2030, which aims to tackle themes of transformation, diversity, inclusion, and decolonisation within the university. This process of decolonisation has aided the university to address its harsh, dark and tumultuous past. Such action has culminated in the renaming of many important structures on campus, most notably the Sarah Baartman Hall, previously referred to as the Jameson Hall.



As a historically white university, UCT recognises the launch of the San and Khoi Centre as being crucial to decolonising the university and its associated spaces. With the Rhodes Must Fall movement many students were asking relevant questions concerning the history of the university’s land before Cecil John Rhodes possessed it for his own profit and gain. It is important to remember what once was (and still is) so we can move forward with this shared knowledge and not repeat the mistakes of the past.

The  San  and  Khoi  Centre  in  its  First Year

Voting is not an obligation &#8211; the right to vote has always been about the right to choose.



By Seth Meyer



Election season has arrived in South Africa. Along with the usual manifesto launches, promises to make everything better, and endless array of campaign posters festooning the streets, the well-worn debate of whom to vote for has been making the rounds in conversations and on social media. The arguments vary, much like the options. Well over 300 parties are contesting in this year’s election, which means that even the most diligent of voters would be hard pressed to form an opinion on every single one of them. Some of us find that such an effort is pointless anyway.



Voter apathy is strong in local elections, especially amongst young people. In my own circles, I’ve heard the same concerns or dismissals, mostly a mix of “I don’t know who to vote for” and “I don’t really care”. In a follow-up to this question, of whom to vote for or why, is the dilemma of whether one is obliged to do so because of the nature of our history as an electorate. The right to vote, while undeniably a right, is still in some ways a privilege afforded to the generation of “born-frees”, like myself, who have now grown up into an inheritance of the role of the voter. For the majority of South African citizens, this right was never a given. It was denied for generations, and hard-won over generations. So, are we undermining our young democracy when we don’t bother to exercise a right that lies at the basic premise of that democracy, a right that so many did not enjoy?



Here’s a strong but perhaps not uncommon opinion: there aren’t really any good choices, in terms of political parties. They will all disappoint abysmally, in some way or another. But, are we supposed to, despite our aversions, pinch our nose and choose between the shiniest of two turds? … Actually, no. The right to vote has always been about the right to choose. It is doubly a choice to participate and a choice in who we vote for. The onus of direction on us as a younger generation. Many of our parents and grandparents had no say before 1994 in any direction whatsoever. Today, we do. So, if you are passionate about exercising that hard-won right, if you believe in a path that leads towards something better (and please, let the rest of us know, because things can seem pretty bleak these days), then go out on the 1st of November and make a mark for what you think is best. Or you could just sleep in. It’s your right to choose.

Voting is a Choice, Not a Duty

Many migrants and refugees camp outside the United Nations centre in Libya seeking help to escape the country after the brutal violence that occurred in detention centres.



By Josh Raynham (Staff Writer)



On Sunday, October 10th, 2021, hundreds of migrants and refugees gathered outside a United Nations (UN) centre in Tripoli to seek help in trying to escape Libya after a violent crackdown saw thousands arrested and several people shot. 



The plea from refugees trying to escape the country came after the arrests of over 5 000 people, consequently leading to overcrowding in Libya’s detention centres, as well as the killing of six migrants by Libyan guards.



 Those waiting outside the UN centre slept on pavements with bandages on their heads, legs, and hands from wounds inflicted within the detention centres. Stories of hunger, desperation, and abuse were told by those who had experienced time within these prisons, with many speaking of being beaten and tortured regularly. Those attempting to escape say they have been faced with violence and abuse in a country that has now become a major transit point for those seeking a better life on the shores of Europe.



“We are guilty of nothing except emigrating from our country… but we are treated as criminals and not as refugees,” said Mohamed Abdullah, a 25-year-old refugee from Sudan.



The migration crisis, which has been brewing in Libya for over a decade, came to be through the instability caused after the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) led the war against Muammar Gaddafi’s regime. The fall of the regime left a hole in the country. Unstable politics and institutional ruin have paved the way for the emergence of criminal syndicates whose trade in human beings has finally attracted global attention.



Human trafficking has since been encouraged following the Libyan government’s rejection of the European Union’s plea to set up reception centres in Libya for African asylum seekers attempting to cross into Europe. 



The combination of a breakdown in the national government, as well as a rise in the criminal enterprise, have placed Libya and other North African countries at the forefront of this migration crisis.



Gambling with death has become a daily struggle for millions of African men, women, and children whilst attempting to cross over to Europe and other parts of the world in search of greener pastures. This quest to escape poverty, hunger, and insecurity has consequently landed many within the borders of Libya and ultimately within a nationwide humanitarian crisis.

&#8220;Migrants Not Welcome&#8221; &#8211; Libya

Giving a voice to sexual offenders can open wounds and trigger traumatic memories.



[Due to the violent and triggering nature of the subject matter of this topic, VARSITY would like to issue a content warning for this piece]



By Siviwe Cingo



The world we live in harbours sexual perpetrators. Some sexual offenders exist within our society, and some have been sent to correctional services. There have been remedial recommendations on how to reform sexual offenders, concerning effective and safe treatment, and the duty of reforming sexual offenders has demanded intervention from judicial, mental health and policing services. In dealing with the scourge of sexual offences committed by sexual perpetrators, The Avon and Somerset police (a police force in England) institute’s strategy have been two-fold: 1. to rehabilitate the sexual offenders through remedial treatment and 2. to conscientize society through a controversial campaign.



The Avon and Somerset police force, during their crime prevention campaigns, decided to give a voice to sexual offenders so that they could tell their stories of committing sexual crimes and advise others to not make the same mistake. This campaign is part of a larger scope of work that focuses on victims of crime. However, according to the police force, “It is important for us to show that we are provocatively working to prevent these crimes and stop people from causing harm in the first place”. The call to give sexual offenders a voice has been met with criticism from members of the public. Some people cite their grievances based on how the voices of these offenders trigger traumatic memories and undermine and devalue the pain felt by victims of such atrocities. Further, they purport that these platforms that give sexual perpetrators a voice are made for them to draw sympathy rather than show remorse. Conversely, I believe that at the forefront of sexual crime prevention should be the offenders, who can be used as a prime example of what heinous and illegal sexual crimes can do to a person’s life &#8211; the life of the victim as well as the life of the perpetrator. What better way to do that than to hear it first-hand from the criminals themselves? Sexual offenders should be given a voice to warn society about sex crimes as well as to help prevent others with pedophilic thoughts to seek help instead of commit a crime that will land them in jail and scar someone else for life.

A Voice to Conscientize or a Voice to Reiterate Harm?

Behind the scenes with Tebogo: get to know who he is and what has made him stand out.



By Tanyaradzwa Gwenhure (Features Editor)



VARSITY News caught up with Tebogo Mabusela, the SRC independent candidate who garnered the majority vote. Tebogo, however, is more than just “the SRC guy”. Hailing from Mokopane —a small town in Limpopo—, he has been pursuing a degree in Accounting under the Commerce Faculty for the past two years. His friends describe him as “friendly” and “smart”, attributes that are clearly demonstrated in his successful campaign.



It is clear from Tebogo that one has to be a leader before they actually get an official title. The title is simply a public confirmation of the attributes one has already been working on in their personal growth. To put it succinctly: leadership is a mindset. For Tebogo, leadership is a platform which he uses to learn what is relevant in his community and what is not. In other words, what is currently serving people and how can he take initiative in perpetuating that. To know this, his friendly demeanour has allowed him to learn how to serve people’s needs and interact with them on the same level. He recalls an incident where he was attempting to recruit residence students for StartUp Grind (a society where he’s co-director). “People don’t listen to you, you sound like a salesperson,” is what his director warned him. Heeding this advice, he reinvented his style, or rather, started being himself. The advice which Tebogo offers is to “try and be yourself, have room to experience people so that they can see who you really are”. This advice is evident on his Instagram page. For someone who’s also in the Commerce Student Council (CSC) amongst other leadership roles one would expect his page to be flooded with how he’s “serving the people”. However, he warns how this image can be unsustainable and appear pretentious. Instead, his social media shows how his friendly personality manifests not only in leadership but day-to-day experiences whether it be on a hiking trip, at the beach or at the Clay Café with new friends…and him being a student, naturally.



We asked what Tebogo meant in his gratitude letter where he mentioned how one does not need to be in politics to be an effective leader. One of his many beliefs is that one does not need to be aligned to a political party to have an authoritative voice that guides people towards positive change. He believes that if one is properly or well-informed they can still effectively lead people. In a society where we are constantly bombarded with information, we need expert voices to lead and they don’t necessarily need to belong to a political party to have authority. The voices just have to address the current and future needs of the people. This fact exhibited in his unique approach to campaigning. Understanding that his student demographic who look for expert answers for guidance are also humans who love memes, classic cartoons, WhatsApp stickers and have serious screen fatigue was a keystone in his campaign. Tebogo’s campaign utilised these tools to grab students’ attention. He met them at common ground in order to learn what their needs were on campus and understand how he could assist them. Clearly, Tebogo used his experience as class representative and CSC member to not only understand student needs but to show his understanding of student culture and reciprocating relatable methods self expression (memes, WhatsApp stickers, et cetera) to show how well he understood all the struggles lying behind the jokes and coping mechanisms. This could only be done by someone who is truly engaging and likely empathetic.



We asked what Tebogo meant in his gratitude letter where he mentioned how one does not need to be in politics to be an effective leader. One of his many beliefs is that one does not need to be aligned to a political party to have an authoritative voice that guides people towards positive change. He believes that if one is properly or well-informed they can still effectively lead people. In a society where we are constantly bombarded with information, we need expert voices to lead and they don’t necessarily need to belong to a political party to have authority. The voices just have to address the current and future needs of the people. This fact exhibited in his unique approach to campaigning. Understanding that his student demoBehind the scenes with Tebogo: get to know who he is and what has made him stand out. By Tanyaradzwa Gwenhure Features Editor graphic who look for expert answers for guidance are also humans who love memes, classic cartoons, WhatsApp stickers and have serious screen fatigue was a keystone in his campaign. Tebogo’s campaign utilised these tools to grab students’ attention. He met them at common ground in order to learn what their needs were on campus and understand how he could assist them. 



Clearly, Tebogo used his experience as class representative and CSC member to not only understand student needs but to show his understanding of student culture and reciprocating relatable methods self expression (memes, WhatsApp stickers, et cetera) to show how well he understood all the struggles lying behind the jokes and coping mechanisms. This could only be done by someone who is truly engaging and likely empathetic.

An Interview with Tebogo Mabusela

By Emma Sacco (Editor-in-Chief)



It is with such honour that I take up the position of Editor-in-Chief for 2022. Working at VARSITY for the past few years has been an experience filled with learning, joy, and camaraderie. This year in particular I have been a close witness to the incredible work of the Senior Editorial, to whom I owe a large amount of my writing, editing, and leadership skills.



This year has been one with many difficulties for VARSITY, due to the ongoing pandemic as well as online learning at UCT. Despite these challenges, the Senior Editorial has produced seven editions of the paper with engaging, insightful, and important articles covering major events that took place in 2021. Some of the initiatives that the Senior Editorial took this year include the interview with Vice Chancellor Phakeng, where our outgoing Editor-in-Chief, Lerato Botha, was able to connect with the VC and ask her important questions regarding the devastating fire that took place in April, providing students with answers during a time of great uncertainty and worry.



A restructuring of VARSITY also took place this year in order to further align the paper with other prestigious student newspapers and to improve efficiency within the production of VARSITY, two goals that the Senior Editorial achieved seamlessly through hard work and effective communication with the entire VARSITY collective.



As we move towards the beginning of a new year, our vision for VARSITY continues to grow, with new ideas and exciting developments already in the works. VARSITY is a newspaper that offers important and relevant news which specifically pertains to UCT students, as well as covers news events on a larger, international scale. Next year, we aim to broaden our reach and connect more with our audience – we want VARSITY to be a safe space where students can express their concerns, their news, their opinions, and their art.



VARSITY has remained an effective and engaging student-run newspaper for nearly 80 years, and it is with great pride that we continue the important journalistic work that has taken place at VARSITY over the past eight decades. As we end this year and reflect on VARSITY’s work throughout 2021, we vow to retain the same exceptional standard of the newspaper that this year’s Senior Editorial has upheld, and look forward to new initiatives, new ideas, and new voices to come in 2022.

A Year in Review

Wrapped in rainbow flags, the LGBTQI+ community celebrated Pride in Soweto after intense lockdown restrictions during the third wave. 







By Imaan Voterson (News Editor)







On Saturday, September 25th, hundreds of South Africans took to the streets to celebrate Pride in Soweto after a ruthless third wave within their community, due to the coronavirus pandemic.&nbsp;



The current pandemic forced members of the LGBTQIA+ community within the country to stay home with their families and friends who refused to accept their identities and sexualities.&nbsp;



According to News24, one of the event organisers, Siphokazi Nombande, said that there has been an increase in cases of discrimination and mental health issues due to families not accepting their relatives when they come out.&nbsp;



“Now we&#8217;ve got more (discrimination) cases, more mental health issues because now they need to deal with this family that does not necessarily accept them.”



A member of the LGBTQIA+ community who took part in the celebrations said that he has been dealing with mental health issues ever since he came out: “I knew once I came out my family wouldn’t accept me but at the same time, I just thought they would get over it. But this was not the case because they were too embarrassed to be seen with me and treated me like the odd one out which took a toll on my mental health.”&nbsp;



He also said that the Soweto Pride celebrations were part of the few times where he felt free and accepted since he came out.&nbsp;



The City of Joburg said on Twitter that they stand by the LGBTQIA+ community, stating that they aim to provide a safer space for LGBTQIA+ people, where they can exercise their freedom and become visible within the community they exist in.

Soweto Pride celebrations concludes a stressful third wave

All around the world this month, university students have been speaking out against Gender Based Violence and institutional responses to Sexual Assault.







by Daniel P. Rossmeisl (News Editor)







[Due to the violent and triggering nature of the subject matter of this topic, VARSITY would like to issue a content warning for this piece]







Gender-Based-Violence (GBV), misogyny, sexual violence, and consistent institutional failure to sufficiently address these anti-women issues are not new to South Africans or to UCT students. Not only has a significant contingent of the university’s student and staff body, not to mention alumni, had to deal with these issues themselves – but the university has become a prominent advocate for change since the murder of Uyinene Mrwetyana on 24 August 2019. It is a mistake to think that these issues are solely the preserve of South African institutions. Over the past year, increasing student-led anti-GBV protests have been taking place across campuses globally.



Between 20 September and 6 October 2021, reported sexual assaults across the United States of America inspired several large-scaled protests on college campuses in at least seven states including: Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Alabama, Michigan, Massachusetts, and Missouri. In Canada, 9,000 students at Ontario’s Western University led a walk out to protest what they call a “culture of misogyny” on campus after a series of sexual assault allegations were publicly revealed. “Western says it protects its students, but the numbers say otherwise — 30 plus girls would say otherwise,” student, speaker and GBSV survivor Teigan Elliott. These assertions are supported by surveys conducted by the Association of American Universities which &#8211; in 2019 -found that nationwide 25.9% of undergraduate women reported they had been sexually assaulted during their time in college. In Britain, at the University of Warwick protesting sexual harassment and violence on campus took off in response to the murder of <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/sarah-everard">Sarah Everard</a>. 







In general, protesters accuse their schools of neglecting to take action to protect students (especially vulnerable students) and failing to confront the perpetuation of unhealthy male-dominated culture. Others accuse institutions of only taking performative, reactive action.&nbsp;



Unfortunately, institutional responses seem to be predictably lacking. <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/students">Students</a> from the University of Warwick say that poor prioritising has led to even fewer reports of sexual assaults coming out because of fear and hesitancy related to the incidents occurring outside of coronavirus regulations. Sereniti Simpson, a high school volleyball player from Charlotte, North Carolina in the United States, was told she would no longer be allowed to play because she participated in a student-led walkout protesting sexual violence held on Friday October 1. On October 6, 2021, Justice Secretary for the United Kingdom, Dominic Raab, revealed that he did not understand what misogyny is by making the point that “misogyny is absolutely wrong, whether it’s a man against a woman or a woman against a man.”

When Will It End? Students are Fed Up with the Anti-Woman Status Quo

Swiss national referendum returns approval for the new same-sex rights law



by Seth Meyer (Staff Writer)



With a majority of 64%, Swiss citizens turned out on Sunday, 26th September, to vote strongly in favour of the ‘Marriage for All’ Bill, a legislative amendment aimed at ensuring equal and protected rights to (amongst other things) marriage and adoption for same-sex partners. &nbsp; &nbsp; The Bill, initially introduced in 2013 and passed by the Swiss government in December of 2020, was finally put to a national referendum after being challenged by its opponents and will now be made law.&nbsp;



&nbsp;The new legislation regarding same-sex marriages will be considered in effect from July of 2022, according to Switzerland’s Justice Minister Karin-Keller Sutter, who stated the results of the referendum, declaring: “Whoever loves each other and wants to get married will be able to do so, regardless of whether it is two men, two women, or a man and a woman.”&nbsp;



Switzerland has legally supported same-sex partnerships since 2007 but certain rights afforded to heterosexual couples have always been withheld. Before the passing of the ‘Marriage for All’ Bill, same-sex partners were unable to adopt a child not related to one or both of the foster parents, have access to certain fertility treatments, or the naturalization rights that heterosexual couples enjoy.&nbsp;&nbsp;



The Swiss government has been steadily approving new protections and rights in favour of same-sex married couples since 2007, with the passing of the ‘Marriage for All Bill’ seen as the final legislative equalizing step for gay people in Switzerland, who will now fully enjoy the same rights and protections as any heterosexual person or couple.&nbsp;



The results of the referendum remove Switzerland from the minority group of the few remaining European countries that do not legally recognize and protect same-sex rights.&nbsp;&nbsp;



The Bill won approval from all 26 cantons of the State, with nearly two million votes cast in favour.&nbsp;&nbsp;

MARRIAGE FOR ALL: THE SWISS SAY ‘YES’

The UCT Student from Lesotho, representing the interests of justice and participation for the African continent on the international stage of tackling the climate crisis. by Seth Meyers (Staff writer)



Koaile Monaheng is a very busy man, but when he talks about his work in the field of climate change, he immediately becomes animated. “We (Africa) are very much on the receiving end of climate change risks,” the Mandela-Rhodes Scholar and Masters student says. “And the irony behind that is that we are not the sole cause of all of these climate change risks.”&nbsp;



With a passion for issues of climate, Monaheng has served as an advocate for African interests at the panel discussions of the U7+ Alliance, together with several other students. “It’s a culmination of students and universities from all over the world,” he explains, “sharing knowledge, creating awareness around the world’s deepest, most grappling issues.” And according to Monaheng, the recent release of the UN’s “Code Red” Report on climate change has only emphasised the severity of these issues.



Originally from Lesotho, Monaheng left his home in 2013 to study in South Africa. He discovered a passion for the politics and theory of climate change impact, later coming to UCT as a Mandela Rhodes Scholar. He describes himself as having been someone in the “perfect position” to do what he does, having both an appreciation for the science and politics of climate change, and the realities of the impact on the ground in areas like his native country.&nbsp;



Reflecting on his current roles as a Masters student with the African Climate Development Initiative, and representing UCT and African interests on an international stage, Monaheng laughingly says, “You know, I read about these diplomats in books and in my lecture slides and in journals. And to be part of that history… that’s something for me that’s very powerful.” He goes on to explain how critically important it is for his generation to engage with climate crisis issues. “There’s a need for youth because essentially what’s happening now is we’re literally being passed the baton of our futures,” he says. “At the same time, we realise that youth are not taken seriously at that level. Maybe because we’re radical; maybe because we think differently”, he said.&nbsp;



Monaheng believes that his role in confronting issues of climate change lies in his ability to speak from an experienced perspective about problems that, on the world stage, are being predicted for the future, but in Africa, have already registered serious impacts. “And that story needs to be told,” he says firmly.&nbsp;



In addition to his global advocacy, Monaheng also volunteers with local NPO Just Share SA, an activist initiative to combat the similar issues of climate change that Monaheng discusses amongst colleagues at the U7+ Alliance. “They use advocacy and shareholder activism to lead on issues of environmental social governance,” he explains, “understanding that climate change is very important and implicit in the development of this country, in exacerbating inequality and injustices.”



“For many, these issues are very real but they are also difficult to quantify”, Monaheng says. It is hard to explain the significance in layman&#8217;s terms or to someone privileged enough to be insulated from these issues. Personally, Monaheng relates them to his own culture as Basotho. “The connection to the land, the environment is implicit in our very DNA,” he says. “This is something that’s in my history … the connection to climate as something that Basotho have always thought about, and I’m sure we’re not unique in that aspect, you know?”



Looking at the way forward, in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and the UN’s climate report, Monaheng feels more resolute than ever in his ideals. “There’s no time for neutrality. I think a lot of people tip-toe around the fact that ‘you need to tell both sides of the story’. There’s no ‘both sides’ to climate change, particularly from an African perspective. It’s about our survival. It’s about our future.”&nbsp;



Monaheng was recently in Milan as part of the Youth Conference of Parties (COP). The COP is an annual international summit on climate change between several countries, organised within the United Nations, with Monaheng representing Lesotho as an advocate for the youth. Although the UN Climate Report was on the agenda, he says most climate activists are already aware of its findings. What’s more important is that the conference is a sign that countries and governments are working more holistically against the threat of climate change.



For those looking to make a difference on the African continent, Monaheng emphasises the importance of unity: “Those of us who have the privilege to be in these spaces have to proliferate the knowledge into spaces where other people don’t,” he says. “We need to be humble in doing that. Climate change is going to affect every aspect of society and each individual person will be affected by climate change.” “But understand that wherever we are, we can contribute as a youth,” he adds. “Even if it’s as small as signing a petition.”

ADVOCATING FOR AFRICA IN THE AGE OF CLIMATE CONSCIOUSNESS

“Unlike traditional vaccines, plant-based vaccines are cheaper to produce, and they do not require the same level of infrastructure for production. This makes the innovation attractive and advantageous for developing countries with scarce resources, particularly in Africa.”



By Manoa Andriamiharisoa (Deputy Features Editor)



In September 2021, it was announced that scientists at UCT had made progress in a plant-based vaccine for COVID-19. This follows a proof of concept for producing proteins in plants from their technology platform.



According to Emmanuel Margolin, a postdoctoral scientist at the university, the process entails injecting a pathogen that naturally infects plants with foreign DNA under a vacuum, allowing the cells of the plants to produce the desired proteins. The conventional method of producing antigens in vaccines is through infection of mammalian cells in a laboratory, where a virus is injected into a cell and the cell is tricked into making copies of the antigen. The cells are then incubated and later purified before being packed into vials and kept in the cold for transportation and storage.



Unlike traditional vaccines, plant-based vaccines are cheaper to produce, and they do not require the same level of infrastructure for production. This makes the innovation attractive and advantageous for developing countries with scarce resources, particularly in Africa. Vaccines manufactured through plants can also overcome barriers to distribution since traditional vaccines have to be kept at a certain temperature, hence they are not always able to reach rural communities with low levels of infrastructure.



Plant-based vaccines are currently not being commercialised for human use yet, but the market for vaccines manufactured by plants is expanding. Medicago, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company in Canada is currently in its third phase of clinical trials for a plant-based COVID-19 vaccine. In South Korea, the government has invested a whopping $13.5 billion in research on this innovation. In South Africa, the work done by Margolin and the Biopharming Research Unit at UCT has resulted in patent applications to produce vaccines against COVID-19 and novel viruses in the future. Estimates indicate the market for plant-based vaccines will increase by $560 million, from $40 million to $600 million, in the next seven years.



Despite the potential that plant-based vaccines can have in a country like South Africa, the innovation requires capital investment in production facilities, as well as funding for further research. According to Margolin, the pandemic has cut funding towards plant-based research which should be “a project of its own” rather than “[a] project being run in the background”.

Plant-Based Vaccines in South Africa: UCT’s recent development

A welcome move away from fossil crude oil: how UCT is partnering with Sasol in a journey towards making sustainable fuel as climate change concerns rise.&nbsp;



by Tanyaradzwa Gwenhure (Features Editor)



The University of Cape Town’s Catalyst Institute is making leaps in the world of generating green chemicals and jet fuels. They have partnered with the energy and chemical company Sasol to make use of Sasol’s cost-effectively produced iron catalyst in converting carbon dioxide&nbsp;and hydrogen into green fuels. First, this mouthful will be explained to uncover some of the complex processes behind dealing with climate change.



This advancement is one most welcome&nbsp;due to the adverse effects of fossil fuels such as crude oil. Fossil fuels are generated from the millions of years’ worth of&nbsp;decay of ancient plant and animal matter. The burning of fossil fuels emits greenhouse gases that trap heat in the atmosphere. The direct negative effects include extreme weather conditions such as extremely dry regions prone to fires on one side of the planet, and floods that threaten livelihoods and agriculture on the other. It is important to note that this is not a Western phenomenon. Since the early 1980s, South Africa has lost R95 billion in economic costs associated with weather related disasters. Many informal settlements are vulnerable to extreme heat waves and floods. However, South Africa has developed a National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy to explain how we can build resilience in the face of climate change.&nbsp;



So, what is the significance of this iron catalyst? Firstly, a catalyst is any substance that increases the rate of chemical reaction without itself being consumed. In this case, iron is a catalyst that is commercially produced at Sasol’s plant on a large scale. The iron catalyst converts the abundant atmospheric “carbon dioxide and green hydrogen into a range of green chemicals and jet fuel”. This process is called carbon dioxide hydrogenation — an innovation that is now being implemented in South Africa. The products are favourable since they reduce the carbon footprint of the world and the products can be repurposed elsewhere. UCT has significantly contributed&nbsp;its in-situ characterisation capabilities and modelling in its partnership with Sasol. In-situ characterisation can be described as a range of experiments that applies a stimulus to a sample then observes the reactions. Furthering the partnership, UCT provides extensive and valuable knowledge of carbon dioxide conversion from recent research projects.



UCT and Sasol’s&nbsp;lead in innovation marks a positive way forward in curbing the adverse effects of climate change. This is a welcome move especially for the African continent, as we face these effects more severely than those in the Global North.

Moving Towards Green Products: Innovation from UCT and Sasol

According to the Constitution, every individual is afforded the right to decide whether they want to be vaccinated. The UCT Senate’s recent decision on a vaccine mandate goes against this, and the university should rather be encouraging vaccinations through consistent and persuasive campaigning.&nbsp;



By Asemahle Ntoyakhe (staff writer) 







In correspondence with some University of Cape Town (UCT) students and the wider community that I have spoken to, a vaccine mandate is viewed as an infraction on their right to self-autonomy. This sentiment comes in the wake of UCT’s Senate voting in favour of mandating vaccines, commencing at the start of the 2022 academic year. The decision now lies with the UCT Council.&nbsp;



The acquisition of vaccines by the wider UCT community is paramount to the campus operating optimally and at full capacity. Students are currently disenfranchised by online learning, with economically disadvantaged students facing the most detriment. The lack of access to resources, which could be found on campus, further accentuates this. There are no feasible alternatives with regard to working and study spaces, access to the internet and access to the library.



However, there seems to be a large number of people who do not support&nbsp; vaccines being enforced. This conforms to the Higher Education Act 101 of 1997 (HEA), which effectively bars the Senate from sanctioning any binding recommendations without consulting the institution’s wider community. In addition, the UCT Institutional Statute essentially also prohibits the Senate from implementing vaccine mandates. Students also argue that a vaccine mandate intrinsically separates the student body into diametrically opposed sides, which are namely: vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals.&nbsp;



If not vaccinated, the possibility of frequent, mandatory testing of unvaccinated individuals may be indefensible and discriminatory. It is common knowledge that none of the vaccines are completely effective and that vaccinated persons may still contract Covid-19. Some students are therefore averse to the vaccines, as they would rather be afforded the choice to wait until full immunity is possible by way of the vaccines.&nbsp;



The vaccines are available for intake, which remains an individual decision in correspondence with the constitutional provisions. Therefore, in agreement with constitutional ethos, an individual’s decision to not receive a vaccine should be voluntary and made without any undue influence. The Constitution unanimously respects and protects a decision of such magnitude. It is therefore unambiguous that under the present circumstances, the only viable option is for the university community to increasingly and collectively promote voluntary uptakes of vaccines through consistent, persuasive, and ethical campaigning.



Currently, it is uncertain whether the state can and will enforce legislation or other governmental measures in order to compel COVID-19 vaccinations. If this occurred, the university would presumptively follow suit. The most effective plan of action currently, is cultivating a sense of herd-immunity within the wider UCT community.&nbsp;

Vaccine mandates are not a viable option

The UCT Council is deliberating the rollout of a Covid-19 vaccine mandate for 2022. Contrary to the claims of those opposing a positive decision, a mandate does not impose on our constitutional rights. In fact, it is the only way to return to regular student life safely.&nbsp;



By Julia Rowley (Managing Editor)



At the end of September, the UCT Senate voted on a vaccine mandate proposal for all staff and students in 2022 &#8211; with an overwhelming 83% supporting the decision. This final decision now lies with the UCT Council. However, in the meantime, the proposal has garnered serious criticism from some members of the community. Apocalyptic claims of our rights to bodily autonomy being eroded are plentiful &#8211; and false. What many do not realise is that our rights are not absolute, nor are they devoid of responsibilities.&nbsp;



The Constitution outlines the sanctity of our rights to bodily integrity and autonomy, religious freedom and discrimination. These rights are, of course, incredibly important to living a dignified life in a democratic state. However, the Constitution also asserts that these rights are in balance with each other &#8211; your right to bodily autonomy does not trump my right to safety and security, just because you have been afforded that right. The vaccine is safe, effective and prevents death. It also prevents Covid from being spread as easily. This is irreputable; anyone who believes otherwise and attempts to enter this debate does not have any solid ground to stand on. Your decision to be vaccinated makes your life, as well as the lives around you, safer. Your right to bodily integrity does not, and should not, come before the community’s right to&nbsp; security and safety.&nbsp;



Additionally, Section 36 allows for these rights to be limited as long as it is “reasonable and justifiable in an open and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom.&#8221; At the time of publication, over 88 000 South Africans have died because of Covid-19. We all know someone who has passed away, or has faced serious side effects, from contracting the virus. In the Western Cape alone, 98.3% of Covid-19 deaths in September of people over the age of 60 were unvaccinated. It is clear that vaccination is vital in saving lives, alleviating the burdens on the healthcare system, and keeping the economy afloat. In this context, it is “reasonable and justifiable” for the university to limit our rights to bodily autonomy by implementing a vaccine mandate. A mandate such as this is done so in the interest of the public good, and this is why it is constitutionally sound. UCT’s approval would promote “dignity, equality and freedom” &#8211; the dignity to return to work without the fear of contracting a life-threatening virus, the equality to internet access, study spaces and facilities that are conducive to studying, and the freedom to finally live a normal student life again.&nbsp;



This constitutionally-valid mandate is the only safe way for the UCT community to return to normal life. Think of the many shared surfaces that we touch &#8211; whether they be in the bathroom, cafeteria or lecture hall. Think of those, too, who have to clean these surfaces after we’ve touched them. Many of these individuals use public transport to get to and from work, rely on overcrowded and underfunded government healthcare facilities, and live in spaces where social distancing may be difficult. Additionally, many of those in our community are at risk in some way or another, whether it is due to age or underlying health issues. This makes for a particularly dangerous situation: as students, most of us enjoy socialising, partying, and meeting new people. Vaccination will thus allow us to live a more normal student life, and return to campus, while still protecting ourselves and those around us.&nbsp;



A vaccine mandate will protect all the members in our community in a way that masks, social distancing and sanitizer is not able to. Our Constitution is founded on ideals that recognise and protect the dignity of those around us &#8211; a vaccine mandate is in line with these ideals. I eagerly await the Council’s decision, and I hope it is the right one. I need a vaccine mandate. UCT needs a vaccine mandate. We need a vaccine mandate.

UCT’s possible vaccine mandate is the only way to ensure a safe return to campus&nbsp;

When it comes to significant moments in history our minds are captivated by the whats, the whens, and the howcomes.&nbsp; Sadly though, when it comes to the environment, our minds are focused elsewhere.



by Josh Raynham (Staff Writer)







It is no secret that our world is dying. The number of major climate disasters has been rising in the past decade, from hurricanes to wildfires. According to studies, this new frequency of the occurrence of natural disasters is unlikely to slow down anytime soon. A study published in the Journal of Science found that the average 6-year-old will live through three times as many climate disasters as someone born in 1960 — including twice as many wildfires, two and a half times as many crop failures, and over three times more river floods. So why don’t we care? &nbsp;



In 2010, the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill revealed the vulnerability of fossil fuel infrastructure and the dangerous effects these vulnerabilities have on our environment. That same year South Africa hosted the Soccer World Cup. I still remember going to one of the first games played between Paraguay and Uruguay. I remember where we sat and that the game ended in a draw. Up until now, the only thing I knew about Deepwater was that Mark Wahlberg starred in a movie about it. Our focus on the world today seems to bypass the urgency which is needed in order for our planet to survive. We spend our time locked into our phones, struggling to keep up with the constant surge of modernization that seems to engulf our everyday lives.&nbsp;



The problem is that we are trapped in a pit of quicksand that has been slowly sinking since the birth of humanity. Sidetracked, we scramble to pay our bills and afford rising food costs &#8211; all whilst trying to entertain ourselves in a dying world. We’re running as fast as we can, whilst our leaders keep changing direction and our scientists are egomaniacs who play the blame game with us all. Our minds have become so threatened by the idea that we are to blame for our Earth dying that we do not see, or perhaps do not want to see, the roots which run so much deeper than a straw in the ocean.&nbsp;



We are stuck in a loop of not knowing what to do. Eat healthier, ride a bike, stop fishing. These are futile problems if we don’t fix the root of the issue: our society has been bred to rely on the structures which control us and who control our outlook on the environment. The sheer nature in which the world is run encapsulates the theory of globalization which has been spurred on by a sense of capitalist modernity.&nbsp;



The environment is a topic that will continue to be the center of the debate until humanity is wiped from the face of this earth. Sadly, I fear that the debate-phase is where the topic will stay.&nbsp; Whilst governments can pass laws and ordinary people can use metal straws, the fact that the earth continues to turn gives people an excuse to say, “well at least the world hasn’t ended”. To change we must understand the system which we have been brought up in and realize that whilst the age of globalization waits for no man, living on a dead planet isn’t good for anyone&#8217;s health.&nbsp;

Didn’t you hear? Our planet’s dying.

In such times where culture and heritage are becoming increasingly rare and important during our lives, it seems as though it has become less and less available. The appalling state of historical sites such as the Lovedale Press are very disheartening, requiring better efforts from leadership to rectify



By Khumbulani Jali (Varsity Contributor)



Unassumingly blending in with its surroundings is a simple building on a street corner in the small town of Alice, in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Many fail to recognise it as a grand site of history despite the placard outside which reads: “The earliest record of anything written by any Bantu speaking African in his own language in Southern Africa was made at the small printing press at old Lovedale.” Through the decades of its existence, it served as a hub of intellectual and cultural literary work in multitudinous African languages, batting down the old colonial myths that painted black people as unintelligent and unsophisticated beings.



Historic publications have emerged from its grounds. Imvo Zavabtsundu, the first black owned newspaper in the country, Zemk’ Iinkomo Magwalandini by WB Rubusana as well as An Epic of South African Native Life a Hundred Years Ago by Sol Plaatje, (the first novel written in English by a black South African) are just a few of them.



Established in 1823 by the Lovedale Missionary Institution, the press boasts a rich history of nurturing many great minds like S.E.K Mqhayi, author of the isiXhosa novel Ityala Lamawele, activist and author Ellen Khuzwayo, and Black consciousness leaders Steve Biko and Barney Pityana nursed at related institutions like Lovedale College. The University of Fort Hare, another of these institutions, nurtured Nelson Mandela, Robert Sobukwe and Oliver Tambo, among many others.&nbsp;



Despite the depth of its heritage, the Lovedale Press is not immune from financial crisis. It once saw consistent revenue through the provision of textbooks to schools in Bantustans. However, with homelands ceasing to exist from 1994, their streams of income began to dry up. Today the press is in such dire straits that both the electricity and water have been cut, and rentals have not been paid in years.



The remaining custodians maintain it out of commitment to its historical importance, no compensation for their labours in a decade. They are also its owners, having bought press via auction in 2001 using their pensions as part of a group of 18 former employees. Now just three remain: Bishop Nqumbevu, Bulelwa Mbatyhothi, and Cebo Ntaka.



They have not been alone in their plight to preserve this institution. Mwelela Cele, a writer and researcher with the New Frame, has written of its struggles to help bring the help of like minded activists. In April 2020 artists Athi-Patra Ruga and Lesoko Seabe co-founded Victory of the Word, which they define as “a fundraising and development platform committed to serving independent artists and the preservation of language both visual and written.” They started off raising funds to support the remaining custodians with their next objective being obtaining National Heritage Object status for the press. The group expressed interest in partnering with the Department of Basic Education to provide literature on indigenous African languages for foundation phase teaching and learning.



This looming threat of closure comes at a time when the Fugard Theatre and Liliesleaf Farm Museum, both important sites of culture and history in the country, have been facing similar fates due to lack of funding. The Apartheid Museum was another of the historical wonders facing extinction earlier this year. In all these cases, much discourse has been around the government and its involvement, or lack thereof, in the preservation of the country’s heritage.



The owners of the Lovedale Press have appealed both the Eastern Cape’s governmental Departments of Art Culture, and Education for assistance, to no avail. They reached the same blockade when they attempted at the national level of the Department of Arts and Culture as well as the National Heritage Council.



The Lovedale Press holds precious memories of South African life, knowledge and language. Of paramount importance is the need to protect the literature and heritage of the formative years of the nation. Furthermore, an additive objective would be to restore it to its former prestige as a premier printing press. It is needless to say that both of these objectives are essential not only for the custodians and the community who value it deeply, but also for the country and its leadership.

The Tragedy of the Lovedale Press

Connecting the world through various artforms. Thoughts on the happenings of the first-ever digital exhibitions of the Investec Cape Town Art Fair and insights from a featured artist.







By Silulundi Coki (Varsity Contributor)



In the painting “Night Swim” (the artwork pictured above), the artist depicts a woman rising from the murky waters with an expressive open palm motion, as natural for her to blossom as graciously as the lotus. In this scenario, murk represents a woman’s struggle, yet water also represents spirituality and rebirth, as well as a place to connect with nature and express heartfelt wishes. A night swim can also suggest a rooted identity and emancipated purpose to restart by embracing her body without judgment.



The artwork in question is by Leila Rose Fanner, a South African artist whose work was on display under Deepest Darkest Art Gallery, at the Investec Cape Town Art Fair from September 17th to September 19th, 2021. Fanner remarked that her work is more about a reflection of the feminine energy or essence: the creative power that also provides nurture and comfort.



The Investec Cape Town Art Fair, the first digital art fair, is based on showcasing visual art, with the goal of portraying the message and providing information to the audience in real-time through digital media. Through this approach, the audience is connected to the artist and their inspired imaginations, this being depicted through their artworks shown. Such art enriched the visitors’ experience throughout the duration of the novel event. The content was collected by the curators mainly in galleries, who go into great detail with symbolism and meaning whilst making it easy to understand for people who do not use ‘art’ terms to formally understand and interpret the artworks on display.&nbsp;



Despite these efforts, local artist Fanner remarked that a small image online, unfortunately, does not do justice to the work. The way the art was displayed online was not immersive enough to translate the scale of the work nor the complexity in textures and depth behind each art piece.&nbsp;



The lacklustre showcases to potential collectors were a major point of discontent for artists, including Fanner, who had hoped for a prominent gathering of collectors who show appreciation and consideration for an artist and their work. The presence of collectors was not as widespread as compared to other media sources which were abundant due to the immense build-up of the event on social media.



The Art Fair tried to do justice by simulating an experience of an actual physical event, but, like most aspects of life severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, it was just not the same. With three large galleries like Loop Gallery, SMAC Gallery, and Galerie Véronique Reiffel featured, it was a formidable event, garnering a collaboration with miart contemporary art fair in Milan to reach a larger audience.



The narrative of art is complex and being exhibited in the digital realm is important to many budding and established artists to share their vision with the rest of the world. For Fanner, this vision is to “evoke the ethereal world of spiritual aspirations” through abstract representations of the “dream or unseen” world, filled with visions of South African flora and fauna. Her work can be viewed on her website <a href="http://www.leilafannerart.com">www.leilafannerart.com</a> and her Instagram page @leilafanner.art.



The next physical Investec Cape Town Art Fair will take place on 18-20 February 2022, with the preview taking place on Thursday, 17 February 2022. Fanner felt like the 3 days of online access was too short and puts unnecessary gateways in the way of spectators. The arrangement and the presentation of the 2021 digital fair can be improved upon with input from participating artists and other successful virtual fairs, which leads to many speculations of what the future holds for the 2022 rendition of the event.

The Investec Cape Town Art Fair

The legal and cultural implications of customary marriage collapse.



By Siviwe Cingo (Staff writer)



Lobolo has been a cultural conception and ritual that has been widely contested and debated. It is often dichotomized into being an initiator or a constraint of customary marriage. The lobolo process and practice differ across cultural contexts as well as its rules and principles. Lobolo has many additional names such as bogadi, bohali, munywalo and ikhazi, partly because they carry varied connotations that remain indexical per culture. Despite all of that, lobola remains widely valued in various ethnic traditions. The lobolo custom is a process that involves the payment of lobolo, also known as a dowry, by the groom’s family elders who are sent to the bride’s home to ask the bride&#8217;s family for the bride to marry the groom. Traditionally, it is a custom of mediating family relations. Lobolo is thought of as the crux of the marriage, although the customary law act does not recognize it as the foundation of traditional marriage. Lobolo is indicative that the groom will take care of the bride, but that may not always be the case.



Historically, lobolo was property handed over to the bride’s family in the form of cows. In contemporary times, cash is predominantly used. The value of lobola due to the bride&#8217;s family depends on how many children the woman birthed and if she has married before or not, as well as whether she is a virgin or not. Today this is still considered a big factor in paying lobola. However, the woman’s material status and education seem to have increased the value of the lobolo paid on her behalf. Every cow within the lobolo carries meaning and representation of the bride’s value.



According to African culture and the African custom, practising lobolo signifies marriage. Marriage is not recognized in African culture if it is unpaid to the bride&#8217;s family. On the contrary, South African law does not recognize a marriage that is not legally registered regardless of whether lobolo has been paid. For the marriage to be legally recognized and deemed existential, it must be registered under the auspices of the Customary Marriage Act of 1998. Concerning lobolo, the Customary Marriage Act of 1998 indicates that the giving of lobolo should not be prohibited, nor should there be any restrictions imposed on the amount payable. Also, the acts by which the parties purport to marry may vary. A lobolo agreement is usually negotiated before a civil or Christian ceremony or, the parties might combine a lobolo agreement, a traditional wedding ceremony and the Christian right. Another option may be a lobolo and a traditional initiation of the bride into the groom’s family.



In legal terms, lobolo does not validate the customary marriage. For it to be deemed valid, the couple must register under the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act of 1998 (RCMA). Therefore, customary law bounds customary marriage. RCMA defines customary law as &#8220;the customs and usages traditionally observed among the indigenous African peoples of South Africa and which form part of the culture of those people&#8221;. The intended matrimonial couple is obliged to register their marriage at Home Affairs under customary law. Although the Customary Marriages Act of 1998 recognizes customary marriages, it does not mention what happens to lobolo when the marriage ends. In some cultures, when nuptials disintegrate, the husband is permitted to repatriate the lobolo if he did not breach his promise in marriage. However, the lobola money is held against him by his in-laws, if he is found to be at fault for the end of the marriage. There are rules and conditions for the retention and refund of Lobolo. Furthermore, the legal implication of a marriage collapse is that the customary marriage can only be dissolved in terms of the act. The act stipulates how customary marriages are dissolved. Section 8(1) of the customary law states that the marriage may be dissolved in court by a decree of divorce on the condition that the marriage breakdown is irretrievable. It is common cause that when customary marriages become unsuccessful, women bear the most brunt and could be left in need and destitute, especially in an antenuptial contract marriage with disparities of gender rights and power that engulf it.

The Existence and Demise of Customary Marriage in South Africa

My heritage gives me a reason to go forward in pursuit of conserving my individuality &#8211; what I hold dearest to me.







By Sumona Bose (Varsity contributor)



The 24 September marks the annual national celebration of Heritage Day. This day is celebrated in South Africa&nbsp; as a way to pay homage to our roots, cultural backgrounds and give tribute to the diversity that has kept our nation vibrant. Termed what is now known as the Rainbow Nation, South Africa’s reputation as a versatile society has experienced persistent socio-economic woes over the years that have greatly challenged this beautiful country. However, the spirit for an optimistic and amicable future remains grounded in building an equitable society for the present. Diversity has retained different meanings for each individual, as the occasion itself requires more than a celebration but deep introspection. Every year on this day, I have always asked myself what does it mean to me?



I arrived on South African soil in the early days of 2015 to start my undergraduate degree at the University of Cape Town (UCT). For the entirety of my 17 years before then, I had socialized as a &#8220;foreign-born&#8221; Indian. I was raised in Botswana while my family dispersed around the globe, identified as being part of the broader South Asian diaspora. I do not think I thought any differently then, but it was only during my early university days that I began to dig deeper into what my heritage meant to me rather than just identifying my heritage as being tied to a specific nationality outside the country of my origin.



As a native of Kolkata, the &#8220;cultural capital&#8221; of India, diversity is nothing new to me, but to be a part of the diverse South African society made me realize what an auspicious opportunity it is to blend in with the crowd while also standing out. Growing up in a multicultural context has always allowed me to embrace individuality. I have grown up in a household where Kolkata (the city is a central element to my personality) has had a portable ability to be present in every part of life, mundane or significant. I find the same rhythm in Cape Town in its ability to give space to identities and celebrate individualism. To stand out but still find a sense of belonging. To be not only one identity but exist within many.&nbsp;



Heritage is more than a passport or lineage. It is carrying a unique soul, a different story and bringing a personal perspective to the table. And for me, being able to live my individualism is my heritage &#8211; a glorious legacy of being your authentic self, inspired by countless people who have adopted the same philosophy.

Individualism is my Heritage

Several UCT researchers worked on the newly-released IPCC report, which unequivocally blames states for failing to act in the face of the current climate crisis.







By Asemahle Ntoyakhe (Staff Writer) &amp; Daniel P. Rossmeisl (News Editor)







On Monday 9 August 2021, the Sixth Climatic Assessment Report authored by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was released. With the mandate to provide an understanding of emerging patterns that form global climatic systems, as well as to map both natural and human-led climate change, this report distinguished itself from its predecessors by unequivocally charging state governments with failure to act appropriately (or in some cases at all) to an immediate and globally recognised crisis. Furthermore, and tellingly, the IPCC also called out individual state actors for their failure to adhere to or realise agreed upon climate-change-abating measures and goals.&nbsp;



Whereas previously, the report has acknowledged some level of scientific debate surrounding the extent to which climate change possesses a threat, as well as to which changes in climatic systems are a result of human activity, this time around there is no doubt;&nbsp; humans are responsible for severe climate change and that will have life-threatening consequences for universal ability to sustain human life. The report released evidence showing changes in a range of climate phenomena including heatwaves, heavy precipitation, droughts, and tropical cyclones. It is alleged by a number of news agencies, including an article published in the Guardian on August 9th, that wildfires across North America and the Mediterranean as well as flooding in Germany earlier this year is likely a tangible consequence of issues highlighted by the IPCC.



Some of the credit for this stronger line adopted by the IPCC may be ascribed to the increasingly diverse pool of researchers from developing countries employed in this report’s construction. The African Media Agency suggested on August 9th that at least 234 scientists from 66 countries were involved in the project. This includes a number of UCT researchers. Professor Harald Winkler and Dr Christopher Trisos who, both associated with the&nbsp;African Climate &amp; Development Initiative&nbsp;(ACDI), formed a cohort with 30 authors and nine review editors from around the world to form the core writing team.

UCT Plays its Part in Producing Scathing Review of Global Climate Crisis

The near-takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban, and their attempts at reformation, have left Afghan citizens and international governments skeptical.







By Daniel P. Rossmeisl (News Editor)







On Sunday, 15th August 2021, Taliban forces entered the outskirts of the Afghani capital of Kabul. This marked the fall of the last bastion of the USA-backed, Afghani government led by President Ashraf Ghani. President Ghani himself fled into exile within hours, leaving civil society as well as other government officials and military leaders to make their own plans in the face of the Taliban advance. On August 17th, First Vice-President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Amrullah Saleh, relying on Afghanistan’s alleged democratic constitution, announced that he was assuming power as the Acting President of Afghani government. Despite this claim, factions within the Taliban held a press conference that same day and have since engaged in negotiations with President Ghani and Former-President Hamid Karzai. It appears that Mr Saleh has been largely ignored by prominent international and Taliban parties.&nbsp;



For their part, Taliban have made a noticeable effort to distinguish their new position of leadership from that of their rule during the 1990s. The Taliban, roughly translated to “the students” or “the seekers”, were removed from power by military force in 2001 by coalition forces (primarily led by the USA in response to the 9/11 attacks), following their five-year rule of Afghanistan resulting from the preceding Afghan Civil War. As a result of the group’s association with a number of violent attacks, both within the country and abroad, as well as the particularly harsh enforcement of the Taliban’s interpretation of Sharia law, many international governments designate the Taliban a terrorist organisation. However, perhaps in an appeal to the international community for recognition, the group is making a concerted effort to minimise violence, project stability, and portray themselves as the legitimate new government of Afghanistan. Concessions have included the declaration of an alleged “amnesty” for all previous state officials and members of the Afghan military who cooperate with the new government. In addition, the Guardian’s coverage showed the group claiming that they wish to form an “inclusive, Islamic government.”&nbsp;



The group has even gone so far as to allow themselves to be interviewed by female journalists. This marks a departure from previous attitudes whereby the Taliban refused to recognise any (and at times made threats or even acted violently against) women working outside what the Taliban claimed was their “traditional role.” Nevertheless, many remain skeptical.&nbsp;



Women, in particular, are frantically erasing any possible evidence of links to the USA for fear of repercussions.&nbsp; At the time of writing this article, thousands of Afghans have made their way to Kabul’s international airport in a desperate bid to leave the country. Although the situation remains fluid, reports already show that at least seven Afghans have died in and around the airport. Reports from the Economist and the Guardian indicate that Taliban forces have fired warning shots on the premises, while other news agencies report that remaining USA forces have also fired warning shots in an attempt at crowd control. Elsewhere in the country, reports are emerging of Taliban violence against women and protesters – despite the assurances of Taliban spokespeople to the contrary.



In the meantime, though claiming victory and expressing an attempt to rule, the Taliban has yet to practically fill the political vacuum left by President Ghani’s departure.

Afghanistan: A new Taliban government not only a possibility but almost a certainty

Pro-democracy protests still continue in Eswatini with an unwavering demand for immediate reform of the country’s current political system.







By Ernst Calitz (Staff Writer)







King Mswati III, 53, is the last of Africa’s remaining absolute monarchs. However, pro-democracy protests calling for the king’s power to be curtailed have been going on for two months in the kingdom of Eswatini, starting in June of 2021.&nbsp;



Cebelinhle Mbuyisa, a local journalist in Eswatini, told the Guardian on 26th June 2021 that the initial protests started in response to the death of Thabani Nkomonye, who allegedly died at the hands of the police. Thabani was a 25-year-old law student at the University of Eswatini. “They delivered a list of demands, something like a petition. Calling for justice for Thabani among other things. The police fired rubber bullets and threw tear gas.” Lamented Mbuyisa.



Mr Mbuyisa further stated that: “On the 24th of June, the government banned the delivery of petitions. That’s when the real protests started.”



It was during these protests that violence erupted from both parties involved. Leading to the deaths of dozens of people, and hundreds being injured.



Allegedly, businesses which are owned or linked to members of the royal family have been deliberately targeted in Mbanane and Manzini. The protesters erected roadblocks and set fire to the aforementioned businesses and factories, according to Times.



The acting prime minister has claimed that the legitimate protests were “hijacked by criminal elements”. He further justified the deployment of the military, by stating that the authorities had to “protect critical national infrastructure” and to further enforce “coronavirus rules.”



Mbuyisa commented on the response from authorities saying that: “I’ve been on the ground specifically, I’ve spoken to witnesses. It’s state security officers killing people. The government is denying everything, they’re denying liability, they are denying being involved.”



Thokozane Kunene, the secretary general of the ‘Communist Party of Swaziland’ commented on the authorities attempts to mask the rising death toll in the country to the Times of London. Stating that: “The military is doing all it can to conceal evidence of its brutal murders.”&nbsp;



As of July 8th, the Guardian stated that the authorities in Eswatini have promised a “national dialogue” to prevent further unrest after the death of dozens of people.&nbsp; This was greeted by skepticism from opposition leaders, who fear that more violence could break out if substantive reforms of the current political system do not occur.&nbsp;



Mlungisi Makhanya, 43, a leading opposition figure, told The Times that protests would continue if no substantive change is seen. Stating that: “We have all grown up in poverty while the king and his family fly round the world in their jets and live in palaces. But we have reached a point of no return.”

Pro-democracy protests rage on in Eswatini amidst rising death toll.

The multi-week dispute, which left many without a way to get to work, school or university,&nbsp; has finally called to a close in the Western Cape taxi hub.







By Imaan Voterson (News Editor)







A severe dispute between two taxi associations – the Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association (CATA) and the Congress of Democratic Taxi Association (CODETA) – brought the end of many lives due to the violence that unfolded. Many businesses suffered and left commuters deserted, as well as jobless.&nbsp;



CATA and CODETA had disagreed over the authority of the B97 route between Bellville and Paarl. According to News24, neither of the two associations affiliated taxis operated in Bellville, Wynberg, Mitchells Plain, or the Athlone public transport interchange.&nbsp;



After weeks of violence and fear among those who rely on public transport as a means to get to work, a ceasefire was called. As of the first week of August, taxi operations have continued, according to Western Cape Transport Minister, Daylin Mitchell.&nbsp;



“A week of relative calm and peaceful operations at the interchange and on routes, it was agreed that all CATA and CODETA affiliated associations would return to service and that operators will conduct their services with due regard to the rule of law and the safety of the public,” Mitchell said. The situation was well observed and the Department of Transport and Public Works are satisfied with the way the taxis are operating and following the agreement.&nbsp;



Although taxis began operating as per usual during the first week of August, only a few loading lanes at the Bellville public transport interchange were reopened and the Paarl loading lanes remained closed.



Despite taxis operating again, many commuters have been left jobless and uneasy at the use of minibus taxis as a mode of transport due to the violence.&nbsp;



&#8220;I am disappointed that the commuter must suffer at the hands of a few,&#8221; Mitchell said in a media briefing, according to News24.



A commuter who was affected by the taxi wars states: “My boss was not very understanding of my circumstances and the taxi violence. He said that I should have found another mode of transport to get to work. I never got paid the days I couldn’t go to work and it was difficult for me because I depended on that pay every day. To use the taxis again makes me feel very uneasy because of the violence and many lives were put in danger.”



At the same time that the taxi violence occurred, the Western Cape was coming off its peak of the third wave, according to Western Cape health department head Dr Keith Cloete. Due to this unfortunate timing, there is a possibility that the taxi violence has resulted in a backlog of cases, as some commuters were unable to get to testing centres.

Western Cape taxi violence leads to ceasefire

As the 2021 Olympics ends, the Olympic sex test remains in the public eye. The controversy of testing the sex of female athletes puts Caster Semenya, one of South Africa’s prominent athletic stars, at the centre of the debate.







By Thobile Mahlangu (VARSITY contributor)







Throughout the years, Caster Semenya’s career has been defined by two things: winning races and defending her identity as a female athlete. After her triumphant victory at the Berlin World Championships in 2009, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the World Athletics Association, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Foundation (IAAF), instituted a hyperandrogenism test which set a limit of 10 nanomoles per litre for the amount of testosterone a woman could possess to remain eligible as a competing female athlete. Semenya, who naturally produces higher levels of testosterone, would be excluded from competing.



Testosterone is a hormone produced by both men and women, but there are many ways that the human body can develop beyond “normal” hormone levels and chromosomal categories of XX and XY. People who have differences in their sexual development, or DSD, are intersex, and many people may reach sexual maturity without even being aware of their DSD.



Semenya’s story is not the first. Women have been competing and garnering titles in the Olympics since 1900 but by the 1960s, there was a growing scepticism around their success and whether they were men disguised as women. An early example is Eva Klobukowska, a Polish sprinter who won the bronze medal at the 1964 Olympics for the 100-meter sprint. Following her win, sex testing became mandatory for female athletes. Klobukowska was forced to undergo testing in a “nude parade” where female athletes were examined by a panel of doctors to confirm their sex. Klobukowska passed and was eligible to compete as a female at the 1966 Olympics. However, the next year, officials replaced physical exams with chromosomal testing, resulting in a retest. Klobukowska failed this new testing method and was deemed ineligible to compete. This method was later changed to testosterone testing in 2011. Dutee Chand, an Indian sprinter who was put through this test in 2014, failed and was banned from competing as a female. Chand appealed this decision, stating that World Athletics’ claims linking higher testosterone levels to performance lacked scientific research. The Court of Arbitration for Sport acknowledged Chand’s appeal and lifted the ban, stating the need for evidence linking higher testosterone to increased performance in the contested fields. This decision granted athletes such as Chand and Semenya the opportunity to compete in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.



However, in 2018, World Athletics returned with evidence and a new testosterone limit of five nanomoles per litre. This new evidence stated that female athletes with high testosterone outperformed in certain events. Despite the backlash and scrutiny from scientific communities and human rights organisations, the new testosterone limit was set solely for the women’s 400-metre, 800-metre and 1500-metre race. Unsurprisingly these were all the events Semenya usually partook in.



Following this, in 2019, she lost her appeal, barring her from competing in the Tokyo Olympics. This ban would force athletes such as Semenya, 2016 silver medallist Francine Niyonsaba, and bronze medallist Margaret Wambui, to undergo hormonal therapy in order to compete. Inevitably, such action would have adverse implications on their health. Despite World Athletics’ claims that “such discrimination is necessary” for the integrity of female athletics, sex-testing is only administered on women who are deemed “suspicious”, those who do not fit the physical stereotype of a female athlete, but this “coincidentally” excludes athletes from the Global South such as Chand and Semenya.

The History of Differences in Sexual Development at the Olympics

Two soon-to-be-graduates tell their personal stories, offer advice and share words of encouragement to students facing similar struggles.



By Chante Sammering (VARSITY contributor)







The start of the second semester calls for some motivation and inspiration to finish the 2021 academic year off strong. Given the challenges we’ve faced over this year with the UCT Mountain Fire in April and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we should all be proud of ourselves and our peers for having made it thus far. The following stories are from two soon-to-be graduates who have overcome various financial, academic, and personal challenges to graduate from their studies and are shared in the hopes that they inspire and uplift those who need to hear them.&nbsp;



Dave* had just started his degree in mechatronics in the department of engineering in 2019 when he lost both his caregivers. He soon fell into a depressive state and failed his coursework. He was at the brink of being academically excluded when he sought advice from academic staff members at UCT who made him aware of the effects his personal problems could have on his academics. The staff at UCT assisted him with reapplying at the Faculty of Humanities, and he is now passionately pursuing a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Environmental and Geographical Science (EGS) and Arabic.&nbsp;



Another student, Kim*, is about to graduate with majors in Psychology, Sociology, and Media &amp; Writing in the Faculty of Humanities. She is in her sixth year of study and describes her academic experience as a “rocky road”. Kim* started off at the top of her class in high school but ended up failing her first semester at UCT. She retracted various majors until she found a cluster of majors which she was truly passionate about. In addition to figuring out the life she wants to live, as any other student, she had financial and mental health problems which affected her ability to excel academically. Kim* was constantly working at her part-time job to fill in the financial gaps and her personal problems took a toll on her mental health. A few months before writing her final exams in her final year Kim* was diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) with anxiety and failed her exams. Kim* forfeited her financial aid and became homeless soon after and was forced to take leave of absence.



Both Dave* and Kim* had to navigate their academic career with more difficulty than most have to deal with, but they have almost made it to the end of their journey. Dave* urges others to “accept that difficulty, struggle, and failure is a part of success”. Kim* is still going and is about to graduate from her sixth year of study and argues that reaching out for help and taking time off was the best thing that she could have done for herself. If they can do it, then so can you!



*Names were changed to ensure anonymity.&nbsp;

Journey to Graduation: A Rocky but Rewarding Road

Crowds gathered on UCT’s Lower Campus to escort an alleged sexual offender, who was a member of the SRC, to Mowbray police station on the 29th of June after curfew. 







By Ernst Calitz (Staff writer)







On the 29th of June, Main Road and the Lower Campus of the University of Cape Town (UCT) filled up with approximately 200 students chanting and demanding justice. Their actions were motivated after an ex-member of the UCT Student Representative Council (SRC) was accused of sexual assault. The students braved the cold of the night and the dangers that come with breaking curfew to escort the alleged perpetrator from their residence to the Mowbray police station.&nbsp;



“I was tired, and a lot of other people were tired. Then when you got there, you were filled up with this energy from all the other people,” recalls Rose Wesley*, a member at the protest that night.&nbsp;



Rose further recalls that the presence of a police van arriving on the scene made a great deal of students uncomfortable. Adding further to the tense and suspenseful atmosphere of the night, she added that many of the people present were individuals involved in activism and that they were used to dealing with these kinds of circumstances.&nbsp;



She commented on the behavior of the alleged offender, stating that during the night, they were seen “laughing and talking to people in a very casual manner”. This was upsetting to not only her, but other members present that night as well.



When the group escorting the alleged perpetrator arrived at the Mowbray police station, he was moved towards the front of the crowd and shielded in front of the glass windows at the police station. This was to ensure that no harm was to come to him from the crowd as people were becoming aggressive.&nbsp;



Other members of the SRC were also seen comforting and protecting the survivor during the entire ordeal, trying to ensure their safety and comfort after the trauma. Rose added: “There were a lot of people standing with the survivor to make sure that she was comforted and that her story would be heard.”&nbsp;



One student boldly stated: “It’s not only her story, it’s my friends who I also know. It’s me, I’ve been affected by Gender-Based-Violence (GBV); it’s literally every femme-body person I know that has a story of GBV. So, when it’s somebody who is supposed to be our leader, and who should be looking after the students, and we find out that they hurt students, it hurts us greatly. That’s why a lot of people were very involved in the protest.”



When asked, many students added that the 2019 #AmINext GBV protests at UCT and around South Africa helped to pave the way for current students to take up action against alleged perpetrators. They further added that current students are supposed to have a zero-tolerance approach towards GBV and alleged perpetrators.&nbsp;



*Names were changed to ensure anonymity.&nbsp;

Alleged ex-SRC accused of sexual assault gets escorted to police station after curfew

Luhlanganiso Majebe speaks to Varsity News about the importance of being the first recipient of the Uyinene Mrwetyana Scholarship.



 by Ilham Choonara (Staff writer)



At Uyinene Mrwetyana’s funeral on Tuesday, September 7, 2019, Vice-Chancellor Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng addressed mourners to announce the inception&nbsp; of the UCT Uyinene Mrwetyana Scholarship for Women in the Faculty of Humanities. This year, the first recipient is Luhlanganiso Majebe.



Luhlanganiso is a woman as Uyinene was. She is 19 years old and in her first year of study at UCT. Luhlanganiso is studying Politics and Sociology, with hopes of going into law. Around&nbsp; the time of Uyinene’s murder, she had just been elected head girl for her matric year at Springfield Convent. That week, she organised a demonstration at her school and held an educational assembly on gender-based violence. Luhlanganiso says that this was pivotal for stepping into her advocacy as it helped her determine that this is something she wants to do and helped her express that to other people.



She applied for the scholarship because it seemed to align so well with who she is and who she wants to become. “I’d love to be a human rights lawyer. I would love to work in the South African Human Rights Commission and one day, the UN Human Rights Commission,” Luhlanganiso told Varsity News.



The scholarship requires that the recipient partake in two weeks of volunteer work at an organisation that works against gender-based violence. Two weeks during the course of one’s undergraduate studies is the minimum, but Luhlanganiso implores the question – what happens after that? Luhlanganiso is working with The Justice Desk, a human rights non-profit organisation, through the Uyinene Mrwetyana Foundation. She wants to be someone who can lead and set the tone for what the scholarship standard is. As the very first recipient, she plans to help survivors of gender-based violence step into the scholarship. Another matter of urgency is the need for attention on student culture, particularly on the ways in which microaggressions are propagated through this space. “When I tell you I think about this every day,&nbsp; I really do,” Luhlanganiso said.



She further explained that by creating this scholarship, the university becomes a physical representation of a moral figure when it comes to gender-based violence, and they are held accountable for this responsibility. The future impact of such a scholarship is that it allows for discourse and creates a foundation for advocacy within the university space.&nbsp;



Luhlanganiso has support from family and friends who remind her of who she is, as well as her responsibilities. As she firmly said in her interview before receiving the scholarship, “I am passionate, assertive, and you can trust that I’ve got this.”



The scholarship is open to women who are registered as first years for an undergraduate degree in the Humanities faculty. This includes gender non-conforming women. The scholarship is awarded to one individual who has shown leadership in social justice and activism.&nbsp;



More information about the scholarship can be found via Bursaries South Africa: <a href="https://www.zabursaries.co.za/universities/uct-uyinene-mrwetyana-scholarship-for-women-in-humanities/">https://www.zabursaries.co.za/universities/uct-uyinene-mrwetyana-scholarship-for-women-in-humanities/</a>

First Recipient of Uyinene Mrwetyana Scholarship: Luhlanganiso Majebe, A Custodian and Advocate for Gender Equality

How the Danger of a Single Story relates to Cancel Culture







By Seth Meyer (Staff Writer)







“The single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story…” quotes renowned author, and feminist, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in her, now famous, TED talk: The danger of a single story. This quote first came to my mind when Adichie’s name once again appeared on my radar, this time as the latest person to attract the ire of UCT’s Student Representative Council (SRC).&nbsp;



The story was familiar. The UCT SRC demanded that the author’s lecture be cancelled due to a certain controversial remark Adichie had made in a previous interview. UCT refused to do so. So, in response, the UCT SRC organised a boycott of the event, hosting an opposing lecture during that of Adichie and featuring an alternative speaker, Dr Anastacia Tomson.&nbsp;



This pattern of actions and events has become widely recognised and broadly attributed to the concept of ‘cancel culture’, with various permutations of the same scenario playing out all throughout the human diaspora &#8211; in a world that has grown increasingly more aware of its histories, peoples and experiences. The meanings and intent behind this “cancel culture” while, most times, noble can also be misguided. This was the case with respect to Adichie.



Some readers may have, understandably, anticipated that this opinion will revolve around something like “the toxicity of cancel culture” or “is it justified to boycott Adichie because of what she said?” Those arguments and their counter-arguments have already been written by others or are playing out right now, possibly between students who attended Adichie’s and Tomson’s respective lectures in spite of one another. Instead, this opinion is concerned with stories and the sharing of stories.&nbsp;



When Adichie said what she said, the lynchpin three words “transwomen are transwomen” at the centre of this particular story, she received both criticism and support in face of that criticism. She tapped into a deeply divisive issue and subsequently apologised, seeking to clarify her meaning. Those three words became the face of the SRC’s boycott campaign against her. In consequence those three words also omit the entire context of who Adichie is and what she has done. This is not a sustainable way to promote a discourse of any kind, be it for or against. When we insulate ourselves from criticism, skepticism, difference in ideas, the idea of justice that “cancel culture” often seeks to secure, is already defeated. It is better that Adichie received a clapback from the trans community and sought to apologize and to clarify, rather than become a pariah.&nbsp;



Adichie is a far more verbose and accomplished woman than any three words can tell, and it is for this reason that UCT would reasonably defend her position behind the lectern. She has much to share as an intellectual. And in opposition, so too does Dr Tomson. The SRC can be commended for seeking to showcase different schools of thought and opinions in contrast to Adichie, rather than outright ignoring the lecture altogether. Ironically, it is this very sharing of stories, the arguments made for and against, that is often in danger of being destroyed by movements that have unflatteringly been dubbed ‘cancel culture’, whether justifiably or not.&nbsp;



Here’s the point. It is inevitable that we as human beings will disagree. But in the face of our disagreement, we cannot commit ourselves to only ever hearing or wanting to hear the perspectives that suit us. We would all do well to listen carefully to what the likes of Adichie and Tomson have to say, lest we face the very danger of the single story. The saga of Adichie’s controversial remarks is not an untrue one but it is also incomplete. It is one single story. I would beseech us all to consider the others.







DISCLAIMER



This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

“Transwomen are Transwomen” and other things Adichie said

Why vaccine restricted access is not an option in South Africa







By Reabetswe Khutsoane (Staff Writer)







On the 1st of February 2021, President Cyril Ramaphosa said the following: “But I want to be clear. Nobody will be forced to take this vaccine. Nobody will be forbidden from travelling, from enrolling at school, or from taking part in any public activity if they have not been vaccinated.”



Accepting the ultimate reservation of right of admission provided to restaurants and bars, should these businesses restrict entry to their establishments to non-vaccinated persons? The immediate responses are twofold: yes and no.&nbsp;



The argument for turning down unvaccinated, would-be patrons can be simplified and given as follows. Establishments want to keep their staff and customers safe, and reduce their risk of shutting down due to association with a case of Covid-19. Additionally, this requirement could increase the number of people choosing to get vaccinated, should they want to enter these establishments. However, the latter case begs the question: was this a choice the now-vaccinated patron made of their own free will, or a choice they were somewhat forced to make?



A vaccine requirement to enter restaurants and bars has only been implemented in the USA and several countries and cities across Europe. Most of these have over 50% of their adults vaccinated, with the UK having over 80%. These vastly contrast to South Africa, now approaching the 20% mark.



Following setbacks in some of the earlier stages of the vaccine rollout and looking at the current rate of vaccinations, it is clear that South Africa will not reach the target of 40 million vaccinated adults by the end of 2021. If we maintain the current rate of vaccinations, it will take over a year to reach that target. This makes it impractical for establishments to be restricting access to their spaces for non-vaccinated persons.



The joint efforts of the government and the private sector have made vaccines available to most of the country, which allows for almost anyone who wants to get vaccinated to get their jabs. With everyone above the age of 18 being eligible to get the vaccine from the 1st of September, we can expect to see an increase in the rate at which people get vaccinated. Many people in this group are eager to get the vaccine if it means that life can return to normal as soon as possible, but we can’t ignore the number of people who choose to not get vaccinated.



At the current rate of vaccinations, it would be unprofitable for restaurants and bars to restrict their access to vaccinated persons. Following the effects of the lockdowns, reducing their access to only 20% of the population is a financial limitation that these establishments certainly do not need.&nbsp;



Perhaps this is a conversation that can be brought back to the table in a few months’ time, if not a year from now. As for right now, restaurants, bars and the economy as a whole cannot afford to prohibit non-vaccinated persons from these establishments. At the end of the day, I believe that people should be able to choose to get the vaccination of their own free will, not because they have to if they want to go out. After all, as much as the vaccine reduces both chances of catching and transmitting covid, it does not guarantee either of these, so the risk of covid remains.







DISCLAIMER



This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

No Vaccine, No Entry?

Johansson’s lawsuit sparks controversy over pandemic income.







By Sumona Bose (VARSITY Contributor)



The pandemic has shifted many industry paradigms, including that of film sales and distribution. While the megascope of the entertainment industry has adapted to screening their destined blockbusters on streaming sites, some films have stuck to their timely theatrical releases to follow the phased re-opening to normalcy. There have been sensational movie drops and original premiers from streaming giants like Netflix and Amazon Prime that have made digital media and entertainment all the more accessible and remotely enjoyable in times of great grief and uncertainty. Many studios have extended their sales through on-demand streaming services, such as Disney+ and HBO Max. Some have collaborative agreements, like MGM studio’s deal with Amazon. Ultimately, this has broadened the horizon for target audiences, constituting novel avenues for big-budget films to reach audiences.



However, with the blockbuster release of Scarlett Johansson’s long-anticipated solo project as the Black Widow, the movie drew criticism from the onset. Firstly, in recent years, Johansson’s growing discomfort over the sexualisation of Natasha Romanoff has fuelled multiple feminist discourse around the commercialisation of female bodies to garner sex appeal for the male gaze. Despite the criticism, this was only the beginning of Johansson’s grievances with mega-corporations. Recently, Johansson filed a lawsuit against Disney Studios for breach of contract related to her earnings. The unexpected release of Black Widow on Disney+ prompted Johansson to take the famous film studio to court as a last resort.



Although streaming platforms have become crucial to reviving both media corporations and digital companies during the pandemic, Johansson’s bold step in suing Disney highlights how disagreeable methods of distribution can retain income disparity, especially ones that detour from contractual obligations. Actors rely on theatrical releases since they are guaranteed upfront payment, as well as an additional amount determined by box office earnings. As studios are focusing more on digital streaming for viewership, actors may experience large losses in income.&nbsp;



Johansson is not the only star who has opposed a studio regarding distribution. Previously, Angelina Jolie, Keanu Reeves, Margot Robbie and Will Smith rallied to scramble up leftover deals with Warner Bros. after announcing their strategy to transition into online streaming. Even prominent directors like Christopher Nolan and Denis Villeneuve of the upcoming film Dune have expressed their disagreement with this new strategy. Warner Bros. managed to re-negotiate settlements with stars over creative adjustments, but there are still rumours of unhappy A-List stars over the precedent switch to digital streaming.



Johansson’s character, Natasha Romanoff, has been in the hands of throttling sexism for years. The latest lawsuit over the movie release has eclipsed a legendary superheroine whose legacy ought to outshine the narrative the character has endured. It also highlights the multiplicity of talent displayed during the pandemic where economic success is in direct battle with accountability for its stars. Only time will tell how the situation will unfold, but we might have just witnessed a real-life superheroine in Scarlett Johansson, inspiring others to follow suit and demand their dues.

Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow case: The forced evolution from cinema release to online streaming

The Age of Superheroes transcending onto the big screen.







By Simbarashe Mawere (Arts and Culture Editor)







“People said the Age of Heroes would never come…” (Justice League, 2017) is a sentiment comic book fans shared amongst themselves in the past when their passion never made it to mainstream media or the limelight of film. The cultural shift began with Iron Man, the first Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movie. The Incredible Hulk is still questionable despite other comic book adaptations into film and television media like Sam Raimi’s Spider-man trilogy. Today, the ubiquity of comic book culture is almost undeniable as the media begins to promote more and more content inspired by the inked pages of comic books.



In modern-day mainstream culture, if you are under 30-years-old and have a decent coverage of the media that floods the internet (American-based television, music and film), then you have probably encountered an MCU movie, and that is no accident. Disney’s investments over many decades helped Marvel to develop a long-standing film franchise that has penetrated the market and turned into one of the greatest cultural phenomena of the 2010s. With the pre-planned “Infinity Saga” franchise, Marvel managed to sway viewers of comic-book-adapted media towards their half of the dichotomy.



Their long-standing rival, DC Comics,&nbsp; arrived at the scene a bit later, trying to insert their own poorly developed film franchise into the mix despite critical results. While Marvel took ten years to build up their characters, DC attempted to continue the age-old rivalry between the two by creating their own cinematic universe, the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), which lacked all the elements of a successful franchise: mainly investments in character and story development. The DCEU falters in comparison to the love that the general audience has for MCU movies, but the tides have begun to shift, restoring a certain balance to the existing rivalry.



With the recent DCEU releases like Aquaman, Wonder Woman, Shazam! and The Suicide Squad being critically acclaimed as well as grossing huge figures at the box office, the DCEU has managed to stay afloat in the race against Marvel.



The Suicide Squad has strengthened the DCEU’s fanbase, being highly rated among critics for its very imaginative and compelling story. It does not fall short of genuine comedy and running gags to enjoy throughout the movie, with enough development from Peacemaker who was brilliantly portrayed by John Cena. The remaining cast members also deliver in the performance of returning characters like Viola Davis and Margot Robbie as Waller and Harley Quinn respectively, and a new assortment of wacky superheroes portrayed by the likes of Idris Elba, David Dastmalchian, Daniela Melchior and Sylvester Stallone who deliver very stunning first performances for the DCEU. Without revealing much of the film’s content, one can only recommend this movie to comic book fans and film watchers in general as a productive two hours filled with good laughs.



Not to say that this might be a discussion of overstated importance, but the world of comic-book adapted media has changed how modern viewers regard the comic book culture. Regardless of how much DC and Marvel duke it out for control of the market share and public opinion, the bottom line stands: as non-partisan profit-uninterested viewers, like me, will keep enjoying this newly developed enthusiasm for unnatural fictional beings who fight physical battles that reflect our moral and emotional struggles in real life. And as if not enough, this battle of the titans has given rise to the popularity of adapting content from comic books into the limelight of animated media with the likes of new unrelated content such as the recent Invincible and The Umbrella Academy television series. As the adage goes, a little competition never hurt anyone. In our case, it has provided us with an abundance of content to enjoy from a neutral standpoint.

An &#8220;Age-Old&#8221; Dichotomy: Team Marvel or DC Comics?

With Pride month being celebrated in America, we take a look back at how the fight for the LGBTQIA+ community to be recognized in our own country of South Africa has seen a long and hard history; and whilst still ongoing, the waves being made are bringing to light a new age of cultural acceptance.&nbsp;







By Josh Raynham&nbsp;



This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 3 of VARSITY News.







In America, June has become known as the month of pride. It began in 1969 during which the Stonewall riots galvanized the gay community and sparked greater political activism. As a result, this time of year has slowly become a celebration and recognition of the LGBTQIA+&nbsp;



community. However, it was not until October 13, 1990, that South Africa became the first African nation to hold a Lesbian and Gay march in Johannesburg. Whilst it was a celebration of gay pride it was also held at a time when South Africa was still in the clutches of the apartheid&nbsp;



regime and was therefore also recognized as an anti-apartheid march and political statement to try to bring an end to the regime. Speaking as one of the founders of the march, Simon Nkoli stated that:&nbsp;



“I&#8217;m fighting for the abolition of apartheid. And I fight for the right to freedom of sexual orientation. These are inextricably linked with each other. I cannot be free as a black man if I am not free as a gay man.”&nbsp;



— Simon Nkoli (First pride parade, Johannesburg, 13 October 1990)&nbsp;



Since then, South Africa has held Pride month almost every year with dates varying across the country from late February to November.&nbsp;



Whilst South Africa is among the few African nations which recognized and openly allows LGBTQIA+ pride, the struggle to get recognized is still an uphill battle. In a 2016 study, 44% of the queer community reported experiences of verbal, physical and/or sexual discrimination in their everyday lives.* Furthermore, in a study conducted the following year 49% of black



members of LGBTQIA+ communities said to have known someone who has been murdered for their identity. Whilst this is recent, the past has also been steeped with hurdles. During the apartheid regime, same-sex marriage was illegal and punishable with up to seven years in prison. Following the 1993 Bill of Rights, however, the endorsement of legal recognition saw the prohibition of discrimination against sexual orientation. However, even after the passing of this Bill, avenues such as same-sex marriages, discrimination within universities, transgender rights, and public opinion on the LGBTQIA+ community have all seen uphill battles in allowing for greater recognition within society. Even at UCT, an Inclusivity Policy for Sexual Orientation only came into effect in December 2017, in order to “ensure that UCT’s institutional response reflects the principles enshrined in The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa of 1996,” these being, “everyone is seen [as] equal before the law&#8221; and prohibits “unfair” discrimination on the basis of sex, gender and sexual orientation.”* This shows that whilst there is growth, policies like this one take long periods of time to come into effect and should be one of the main focuses within our universities.&nbsp;



When understanding the fight which members of the LGBTQIA+ community have to go through, understanding the Pride flag as a central symbol within the community is also an important feature in its history. The rainbow flag, and its colours, reflect the diversity of the LGBTQIA+ community. The first flag originated in San Francisco, USA and contained eight colours:&nbsp;



Hot pink Sex&nbsp;



Red Life&nbsp;



Orange Healing&nbsp;



Yellow Sunlight&nbsp;



Green Nature&nbsp;



Turquoise Magic/Art&nbsp;



Indigo Serenity&nbsp;



Violet Spirit



Now, however, those colours have been reduced to six by removing hot pink and turquoise and the flag is flown horizontally with the red stripe at the top to depict a rainbow. These colours have routinely been used to show LGBTQIA+ identity and solidarity and today have become recognized as a symbol of unity and pride.&nbsp;



Pride month is a time to commemorate the trials and tribulations which the LGBTQIA+ community has had to go through in order to become recognized. It is also a time to celebrate the community’s history and culture and to recommit to the work that needs to be done to establish justice and equality for all.&nbsp;











References:&nbsp;



*https://out.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Hate-Crimes-Against-LGBT-People-in-Sout h-Africa-21-November-2016-Web.pdf&nbsp;



*https://www.humandignitytrust.org/wp-content/uploads/resources/2020-Hate-Crimes-aga inst-the-LGBT-Community-in-the-Commonwealth_A-Situational-Analysis.pdf&nbsp;



*https://www.uct.ac.za/sites/default/files/image_tool/images/328/about/policies/Policy_In clusivity_Sexual_Orientation_December2017.pdf

A History of Pride

As the City of Cape Town cracks down on the existence of its homeless population, the question arises of if the city is truly there to serve the majority of its inhabitants.&nbsp;







By Ilhām Choonara



This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 3 of VARSITY News



The City of Cape Town has made a Street People Complaints Form public on social media. The form lays out a draft that any resident or business can fill in, lodging a complaint against &#8216;street-people&#8217; in their area. Is this a proactive step? Jean-Pierre Smith from Safety and Security, City of Cape Town, says yes. I personally see this egregious act as further marginalizing people who are already vulnerable. When will the authorities abide by simple ethics and morality?



The City faces a court case from 11 houseless people who want some of Cape Town’s by-laws against noise and space occupation declared unconstitutional. They say that the by-laws criminalize and discriminate against homeless people.



What has the City had to say for itself? Smith said in an interview that complaints about homeless people are not uncommon, adding emphasis on how unsustainable it is to have street people living in public spaces. These complaints concern the impact on local communities and businesses. “Our legal services department is also entitled to go and ask the people impacted to supply their comments and inputs for the court to understand the fuller picture”, says Smith. My question is: how does this endeavour humanize homeless people? It is not simply gaining perspective; neither is it addressing real causes of homelessness. It appears to be a way to strengthen the City’s position in court and extends to its mission of anti-homelessness.



Allowing criticizing discourse about street people from citizens who are not in their shoes does not address South Africa’s spatial inequality. Productively managing open spaces such as golf courses that use up to 45,99 hectares of land (which the city might renew a lease at a subsidized rate of R1 058 per year for another 10 years) could serve as a solution. However, the government is catering to the wealthy, while the poor majority remain houseless and are criminalized for it. Is this the city that works for you?&nbsp;



“Ward councillors should not only be councillors of the rich but should be cognisant that they are also councillors of people living on the street,” said Buhle Booi of Ndifuna Ukwazi community organization. The governments of the past, its policies, as well as the people of South Africa, created a country where practical implications of racial discrimination are widely apparent.&nbsp;



The City seeks abutment from residents and businesses by providing suggested wording in the complaint form. They are acting as though it were a petition in need of a few signatures: to recognize the rights of people forced to the streets, or to criminalize the way that they must live for the increased comfort of the wealthy? The existence of the public complaint form is inciting a negative discourse that seeks to criminalize homelessness.&nbsp;



DISCLAIMER



This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

Does this city work for you?

&nbsp;Citizens remain unenthusiastic in light of China’s new three-child policy.











By Imaan Voterson



This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 3 of VARSITY News.







China has implemented a three-child policy in an attempt to increase the birth rate. However, the government has received negative reactions to this strategy.



A senior lecturer at King’s College London, Dr Ye Liu said that the government shifted their policy due to their demographic crisis without concrete policy proposals and financial commitments.



“Individual families suffer from this huge burden of extra child-bearing and extra educational costs,” said Liu.



A 37-year old music teacher and father of two, Ma Yandi, says that he enjoys fatherhood, however, he won’t consider having a third child even though China’s new policy allows it.



“At the moment, my wife is the one who’s looking after both of our children. My eldest has to go to kindergarten and my second child is still a baby. Having one person look after two children is pretty taxing, so we wouldn’t consider having a third child for now,” said Yandi.



Many citizens have said that it is expensive to raise a child in China and the quality of education is not even.



“It’s not like other European countries where (the government) comes out to say specifically that they will give you subsidies if you have one, two or three children, or that the government would give free education or subsidise 80% or 90% of it.”



With the slowest population growth since the 1950’s, the current mainland Chinese population came to just under 1.5 billion people as of November 2020.&nbsp;



The Economist Intelligence Unit predicts that China’s population will decrease by 17 million people by 2030.&nbsp;



References:



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<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/11/chinas-census-shows-population-growth-slowed.html">https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/11/chinas-census-shows-population-growth-slowed.html</a>

Chinese Citizens’ Lukewarm Response To Three-Child Policy

The amendment could cultivate the ideal environment for the occurrence of infractions







By Asemahle Ntoyakhe



This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 3 of VARSITY News.



Subject to the amendment of the current Firearms Control Amendment Bill, South Africans will not be permitted to have ownership of firearms for self-defence. This is subsequent to a proposal by the Civilian Secretariat for Police Service (CSP), in which the ownership of guns in the name of self-defence will be declared void. As an alternative, the draft law attempts to allow the acquisition of a licence, to be a valid reason for possessing a firearm. Although this is seemingly viable upon presentation, it is incredibly ambitious when considering that state entities do not possess a reputation for timeous and efficient service. This is therefore too great an opportunity for crime to manifest without the possibility of legal self-defence, as individuals cannot possess firearms without this licence.&nbsp;&nbsp;



If the legislation is passed, additional limits could be sanctioned by the state, including specifications on the amount of ammunition owners may hold, as well as the number of firearms hunters and sport shooters may acquire. It could also permit the seizing of firearms from any individual charged with domestic violence or harassment &#8211; thus constituting the effective suspension of their firearm licences by authorities.



This potential bill has garnered a substantial amount of criticism amongst many communities within the country. A multitude of individuals perceive themselves as vulnerable to crime and argue that the amendment could cultivate the ideal environment for the occurrence of infractions.



These concerns are in direct correlation with the fact that South Africa has the third-highest crime rate in the world, according to the global crime index. Assault, rape and homicides, are the most prevalent crimes, which occur daily, at frequently high rates. Amongst these atrocities South Africa has the highest rape rate in the world, at 132.4 incidents per 100,000 people, thus unnervingly earning the title of being the “rape capital of the world”. The acquisition of guns in order to exercise the right to self-defence would therefore provide means of security for numerous disenfranchised individuals. This would be predominantly from the aforementioned acts of lawlessness.&nbsp;



However, it is imperative that the circulation of weaponry – firearms in particular, subsides in order to decrease the rates of crime within the country.&nbsp;



A solution to resolving this predicament could be to implement a system in which levies are paid for firearm ownership. When an individual hasn’t paid their levy, then they may not be permitted to utilise their firearm. If caught, the individual would have to pay a hefty fine upon the first offence and possibly face incarceration upon further offences. However, regardless of the solution implemented, the effective resolving of this matter is of paramount importance and tantamount to displaying competency in law-making.&nbsp;



*This story is still developing and this article was written during the inception stages of the potential amendment.



DISCLAIMER



This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

Draft law prohibits ownership of firearms on the premise of self-defence

The unending pandemic has prompted a less rigorous following of COVID-19 regulations.&nbsp;



By Nita Naidoo



This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 3 of VARSITY News.



The current regulations around face-to-face tutorials or tests require going through the process of a health screening, procuring a letter of admission, and a security check on campus with a student card. However, this is not what has been happening on university campuses. Many students are being required to take tests on campus since the relaxation of lockdown rules. This is mostly because tests became “group-work” over the pandemic. There have been many measures taken to ensure our safety but the execution by the university has not been up to standard. The Vice-Chancellor has laid out the many steps that have been taken to protect students but unfortunately in a university of 30 000 students, it is impossible to make sure that everyone is checked at security or has a valid reason for being on campus. There is also the possibility that someone is carrying the virus and is asymptomatic.&nbsp;



I have been required to write two tests over the semester in Sports Centre and while I was ready for the long security line and to have a thermometer staring back at me, I simply drove onto campus, walked into the venue and waited with the other 202 students who were writing the test. I found that the stress of the test overcame the stress of the pandemic. There are so many factors at play when coming into contact with others during the pandemic including; your potential exposure to the virus, your peers’ potential exposure, the stress of tests and assignments, and so on. This is why we should not be on campus yet – there are just too many variables that take priority over social distancing or wearing a mask or being checked at security.



I, along with many other students, have struggled through online learning and wish I could be on campus. This wish does not outweigh the safety of students. The length of the pandemic has caused many to become tired of following social distancing and other covid-19 precautions. Not to mention the students who are not in Cape Town. Having to fly to Cape Town for a test increases the risk of spreading the virus. These are the students who cannot afford to stay in Cape Town due to the financial exclusion which denies the possibility of paying for fees and accommodation; or simply because the cost of living can be up to 40% higher in Cape Town which limits the accommodation options. While it is understandable that UCT is trying to mitigate cheating and keep the standard of their degrees, I do not think that this is more important than the health of the students and their families.&nbsp;&nbsp;



DISCLAIMER



This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

Why we are not ready for face-to-face teaching

It is our mandate as ‘born frees’ to use our newly found democratic voices to address the injustices of our past.



By Junior Dlamini&nbsp;



This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 3 of VARSITY News.



Land expropriation has been a major facet of democratic South Africa and this topic is gaining more interest than ever before in recent years. South Africa has a long history when it comes to discrimination and oppression with regard to land ownership. I believe that it is our mandate as ‘born frees’ to use our newly found democratic voices to address the injustices of our past. ‘Land expropriation’ falls within that scope, but what is the most effective way to do it?



I feel that land expropriation, done efficiently and promptly, serves as an adequate solution to the land distribution dilemma that plagues our country as a consequence of the apartheid regime. Previously, section 25 of the Constitution, which provides for how land expropriation is to be implemented, was understood to have attached compensation at a market-related price as a condition for expropriation. I believe that this interpretation was simply a political error and a misinterpretation of the constitutional provision. The ‘compensation clause’ in section 25 of the Constitution makes no mention of a market-related price.&nbsp;&nbsp;



An ad-hoc committee has proposed an amendment to section 25. I am hopeful that this amendment will bring clarity to the requirements that the state must comply with when it expropriates property. This amendment makes it explicit that in some instances, the state may feel that it is “just and equitable” to not pay any compensation at all but must provide sufficient justification for this decision.&nbsp;



I am highly disheartened with the way in which the government has been slacking in redistributing land.&nbsp; The ANC’s favoured “willing-seller”, “willing buyer” model has been slow in achieving progress. Recently a survey of title deeds was done, and it was revealed that since the beginning of this model in 1994, only 8 percent of farmland has been transferred to Black hands. This 8 percent falls embarrassingly short of the 30 percent target that the ANC aimed to achieve by 2014. A contributing factor to these figures is that government policy favours payment of compensation to claimants (rather than the return of land), if the land that is claimed has been earmarked for other national objectives, such as a development area.&nbsp;



I think that expropriation without compensation will without a doubt speed up the expropriation process, but it must be done fairly. As long as it is done in a “just and equitable” manner, then I am confident that the State will achieve a desirable outcome for the interests of previously disadvantaged South Africans, and it will further the transformative and progressive mission of democratic South Africa. The sooner we address the injustices of the past, the sooner we can find ourselves in a South Africa where our citizens are all at a level playing field and demographics will no longer have a significant role in politics.



DISCLAIMER



This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

Hope for the future of land expropriation

Africa Day: The Origin
 Celebrating Africa Month, the history of the African Union is reviewed
&nbsp;
This article is exclusive to Edition 2 of VARSITY Online
by Ilhām Choonara
On the 25th of May, each year, Africa Day is celebrated across the continent as a celebration and reflection of African unity throughout the global environment. The theme for Africa Day 2021 was “Arts, Culture and Heritage: Levers for Building the Africa we Want”. Virtual events took place as people in Africa and the African diaspora dedicated the month of May to sustainably recognizing the significance of each individual African in the world.
Africa Day acknowledges the creation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) on 25 May 1963 which was propelled by the importance of driving decolonization movements in countries such as Angola, South Africa, Mozambique, and Southern Rhodesia. This followed a Conference of Independent African States in Ghana which took place in 1958 and was the first Pan-Africanist liberation conference held in Africa. Among its many undertakings, the conference called for the commemoration of African Freedom Day (later becoming Africa Day) to mark “The onward progress of the liberation movement, and to symbolize the determination of the People of Africa to free themselves from foreign domination and exploitation.” The forming of the OAU was hosted by the Emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie, who declared “May this convention of union last 1 000 years”.
South Africa was only able to join the OAU in 1994 after the Apartheid regime was dismantled. South Africa was a founding member of the African Union (AU), which evolved from the OAU in 2001. In 2013, AU Commission Chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma led the African Union’s ‘Agenda 2063’. This entailed the 50-year vision for the continent, to build “an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in the international arena.”
As one of the first countries to gain liberation from colonial rule, Ghana’s independence witnessed the success of powerful notions of political and economic African unison. This reflects the fundamental notions of Pan-Africanism that people of African descent and across the diaspora have extensive commonalities that need to be celebrated. Recognition of these commonalities, the pride that the continent fills us with and post-independent cultural regeneration all demand celebration and reflection.
Africa Day serves as a time to acknowledge the potential of unity in diversity as well as to reflect on the successes and challenges faced in efforts of years gone by. The 2021 theme of “Arts, Culture, and Heritage” further exhibits the diversity of cultures across Africa. There is an exuberance of cultural expressions and heritage which is a great asset for progression. Of the many Africa Day celebrations taking place, UCT held a virtual symposium focusing on youth participation in continuing the notions of political and economic African unison, including: decolonisation of our education curricula, peace and security during Covid-19 as well as developing the Continental Free Trade Agreement. The African Union Development Agency-NEPAD, also held an event showcasing efforts by the continent’s youths towards building the Africa we want in arts, culture, heritage, innovation and entrepreneurship.
In whatever way we commemorate Africa Month, I implore every individual to reflect on what differentiates you as a proud African? How do you preserve the many cultures of Africa and celebrate its cultural diversity?

Africa Day: The Origin

Palestine and Israel: A Brief Background 
A split-second dive into the complicated history of the Israel-Palestine territory
By Josh Raynham
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 2 of VARSITY News.
Land, a valuable resource. Religion, a particular system of faith and worship. Culminating in the middle, these aspects have seen to one of the longest-standing civil conflicts in the world today raged between the Israeli Jews and the Palestinian Muslims. 
This is but a short explanation of the birth of what has been seen as the longest running strife in the 20th and 21st century. 
Firstly, how did Israel come to be? Throughout the beginning of the 20th century, Jewish Europeans have been faced with horrific persecution. Towards the end of the 19th century, however, the Zionist movement began to take form. The movement sparked the Jewish people to return to their “rightful &#8221; place in their ancestral homeland of Israel. The rise of Zionism was partly due to the upsurge of anti-Semitism emerging out of Europe, but also partly because of the introduction of secular nationalism to the Jewish people. Between 1896 and 1948 the movement of the Jewish people to Palestine increased, spurred on by the rise of Nazi Germany &#8211; and which culminated in the Holocaust. Before 1896, Palestine was home to about 20, 000 Jewish people, but by the time Hitler rose to power, there were more than 8 times that number. 
Whilst the move to the promised land seemed like a reasonable ordeal, there was only one problem, there were already people living there. The land had been inhabited by an Arab and Muslim majority, who saw it as rightfully theirs. Once the influx of Jews coming out of Europe increased, the Arabs resisted, seeing this migration as a hostile takeover. The Jewish and Muslim peoples fought bitterly and in 1947 the UN attempted to step in and try to split the land fairly between the two states. This failed as the Palestinians saw it as an extension by the Jewish minority to try and force the Muslim majority out of the area. This resulted in two ‘intifada’ – Palestinian uprisings – which ended in Israel controlling 77 percent of the total area and turning 700,000 Palestinians into refugees. Today the majority of Palestinians live within the Gaza strip and the West Bank. The West Bank, whilst mostly
controlled by the Palestinian Authority, is still under Israeli occupation. Israeli troops enforce restrictions on Palestinian movements and activities whilst overseeing the growing influx of Jewish settlers&#8211; who build ever-expanding communities within the West Bank, denying Palestinian land ownership. On the opposite side, the Gaza strip is controlled predominately by Hamas, an Islamist fundamentalist party who are the main opposition to the Israeli occupation. Whilst there are no actual Israeli ground forces in the Gaza strip, Israel still upholds a blockade on the area. The rest of the area surrounding Gaza and the West Bank has now become known as Israel. 
But why has the land been fought over so profusely? The answer, Jerusalem. The city hosts the Western Wall, one of Judaism’s holiest sites, as well as two important Islamic monuments, the al-Aqsa Mosque, and the Dome of the Rock. Once divided separately between the two states, Israelis have now moved in and around Jerusalem and make up about two-thirds of the city. One of the main issues concerning this issue is ensuring that both states have access to the holy sites, but with the influx of Jewish Israelis in the area, the laws dictated by the Israeli state are making it increasingly hard for Palestinian Muslims to gain access to their sites. On top of this, the influx of Jewish Israelis into the area is giving way to forced expulsions of the Palestinian people from their homes, similar to what has been happening inside the West Bank. 
This is but a short explanation of the birth of what has been seen as the longest running strife in the 20th and 21st century. The facets of it run deep, with multiple avenues to be explored. With a ceasefire being put into effect, one can only hope this means lasting peace between the two sides.
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Source: vox.com 
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Palestine and Israel: A brief background

The embattled politician appears with co-accused in the Pietermaritzburg High Court to answer to 16 charges of corruption, fraud, money laundering and racketeering.
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By Seth Meyer
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 2 of VARSITY News.
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The long-awaited, much delayed trial of Jacob Zuma was once again underway in the Pietermaritzburg High Court, with the former President appearing as Accused No. 1 in the State’s case against himself and his co-accused, the French arms manufacturer, Thales, implicated in the litany of bribes and corruption (amidst other charges) that Zuma stands accused of. 
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The case was previously delayed when Zuma’s legal representative, Eric Mabuza announced his withdrawal from the case. The Defence’s filing of an affidavit for Senior Counsel Billy Downer’s recusal from the case also compelled Judge Piet Koen to grant an adjournment for Zuma to facilitate new legal representation and to tender a plea for Downer’s recusal. Downer is representing the State in the matter and has been involved in the litigation of Zuma and his affiliates since 2005.
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The trial commenced again on Wednesday morning, with Downer putting charges to both Zuma and Thales. The former president responded in short, stating “I plead Not Guilty” with regard to all counts. Thales, represented in the matter by Advocate Barry Roux, whom South Africans will remember from the Pistorius trial, followed suit with an identical response of “Not Guilty”.
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Advocate Dali Mpofu, Zuma’s new legal counsel, commenced reading a prepared statement, declaring on behalf of the former president, with regard to his plea: “I reserve my right not to disclose the basis of my defence at this stage”. 
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The trial proceeded for approximately two and a half hours before Judge Koen called an adjournment at the State’s request, which has asked for leave to respond to the plea application filed by Zuma with the intent of recusing Downer. The matter was postponed until 19th July when the State is expected to have tendered a response to the application, which Downer described in court as “voluminous”.
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Zuma subsequently addressed a crowd of supporters outside court, appearing alongside recently ousted ANC Secretary-General Ace Magashule who led the crowd in a triple chant of “Long live President Jacob Zuma, long live!” Magashule is due to face his own corruption trial in August, along with another court case regarding the contention of his suspension from the ANC as Secretary-General, an act he has claimed is “unconstitutional”.
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 Jacob Zuma is also facing an application to the Constitutional Court against him, from the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, regarding contempt of court. The Constitutional Court had previously ordered Zuma to obey summonses served upon him to appear before the Commission, which he has defied. The Commission has demanded a two-year jail sentence for the former President.

Zuma v State: “I plead Not Guilty&#8221;

SEA POINT, 2021: PALESTINE SUPPORTER CALLED A ‘TERRORIST’
Solidarity breeds ire on Atlantic Seaboard
By Imaan Voterson
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 2 of VARSITY News.
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On 23 May, Digital Marketer, Taahirah Abrahams, tied Palestinian flags onto the “Perceiving Freedom” monument in Sea Point, in solidarity with Palestine.
In a video circulating on social media, a woman is seen approaching Abrahams and asking her about the board she held. The board read “From the River to the Sea” which Abrahams believes to have led the woman to question whether she was a terrorist. 
The woman claimed that Abrahams would not have been seen as a terrorist if she had tied Israeli flags to the monument instead. 
In an interview with Isnad Academy, Abrahams claimed that the disruption had initially begun elsewhere. She states: “It started at the V&amp;A Waterfront when a friend and I put up posters and flags on the sculptures of the country’s four Nobel peace prize winners. Many people were unhappy about it. People told me it is a disgrace that I put these posters on Nelson Mandela’s statue.” 
They were told to remove their posters and flags by the security guards, as many people complained about the posters being placed on private property. 
However, they were also met with support on the same day in Sea Point, with many people coming out as part of the picket, standing in solidarity with Palestine. 
During April of 2021, tension escalated in Palestine as a result of Israeli actions and restrictions against Palestinians. Following 11 days of violence, a ceasefire was declared between Israel and Hamas. It was called after over 240 people were declared dead.
People from all over the world have been in on-going protest in support of the lives and well-being of the Palestinian people.
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SEA POINT, 2021: PALESTINE SUPPORTER CALLED A ‘TERRORIST’

Third wave of COVID-19 approaching. 
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By Micha Cerf
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 1 of VARSITY News.
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In recent modelling data released by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases in April, South Africa&#8217;s third wave of COVID-19 has taken centre stage as the institute issued its report on the possibility of a new peak of the disease approaching. 
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The report, released towards the end of April, detailed all the possibilities of a third wave of COVID-19 arising in South Africa, ignoring the possible effect of the vaccination process on the spread of the disease. 
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It concluded that in terms of the trend, the third peak should be lower than the second, with fewer hospitalisations if no new variants of the disease make themselves known in the South African population.
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<center> 
<img loading="lazy" class="alignnone wp-image-6502" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/nicd-third-wave-data-300x202.png" alt="" width="385" height="259" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/nicd-third-wave-data-300x202.png 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/nicd-third-wave-data.png 641w" sizes="(max-width: 385px) 100vw, 385px" /></center>&nbsp;
The report also mentioned that a delay in the resurgence of the virus may allow the country more time to vaccinate its population, thereby further reducing the burden of a third wave on the South African health sector. 
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The country&#8217;s mass vaccination initiative has been an issue of contention as the rollout of the South African tested Johnson and Johnson vaccine was suspended in April amidst concerns surrounding possible negative side effects. While South Africa has managed to get its hands on a shipment of the Pfizer vaccine, in the first shipment there were only 200 000 doses, painting a grim future for those members of the population eager to be vaccinated. 
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As of the time of writing, no new variants have been detected in the country, meaning there may be some time left until South Africa experiences the brunt of the disease&#8217;s third wave, but as a whole, the NICD data leaves no question that a third wave is looming, whether our population is prepared for it or not.

SA remains highly vulnerable to third wave

France’s Hijab ban and what it means for freedom.
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By Ilham Choonara
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 1 of VARSITY News.
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In the early months of this year, the French Senate proposed an amendment to their anti-separatism bill, banning minors from wearing hijab as well as banning mothers wearing hijab from accompanying school trips. The bill is not official yet, but the proposed legislation has caused backlash from French citizens as well as Muslims and non-Muslims globally. Activist, healthcare professional, blogger, and model Rawdah Mohamed is one of many who took to social media in protest, creating the #HandsoffMyHijab hashtag. 
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Mohamed writes in an Instagram caption, &#8220;I started the hashtag as I felt the need to humanize the movement… ethnic minorities are always spoken for. I wished to take back the control of our narratives and tell our stories.&#8221; The hashtag has received over 4 thousand uses on Instagram, accompanied by its counterpart in French #PasToucheAMonHijab. 
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A similar ban was passed in Switzerland in March this year, campaigning to &#8220;Stop extremism&#8221; of women covering their hair and faces. It received majority support from the Swiss public, however, citizens maintain that they oppose laws that dictate how women should dress. Campaigns utilized posters representing women in a face veil (niqab) as violent. 
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Considering the fact that France has the largest minority of Muslims in Western Europe and only 5% of Swiss citizens are Muslim – the European project of Islamophobia continues to criminalize Islam through exclusionary discourses and laws.
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The French ban outlaws the Muslim headscarf – which is a core expression of a Muslim woman&#8217;s faith. Women around the world choose to don the hijab as an overt sign of modesty, a mark of their Islamic identity and simply for the sake of God. Contestations have risen regarding the logic of the ban that illegalizes hijab for girls under the age of 18, while the legal age for sex in France is 15. A Jewish user on TikTok (@totallykosher) explained her alliance with Muslim girls: &#8220;forcing a woman to show a part of her body which she deems private feels a lot like sexual assault… confining them to their homes all in the name of liberation and Western feminism.&#8221;
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Non-hijab wearers mostly support the sentiment that banning the headscarf is a violation of women&#8217;s rights to liberation. Videos on social media see Muslim girls object against the oppressive law, ending their videos with &#8220;hands off my freedom, hands off my rights, hands off my hijab!&#8221;
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The hijab ban in France is not the first of its kind following a ban of the face veil in 2011 and banning the full modest swimsuit (&#8220;burkini&#8221;) in 2015. Germany, Austria, Belgium, The Netherlands, Italy, Britain, Denmark, and Bulgaria are among European countries that have passed or proposed discriminatory laws against the face veil in recent years. In a world progressively moving towards acceptance and respect of all individuals, acts of marginalization cause harrowing effects as ordinary Muslims are represented as a threat to society.
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As summed up by the head of an intersectional feminist and anti-racial French organization LALLAB: &#8220;The argument of banning hijab has nothing to do with liberation and helping Muslim women, it is a continuation of European colonial power that asserts dominance over a religious minority.&#8221;
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Hands off my Freedom, hands off my Rights, hands off my Hijab!

Murder of Andile ‘Lulu’ Ntuthela sends LGBTQIA+ protestors to parliament.
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By Imaan Voterson
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 1 of VARSITY News. 
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On 16 April, devastated activists of the LGBTIQA+ community marched to parliament calling for justice for the murder of Andile &#8216;Lulu&#8217; Ntuthela.
Kamva Gwana of the #JusticeForLulu movement said: &#8220;We want justice for the brutal homicide of Lulu and other queer bodies who have suffered in this country. Queer bodies do not walk and live freely, they live in a hetero-patriarchal society.&#8221; Gwana stated that they wanted hate crimes to be dealt with and that they believed that the police are queerphobic. 
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Ntuthela&#8217;s family reported him missing after he failed to return home during the Easter weekend. Days later, his body was discovered on the property of Lulu&#8217;s friend, Luvuyo Jonas, who is now a suspect in the murder and currently in custody.
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Protestors stood outside parliament singing while holding candles and placards saying: &#8220;#JusticeForLulu&#8221; and &#8220;I&#8217;m sorry that we couldn&#8217;t protect you.&#8221;
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Activist and organiser, Tutu Zondo, said the LGBTIQA+ community was suffering. &#8220;We&#8217;re being gruesomely killed, raped and not treated as equal members of society. We live in an incredible country that has laws and rights for the LGBTQIA+ community but our lived experiences don&#8217;t always reflect that.&#8221; He also added that their history has been ignored for too long and that they have been erased.
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NGO Iranti said that the LGTQIA+ community held a meeting in the Eastern Cape where attendees said police did not take LGBTQIA+ cases seriously and that they were often told that cases were closed when they followed up.
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&#8220;Community members pointed to poor investigations and a lack of sensitivity among police officers when dealing with such cases. The community resolved to have a meeting with the station commander the following Tuesday.&#8221;
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Sibusiso Kheswa from Iranti said that they were &#8220;angered by the attacks on LGBTQIA+ community and the government must ensure justice is served.&#8221; He said that many cases have been closed by the police and National Prosecuting Authority without thorough investigations, which gives the impression that &#8220;LGBTQIA+ lives don&#8217;t matter.&#8221;
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The #JusticeForLulu protest aimed to hand over a memorandum of demands that related to the Hate Crime bill. 
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Provincial Secretary of the ANC, Ronalda Nalumango, received and signed the memorandum handed over by the group. She agreed that there should be no bail for perpetrators of crime against the LGBTQIA+ community.
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Demands in the group&#8217;s memo also included that parliament should arrange a debate on hate crimes to discuss the importance of the protection of the rights of the LGBTQIA+ society. 
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Protestors claimed that they would return if their demands were not met.
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#JusticeForLulu: Brutal murder of gay man sparks national outrage

George Floyd’s murderer guilty in “trial of the century”
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This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 1 of VARSITY News
by Asemahle Ntoyakhe
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This tribunal litigation of Derek Chauvin was dubbed “the trial of the century”&#8211; not because
an overwhelming multitude of people anticipated an ethical ruling, rather, it garnered this
title because its culmination intrinsically determined the existence of peace amongst entire 
communities, namely those of colour. The recurring theme of countrywide protesting seemed 
inevitable, as all eyes watched for the outcome of the trial. Nearly a year after the fatal 
murder of George Floyd, at the hands of Chauvin, the world observed the trial with
incredibly indignant sentiments. A single verdict not received well had the potential to spark 
a substantial amount of outrage and subsequent protests similar to those that had occurred in
the previous year.
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The prosecution of Derek Chauvin was monumental not only to the bereaved family of
George Floyd, but also to the often-scrutinized American justice system.
A system that has become synonymous with violent, brutal terror waged on people of colour. 
The prosecuting team was therefore tasked with proving beyond a reasonable doubt, that 
Chauvin consciously perpetuated this behaviour when he murdered Floyd over a paltry
counterfeit twenty-dollar bill.
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The courtroom had forty-four witnesses testifying over a duration of fifteen days, with
the majority disclosing haunting accounts of the ominous events that took place on May 25,
<ol start="2020">
<li> The staggering evidence was encapsulated through overwhelming emotion from the</li>
</ol>
witnesses. However, the attestant who evoked the most substantial amount of emotion was 
not a witness. It was a video, shot on the phone of a witness. The infamous piece of media
portrayed Chauvin kneeling on the neck of Floyd for nine minutes and twenty-nine seconds. 
The courtroom was subjected to a horrific serenade of Floyd crying out for help. His last 
words were, “I can’t breathe”. Floyd consequently died from cardiac arrest, caused by neck
 compression.
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Those last words were reminiscent of the final words of Eric Garner. A man who was brutally
slain by a policeman, coincidentally in the exact same manner as Floyd. Those last words
conclusively provided evidence of the police being synonymous with utilising brutal force 
against African Americans. Chauvin, who was ultimately dismissed from his job, endorsed
these actions and used them frequently when on the line of duty. The incident which
occurred with Floyd was found to have not been an isolated incident for the former police
officer. It was uncovered that Chauvin had a history of disproportionately castigating
people of colour, predominantly African Americans. These findings, coupled with the other 
overwhelming evidence and captivating closing statements from the defensive party, were 
sufficient enough for the jury to reach a verdict.
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Chauvin was found guilty on charges of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree 
murder, and second-degree manslaughter. This was the first prolific case, in which a member
of the police-force was reprimanded and held accountable, due to showing complete 
disregard for the lives of those they were meant to serve . 
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Upon these events, a new policing act was founded in order to mitigate police violence, 
predominantly against people of colour. The George Floyd Policing Act was implemented, in 
order to act as a symbol of change. 
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The Trial of Derek Chauvin

The Netflix hit documentary wins in the ‘Best Documentary’ category, and receives a congratulations from President Cyril Ramaphosa
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This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 1 of VARSITY News
by Seth Meyer
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The Academy Awards have always been a lavish and unusual affair, an opportunity where journalists, film critics and fashion fans come together to spectate a star-studded evening typically defined by celebrity quotes and gaffes, wardrobe wins and malfunctions, film and acting critique and of course, socio-political posturing. This year is no less unusual, in the setting of a pandemic and of course, in the victors in each category of award, which has recently seen some stir-up, in no small part due to lobbying for better representation for minority and foreign films in an Oscars that has traditionally ignored or snubbed these contributors. Film buffs might remember last year’s awards, in which the foreign film ‘Parasite’ won Best Picture, making global headlines and dominating discourse amidst film critiques, seen as a win for foreign and minority representation
Thus, amidst all the glam and glitz in the Oscars 2021, the biggest news for South Africans is the historic victory of the Netflix documentary My Octopus Teacher, in the Best Documentary Feature category. The film has made waves since its release on the global streaming platform in September of 2020 and has scooped up several awards, including a recent win at the BAFTA in a similar category. 
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The Oscar win is the No. 1 prize though, the award that holds the most international prestige and recognition and it marks the first time a South African flick has won in the Documentary Feature category, something that President Cyril Ramaphosa did not miss when he initially sent his congratulations to the film team for their nomination, writing: “The documentary is storytelling at its best, with a deeply resonant conservation message, The team should be justifiably proud, as are we, that My Octopus Teacher has been nominated…a first ever for a South African documentary”. He followed up this letter with a second congratulations after the victory had been announced.
Bigger than the jubilation than our South African film team can enjoy, with Craig Foster (film maker, narrator, the Octopus Man himself) reported to be “incredibly honoured”, is the message that the film itself shares and what its win means for the Oscars going forward. Since the victory of Parasite in the Best Picture category, it has become increasingly evident that there is a growing space and acknowledgement for foreign films, underdog films, minority films, films that have historically struggled to break into the limelight wielded by the industry of Western-dominated cinema prestige. Foster can be proud of his work that conveyed the message of conservation. It is definitely a stepping stone for more foreign film recognition on the global stage especially for South African filmmakers, whose work we look forward to seeing in the near future!
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Oscars 2021: SA’s My Octopus Teacher strikes gold

UCT students vs the procrastination trap amidst #UCTFires tragedy
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By Josh Raynham 
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 1 of VARSITY News.
The tragedy that was the Table Mountain fire, which gutted the Jagger Reading Room and destroyed parts of the Plant Conservation Unit offices, was an event that no one saw coming. Now I know what many of you are thinking, &#8220;I was so close to getting that automatic pass&#8221;. Whilst the idea that the &#8216;university burning down means you get a free degree&#8217; is a blatant mistruth, what we students were given was a free week off. For the many students who were displaced, this was a week to gather their minds, belongings and try to make some sense out of what had just happened. For the rest of us, however, we had a choice: go to the beach, and soak up the last bit of summer sun, or catch up on that work we so desperately needed to get finished. I can tell you now, I am feeling sun-kissed. 
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Now the problem which many of us feel is that whilst the beach does sound like the better option, we all know that our essays are not going to write themselves. We can deliberate between the idea of treating ourselves to a restful day at the beach, or completing that essay, for hours, but the point of the matter is, even amidst all that deliberation, we have fallen into that very trap so many of us have fallen into before: the procrastination trap. The good news, however, is that you are not alone. I can tell you for a fact that even whilst writing this, I too would sit back daydreaming and twiddling my thumbs. 
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The thing is, you should not feel bad about this, because everyone does it. The main aim is understanding and accepting it. To begin with, procrastination and laziness are two very different things. Procrastination involves the &#8216;art&#8217; of delaying an important task by focusing on a less urgent task, often one that seems more enjoyable and easier, and is due in three weeks. It&#8217;s an active process where you choose to do something else – but at least you are doing something. Laziness on the other hand is the unwillingness to act. 
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Now for some people with underlying health issues such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), procrastination can often happen unwillingly rather than being just a bad habit. For the most part, however, any neurotypical person pulling into the procrastination station should be able to hop onto the next train out. 
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The main aim when combating procrastination is realizing you are doing it. From there onwards, you can identify the reasons for your behaviour and search for appropriate strategies to manage and overcome it. There are hundreds of sites and papers out there written by people who have felt the same as you. Most importantly, forgive yourself for Pete&#8217;s sake. Studies show that self-forgiveness can help you feel more positive about yourself and reduce the likelihood of procrastination in the future. Anxiety and stress at university are at a constant high. So, take that beach day, but remember, you are not going to get anywhere in life without a bit of work, so maybe write a paragraph or two of that essay first. 
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Here are two links I thought might be helpful.
<a href="https://mcgraw.princeton.edu/understanding-and-overcoming-procrastination">https://mcgraw.princeton.edu/understanding-and-overcoming-procrastination</a>
<a href="https://www.oxford-royale.com/articles/attitude-boost-academic-performance/">https://www.oxford-royale.com/articles/attitude-boost-academic-performance/</a>
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Fire Break: Expectation vs. Reality

University met with love and support at the loss of a limb.
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By Ilham Choonara 
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 1 of VARSITY News.
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Horror and disbelief surged through Cape Town on Sunday, 18 April as news spread of the Table Mountain fire. UCT students, staff and families might have said a little prayer that the beautiful and beloved campus grounds stay protected. But as the day progressed in clouds of smoke, the Cape Town community was struck into deeper devastation. Students were urgently evacuated from their residences and we received news of the Jagger Library up in flames.
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The following 90 hours were met with urgency and shock but most importantly mobilization. Aid relief headed by the SRC and community organizations saw to the needs of displaced students immediately. Strangers offered their cars, homes, money, clothes and their time in those hours of need. As deadly flames licked at the university&#8217;s bones, a national and global community came together to help heal.
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As students were safely returned to their residences, our focus shifted to the structural damages at the university. The UCT academic calendar was suspended for a week in the aftermath of the fire but as we collectively tried to catch our breath again, many students shared the sentiments of not wanting to sit and do nothing. As the smoke cleared in Cape Town, the air was still alive with community support. 
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We were presented with yet another opportunity to help restore parts of the Library that the fire left in its wake. The call for volunteers was heard by students, their parents, teachers, church groups, grandparents, and the list goes on. Although the request specifically asked for needed muscle for heavy lifting, people showed up from all walks of life simply through their want to help preserve knowledge. 
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Seeing the destroyed Reading Room as if it were a movie set is a sobering image, even the fire alarm was found black and melted. Nikki Crowster, director of Information Systems &amp; Resources at UCT Libraries lamented: &#8220;our hearts are breaking but at the same time we are determined to save whatever we can.&#8221; Volunteers were seen forming a long human chain from the basement as they let the manuscripts, journals, research papers and videos pass through their hands out of the rubble to hopefully be restored.
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When asked about the volunteering experience, students reflected that they were impressed with how much was salvaged and that some left the five-hour shift with an adrenaline rush. It is no doubt tiring and, at times, difficult to breathe in the basement with a mask on. Be that as it may, working for the sake of the greater good is always rewarding. In the human chain of healing, it is easy to make friends and meet people from all walks of life. People are just grateful for your help and you are happy to be there. 
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This fire has seen the coming together of all types of people for the sake of humanity. Our communities move together and mourn together. The destruction of the Jagger Library and its Special Collections section is seen as a national and international disaster due to the wealth of academia lost. However, we must never lose hope that we can still rely on each other. The difficult processes of supporting our students and salvaging our library are proof that we are strengthened through our difficulties. We will overcome the losses and create new horizons in this environment of support.
Please note that volunteers are still needed at the Jagger Library. Anyone can offer their time by registering here: <a href="&lt;a href=">http://www.lib.uct.ac.za/jagger-recovery</a> 
Volunteers are briefed, given a construction helmet, offered coffee, lunch, and breaks in the shift. You are surrounded by kind and caring people in joint communion of recovery.
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Jagger Library Restoration

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By Alana Williams
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
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The UCT Surgical Society Scrub Run involves a group of health sciences students, doctors and passionate individuals who run in their scrubs to raise funds for Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital through the Children’s Hospital Trust. This year, 100% of the proceeds will go towards the upgrade and expansion of the Emergency Centre. This project is vital as this is the only dedicated paediatric emergency centre in Southern Africa and operates 24/7. 45 000 patients are assisted annually and receive lifesaving and essential medical, surgical, nursing and emergency care.
However, presently there are some challenges. There is not enough space to adequately treat all patients or separate patients with infectious and non-infectious diseases. In addition, there is some additional equipment required. With these funds, many important improvements will be made such as an upgraded resuscitation area and more consultation rooms. The centre will also include a burns treatment room, a calming room and safe spaces for victims of violence. Importantly, there will be two isolation cubicles and decontamination rooms which is important given the added challenges of COVID-19.
We feel truly passionate about this cause for so many reasons. Emergency care is the first step in ensuring that children are healthy and safe. Critically ill patients are seen here, and the staff are dedicated to giving them the best chance at recovery. We also feel that this is a great opportunity to support the healthcare workers at Red Cross who provide excellent care to patients and their families. Additionally, in the context of COVID-19, we have seen why having access to timely medical care is vital for preserving and maintaining health. We feel passionate about preserving the health of these paediatric patients. Being in hospital is a scary experience for any child and this project will go a long way to ensuring children are treated in safe, child-friendly spaces.
This year has been challenging however, lockdown regulations have encouraged us to become more creative with our planning of this event. Usually we run as part of the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon which takes place in Greenpoint. However, this year we are hosting a virtual event. We are really excited about this because it means more people from various parts of the country can get involved. Runners can also decide on their own route. We also have expanded and given 5km and 10km options so that anyone can participate no matter their level of fitness. The run will be tracked using the official marathon App. We are also encouraging our Scrub Runners to use virtual running apps to plan their routes and training leading up to the event.
We are encouraging all members of the campus community to participate. You do not have to be a health sciences student to take part. The Scrub Run is also open to anyone and everyone who would like to be involved and participate in this incredible event! The more people involved and supporting this cause, the greater the impact we can have. If anyone would like to get involved, we encourage you to send an email to uctscrubrun@gmail.com and we will provide you with more information to join the Scrub Run. You can also visit our Instagram page <a href="https://www.instagram.com/uctsurgsoc/">@uctsurgsoc</a> to keep up to date with our campaign.
Donations are a huge part of this initiative and every contribution makes a massive impact to this cause. In order to make a donation, visit our <a href="https://www.givengain.com/cc/uct-scrub-run-2020/">GivenGain</a> platform and click on the donate button. Every contribution made makes a huge difference and will go a long way in helping more children get essential, quality medical care. We would like to thank everyone who has supported our cause this far and hope you will participate in the event.

UCT Surgical Society Scrub Run

By Hannah van Teylingen
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
“There is hope in our young people and I just want to say to all my peers out there doing the work in the streets, &#8216;I see you, I admire you, I thank you.&#8217;”
These were the inspiring words that 24-year-old Zendaya Coleman, better known just as 
Zendaya, recited in her acceptance speech after making history as the youngest woman ever to 
win best actress at the most recent Emmy Awards.
&nbsp;
She used to be the stylish and immensely talented dancer on our screens during the days of Shake 
It Up on Disney Channel. But since then, her career has taken a complete shift and she has begun 
to make waves in the acting world. In 2017, she was given a leading role in the musical The Greatest 
Showman alongside Zac Efron and Hugh Jackman, and she has recently played the famous role 
of MJ in the latest Spider Man prequels. But what won her the Emmy was far beyond what I 
think anyone expected from this grown-up Disney Star.
&nbsp;
Her character, Rue, in the HBO show Euphoria is a rebellious and troubled recovering drug- 
addict, and Zendaya played her in a way that showed the true grit and raw emotion that actors of 
her age may struggle to accomplish. This explains why her win went on to beat much older 
nominees such as Jennifer Aniston and Sandra Oh.
&nbsp;
Viola Davis’ made history in 2015 by being the first black woman to ever win this Emmy Award 
for her titular role in How to Get Away with Murder. This year, Zendaya has overtaken that title, by being 
the youngest black woman to ever win the award. It is startling but predictable to see this 
lack of diversity in such an award show, but there is power in Zendaya’s win and a sense of 
change that comes along with it. The words in her acceptance speech may inspire others out 
there who are marginalised in the industry because of their race, culture or ethnicity, and break 
free from the normatively white barriers Hollywood has created.
&nbsp;
In other corners of the industry, young actors are following in Zendaya’s stride. Timothee 
Chalamet was the third youngest person in history to be nominated for Best Actor at the 
Academy Awards in 2017, and Quvenzhane Wallis was nominated for Best Actress at the 
Golden Globes at the mere age of 9. Florence Pugh and Amandla Stenberg are just a few of the 
other honourable mentions that are catching the attention of directors and audiences alike.
&nbsp;
Zendaya not only redefined her career as a child star but has also clearly proven herself to be a 
phenomenal actor and artist, carving out a path that will inspire those that follow in 
her footsteps.

Zendaya’s Powerful 2020 Emmy Win

Safety tips on to how to avoid being kidnapped and what to do if you find yourself in a kidnapping situation
By Emma Sacco
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
While South Africa has been battling against the Covid-19 Coronavirus for nearly eight months now, there has been another issue that has recently been on the rise: kidnapping. A recent attempted kidnapping video has gone viral, as CCTV footage shows a man leaping over a balustrade at a restaurant and grabbing a small child, attempting to pull her away from her caretakers.
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Thankfully this man was unsuccessful, as many citizens took part in preventing him from snatching the child. However, members from Missing Children South Africa are now urging women and children to be especially vigilant as kidnapping statistics continue to rise in South Africa.
&nbsp;
It is important to stay safe and alert as you go about your day, as kidnappings can occur at any time and can happen to anyone.

Here are some important safety tips to keep in mind:
<ol data-read-aloud-multi-block="true">
<li data-speechify-sentence="">When travelling, try to stay in groups of two or more</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">When partying and drinking with friends at night, go to the bathroom in groups of two or more and make sure to always watch your drink to prevent it from being spiked</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Do not accept car rides offered by strangers</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Do not walk around on the streets alone at night, even if you do think that your neighbourhood is safe</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Be aware of your surroundings, and if you sense that someone may be following you walk towards an area where there are a lot of people</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Always let someone know where you are going and when you expect to return home</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Arm yourself by carrying pepper spray, a concealable knife or a taser</li>
</ol>
&nbsp;
What to do if you find yourself in a kidnapping situation:
<ol data-read-aloud-multi-block="true">
<li data-speechify-sentence="">If you are in a public place whilst being kidnapped, make as much noise as possible and shout to strangers for their help</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Put up a fight: if the kidnapper is unable to take you without attracting attention from other people, they are likely to leave you alone and search for an easier target</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">When defending yourself against your kidnapper, use your elbow and knees to target the weakest area, which is the groin, nose or the eyes</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Look for anything around you that you could throw at your attacker&#8211; even if it is just sand or gravel&#8211; aim for the eyes in order to disorientate your attacker, giving yourself a chance to run away</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Once you have managed to get away from your kidnapper, run towards a well-populated area and draw attention to yourself so that people know that you are in danger and can help you.</li>
</ol>
&nbsp;
Important contacts to keep close by at all times:
Nationwide Emergency Response: 10111
Ambulance Response: 10177
SAPS Cape Town Central Phone Number: 021 467 8078

12 Tips on How to Prevent Yourself from Being Kidnapped

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Famous model and entrepreneur, Chrissy Teigen, speaks up about the recent loss of her third baby
&nbsp;
By Emma Sacco
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
Pregnancy loss and miscarriage are two topics that are still seen as taboo in our society, and on the rare occasion that they are talked about it tends to be in hushed tones and behind closed doors. However, many women have been working at changing this narrative and at raising awareness around the realities of losing a child during or soon after a pregnancy. One of these women include Chrissy Teigen, famous American model, author and entrepreneur, who recently reported losing her third child half-way through her pregnancy.
On the 1st of October Teigen posted a series of photos on Instagram, the first one showing her sitting on a hospital bed with tears streaming down her face. Accompanying the photo was a caption describing the pain her and her husband, John Legend, were experiencing after losing their baby.
“We are shocked and in the kind of deep pain you only hear about, the kind of pain we’ve never felt before,” wrote Teigen.
While it is unclear as to how exactly the baby was lost, Teigen has described that she experienced excessive bleeding from her placenta that led to her hospitalisation, and that the baby required, “bags and bags of blood transfusions.”
While some expressed confusion and anger at Teigen’s decision to post her private photos and experiences with the loss of her baby on Instagram, others have found it empowering and courageous.
Women have faced the harmful stigma that comes with miscarriage and pregnancy loss for decades. Many women who have experienced such traumas often feel shame after losing a baby and are encouraged to stay silent about their experience, instead of receiving the support and love they need to recover from such a traumatic incident.
Teigen’s decision to post publicly about her pregnancy loss on social media is extremely brave, as this shameful stigma around losing a baby is still ripe in our society. By putting herself and her experience in the spotlight, she risked being the victim of hateful and misogynistic comments about miscarriage.
However, while there were a few hurtful comments about Teigen’s decision to post online, and a few about her pregnancy loss in general, there were far more positive and supportive comments from friends, family and followers over Instagram and Twitter than there were negative.
By publicly posting about her grief and the story about the loss of her baby, Teigen has helped to raise awareness on the realities of miscarriage and pregnancy loss, one of those realities being that it happens a lot more often than most people realise. It is important for us to continue the conversation around this stigmatised topic and remind all women that losing a baby is never something to be ashamed of.
In Teigen’s Instagram post about the loss of her baby, one of her final comments included: “To our Jack – I’m so sorry that the first few moments of your life were met with so many complications, that we couldn’t give you the home you needed to survive. We will always love you.”
&nbsp;

Chrissy Teigen Raises Awareness around the Realities of Pregnancy Loss

&nbsp;
By Laylaa Edross
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
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In the United States of America, flu season approached with fear this year. Health experts in the USA cautioned their worry in fighting both COVID-19 and influenza at the same time, which might have put a dent in their healthcare system’s ability to fight both. However, in the Southern Hemisphere, the flu was virtually ‘undetected’. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the flu came and went with very few cases.
&nbsp;
According to CNNHealth, “the Northern Hemisphere &#8212; particularly the US, where as many as <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/burden/preliminary-in-season-estimates.htm">56 million people might have been infected with the flu last season</a> &#8212; can learn from the Southern Hemisphere&#8217;s response to COVID-19, which might have prevented a massive flu outbreak”. The CDC also commented on their belief that this phenomenon is due to efforts like social distancing, wearing a mask and closures of public spaces such as malls and schools.
&nbsp;
In the Southern Hemisphere, flu season began in May, which coincided with national lockdown and the maintenance of COVID-19. With all the preventative measures put in place during this time, the influenza became easier to fight off as well. The spread of influenza was decreased a significant amount thanks to these COVID-19 measures put in place.
&nbsp;
To measure the impact of COVID-19 on flu symptoms, the CDC evaluated flu activity recorded flu activity in three “robust sentinel sites” (CNNHealth) within the Southern Hemisphere- namely, Australia, Chile and South Africa. The period between June and August is the highest active period for flu activity in the hemisphere. While all three sites were very low in activity, Australia came out the lowest with 33 in 60,031 followed by Chile with 12 out of 21,178 and South Africa with 6 in 2,100.
&nbsp;
Interestingly, flu symptoms and COVID-19 symptoms are so similar that many believe they have a flu and end up with COVID-19. Similar symptoms include:
<ul data-read-aloud-multi-block="true">
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Fever</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Cough</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Lethargy</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Aches and pains</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Loss of taste or smell</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Headaches</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Chest pain</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Sore throat</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
It is of vital importance to check your symptoms against COVID-19 symptoms and seek professional help in serious cases. Practice social distancing, wear a mask and have a healthy diet to maintain a good immune system and steer clear of both COVID-19 and influenza.

The Southern Hemisphere skipped flu season and here’s why

&nbsp;
Examining Public Reactions to Trump’s COVID Status
&nbsp;
By Martyn McGrath
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
In the wake of Donald Trump&#8217;s recent claim to testing positive for COVID-19, much of the responses expressed on social media platforms reflected an indifference to the possiblity of his death. This leads to a pertinent question that cuts to the heart of humanity itself, and the measuring of human worth. Is it immoral to show indifference, or even joy, towards the potential death of someone whose policies and actions are immoral and irreverent? Society has been forced to confront this question since Trump’s alleged results were publicised. It seems to me that to wish death upon someone because you disagree with their politics or their rhetoric is morally reprehensible.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
I do not support Trump – I am repulsed by his politics, his rhetoric and his actions. This piece is not in support of him. Instead, I am in support of an ideal that affects how we – as humans – deal with the question of human value. For over two centuries, South Africa was governed by dispensations that did not believe in an inherent dignity or worth in humans. When the new constitution was drafted during the transition of power and the early stages of the constitutional dispensation, it was drafted with inherent human dignity and value at its heart. Section 9 ensured that “Everyone has inherent dignity”. This isn’t a qualified right. No matter who you are – or what you’ve done – by virtue of being a human being, you have value and dignity. The formulators of the Constitution understood the danger of denying the inherent value of human beings better than anyone.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Donald Trump, unfortunately, does not understand this danger – either that, or he is aware of it, and he embraces it regardless. Either way, we have every right to be morally outraged by his approach to the office he holds. However, his attitude towards human life and its value (be it his response to Black Lives Matter, his xenophobic border policies or his rhetoric about women) should be a cautionary tale to us about the deadly effects of such an attitude – especially when espoused by someone in a position of power and influence. When we see a type of behaviour that repulses us, it is disingenuous to mirror this behaviour – even in a small and seemingly insignificant manner. To celebrate the potential that Donald Trump will die due to the COVID-19 virus displays a menacing lack of respect for the inherent value of humanity. This attitude is infectious, and to allow our value for a human life to be depleted in one area, opens the door to excusing atrocities – even if they are being committed against ‘those people’ or ‘that person’ who has done or said something so egregious that they fall into the category of people we define as being devoid of moral standing.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Regardless of whether you think Trump deserves death or not, to celebrate his alleged potential of his death displays a deep disconnect with the value of life and the gravity of its loss. If human value is conditional, then who decides where the line is? Who decides when that line is crossed, and who is the arbiter of who is valuable and who is not? It is a dangerous and anarchistic precedent to set – and it should concern us that this reaction is so widespread and normalised.
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.
&nbsp;

Morbid Morality

&nbsp;
Rigid Western distinction between only the male and the female have formed the basis of a culture of thoughtless misgendering of human beings who fall outside of those norms
&nbsp;
By Lerato Botha
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Many of us have been told from early on in our lives that girls and boys are on opposite sides of the spectrum, and that the two should not intersect; you either act like a lady or act like a man. This gender definition, however, works to exclude everyone who identifies as existing in between or outside of (or any other complex orientation with) those binaries. Although attitudes towards gender non-conformity have grown slightly more nuanced over recent years (thereby influencing a new generation of openly gender non-conforming and genderqueer communities), old-fashioned Westernized gender norms are still largely prevalent today.
&nbsp;
Gender freedom, however, is not unique to the 21st Century, as many indigenous cultures in history have lived on a policy of gender fluidity. For instance, the 20th Century Nadleehi of the Navajo nation identified as neither male nor female but rather a third, non-binary conforming gender. There are even more examples that can be traced back to Africa, like the Northern Nigerian Yan Daudu community who merged Islamic concepts of both femininity and masculinity in their genderqueer lifestyles. So, if history proves prior existence of genderfluidity, then the question poses as to why there is such a need to box people into one or the other in our modern times?
&nbsp;
Since the rigid distinction between male and female is a largely Western ideal, modern people have become greatly accustomed to simply assuming that people with naturally ‘boyish’ or ‘masculine’ presentations should be classified as male, and the same is done with femme-presenting individuals, therefore, displaying a lack of respect for someone’s personal choice of self-identification. Social media is riddled with these such examples, with people often berating others when they display behaviour that is out of their socially constructed gender norms. The gender constructs of the male and female have been consolidated in such a way so that people have felt it their place to call someone by ‘he’ or ‘she’ pronouns, even in the event that they may want to be referred to otherwise.
&nbsp;
However, the use of they/them pronouns can also be damaging if someone clearly states that they would like to be acknowledged as something other than that. For instance, when some transgender people make open requests to be identified in a particular way, referring to that person as they/them can be extremely dismissive to their choice of identity. In many ways, it erases their identity in order to relinquish others of the responsibility of learning their pronouns or understanding their identity.
&nbsp;
It is therefore of great importance that instead of avoiding the responsibility of political and theoretical gender education, we should rather relinquish ourselves of the Westernized understanding of gender that has taught us to ignorantly assume others people’s genders. We should rather see gender as a spectrum on which many identifiers can be found and used to identify oneself. In short, it’s time to take the initiative in learning each other’s pronouns and what they mean.
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.
&nbsp;

Him, Her, Them: How Westernised Gender Norms Create a Framework for Misgendering

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Are we really striving for equality or are we victimizing women?
&nbsp;
By Ntsako Mlambo
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
The regulations under the World Athletics Guidelines were established in the year 2019. These regulations state that in particular cases and at the discretion of the officials, female athletes may need to take testosterone-reducing drugs to ensure fair and meaningful competition within female classifications. The regulations inform some kind of judgement and questioning of sex and gender identity of a female athlete.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Testosterone is a hormone produced by the human body, and it is natural to have it exist in both women and men, but what isn&#8217;t natural is to have it reduced and lowered. The inner workings of an individual&#8217;s body should not be policed or made public. They instead should remain private. In no way do we have the right to invade someone&#8217;s body, and it does not belong to the world and it should not be open for fret opinions; the body is a personal vessel.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Our very own Mokgadi Caster Semenya is a phenomenal woman who has participated in many athletic events all over the world. She has truly raised the South African flag to the sky with her continuous hard work and fighting spirit, but every year she is undoubtedly questioned on whether she is really a woman and reduced to an object for scientists to toy around with. In recent news, the Switzerland supreme court dismissed the appeal of Olympic champion, against a Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruling last year. The CAS had ruled that Semenya would have to take testosterone-reducing drugs in order to compete professionally. Semenya has been denied the right to fight for social justice and has been stripped of her human rights. Caster Semenya gained global attention back in 2009 for her outstanding talent in athletics; since then her gender has been a conversation at the table; which should not be the case.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Whether she has high testosterone levels or not, she should still be allowed to compete and not be objectified, as running has become her way of life. Many other black women in sports have been faced with similar challenges as Caster Semenya. Burundian Olympic runner Francine Niyonsaba has faced discrimination and disqualification because of her naturally high testosterone levels; similar circumstances of discrimination and disqualification have also been faced by Margaret Wambui, another acclaimed Olympic runner.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
You cannot change these women. Their sole purpose is just to do what they love, not to be abused. If we are going to use science to justify the objectification of black women then I think we have lost all humanity and morality. I would like to pose these questions to you:
&nbsp;
<ul data-read-aloud-multi-block="true">
<li data-speechify-sentence="">If Caster Semenya, Francine Niyonsaba and Margaret Wambui were not dominating the athletic tracks and winning so much, would their gender remain a topic? Would their testosterone levels even have to be &#8216;regulated&#8217;?</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Does the idea of a black woman winning threaten the vilification of the African people by the West, and does it threaten patriarchy and racism all together?</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Do male athletes also have to take testosterone-altering drugs to ensure fair and meaningful competition within male classification? Or is it seen as good competition? And if so, why can&#8217;t it be the same for women?</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Has the world advanced in its ruthlessness towards black women by wearing a facade and hiding behind science?</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">Since the days of Saartjie Baartman, black women have continued to suffer from being misinformed about their bodies and minds. When will this harassment stop?</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
The policing of a woman&#8217;s body needs to stop, a woman should not have to be abused because of how her body functions. Doing so, breeds inequality. Inequality breeds misunderstanding. Misunderstanding breeds chaos and, sooner or later, the world will turn into ashes.
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.
&nbsp;

To be Black, a Woman and Winning

&nbsp;
By Temwani Nyama
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
Trigger Warning: The article below discusses experiences of difficulties with mental health regulation and their projection through the contour of suicide and suicide ideation, and even though the discussions of these experiences are peripheral and don&#8217;t employ lurid details, the content of this article may be deeply sensitive for some people because of the personal experiences they might indirectly incite. 
 
&nbsp;
With the month of September being commemorated as Suicide Prevention Month, and the recent passing of World Suicide Prevention Day on the 10th of September, we have learnt quite a bit about how the augmented matrices of hegemony and the societal control thereof ensue (to some degree) our personal challenges with mental welfare regulation.
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&nbsp;
Our experiences with societal and institutional violence, in any respect, exist not only as instances but also as continuous psycho-emotive conditions. Because of these differential contours, by which the disruption of hegemony and societal control can appear, we can start to conceptualise how substantial those experiences are in terms of the degrees of disruption they ensue – especially when they are internalised.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
However, solely conceptualising and tracking the metrics of violence isn&#8217;t relevant to anyone. Instead, when we inversely read these conditions, they expand the validity and relevance we appropriate to notions for resource accessibility and safe spaces. It also helps in expanding the ways we imagine the methods we use in reconciling the regulators of personal mental wellbeing. By doing so, the recourse offered to our experiences of violence shifts from personal and individual responses to more system(at)ic responses. And so, what this means is that:
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&nbsp;
Housing security and the general mass resolve to houselessness is suicide prevention.
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The mitigation of sexual and gender-based violence directed to individuals with differential orientations of their embodiment is suicide prevention.
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Resolves to the economic precariousness of systemically dispossessed communities is suicide prevention.
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The mitigation of socio-corporate marginalism directed towards migrants is suicide prevention.
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Accessible and pluralistic healthcare service is suicide prevention.
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The mitigation of institutions of societal regulation through policing is suicide prevention.
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&nbsp;
Generally, the undoing of systemic matrices of hegemony and control is one of the ways we can realise substantive recourse to the psycho-emotive disruptions we experience. And it is the narratives that come out of commemorations like Suicide Prevention Month and World Suicide Prevention Day that have helped us in seeing this.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
*Additionally, listed below are some resources for accessing substantive mental health help and support or just for accessing auto-didactic learning materials on these experiences:
&nbsp;
<ul data-read-aloud-multi-block="true">
<li data-speechify-sentence=""><a href="https://www.instagram.com/ogorchukwuu/?hl=en">@ogorochukwu</a> on Instagram</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence=""><a href="https://www.instagram.com/mindfulorganisation/?hl=en">@mindfulorganisation</a> on Instagram</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">The <a href="http://www.sadag.org/index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=11&amp;Itemid=114">South African Depression and Anxiety Group</a> webpage</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">The <a href="https://www.icas.co.za/services/employee-health-and-wellness-programme">ICAS</a> wellness services</li>
<li data-speechify-sentence="">UCT’s Student Wellness Services</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.
&nbsp;

Mental Health and its Interplays with Systemic Conditions

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17th championship for the Lakers, Fourth NBA title for Lebron James and the end of a 10-year wait.
&nbsp;
By Sumitra Naidoo
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
On Sunday, 11 October the Los Angeles Lakers claimed their 17th NBA championship title with a 106-93 Game 6 win over Miami Heat. The game saw LeBron James post a triple-double to secure the teams win and put them back at the top of the basketball world.
&nbsp;
James predicted, and it proved to be true, that this year’s title would be “the toughest title to ever win”. Many challenges came with playing pro-basketball this year. Players, coaches and team staff had to live in the NBA’s quarantine ‘bubble’ in Orlando, Florida for four-and-a-half months without interacting with the outside world due to risk of being infected with the COVID-19 virus. The Lakers also suffered the loss of Kobe Bryant in January who led them to their last title in 2010. They dedicated their win to Kobe and Gianna (Kobe’s daughter) with both Anthony Davis and LeBron James dedicating special messages to Kobe.
&nbsp;
James is 1 0f 4 players in NBA history to win with three different teams and in addition to claiming his fourth championship ring, he was also named Finals MVP after posting series averages of 29.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 8.5 assists across the series. Miami Heat didn’t go down without a fight as they proved dominant in Game 3 and 5 respectively with performances from Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler standing out, however, by halftime of Game 6, the Lakers were just too dominant for them as they were leading by 64-36 and ended their season off with the best record in the Western Conference.
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&nbsp;

Los Angeles Lakers win 2020 NBA final

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The President’s latest weekly newsletter announces plans for land reform targeting black farmers
&nbsp;
By Seth Meyer
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
On the fifth of October, President Rhamaposa wrote his weekly newsletter to the nation. In it, he detailed intentions to grant leases to over 700 000 hectares of vacant or underused state land to black South African farmers.
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The initiative forms part of the Proactive Land Acquisition Strategy (PLAS) which has provided 8.4 million hectares of land to disadvantaged individuals since 1994. This, and other land reform initiatives, have been put in place and enacted to counter the profound effects of The Native Land Act of 1913. The apartheid-era law had played a key role in restricting the land ownership of black South Africans to 13% of South Africa’s land. That is well over a thousand times less land than owned by white South Africans of European descent per capita. Though progress has been made, land distributed through the PLAS constitutes only 10% of land used for commercial farming.
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To ensure that the land being provided is rendered productive, it will only be available to the public on a non-transferrable lease at a fee based on the land’s value. Additionally, it will only be granted on condition that it is used as agricultural land.
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The program, he wrote, will be specific to black South Africans but will prioritize women, the youth, and those with disabilities. The president also wrote that the recipients of public land will be taught the skills essential to the operation of a successful business and will be provided with the necessary machinery and equipment to that end.
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Historically, systems of land distribution have tended to favor older men, and studies have shown that government efforts at educating and assisting those who have been granted the land have been mostly deficient or non-existent.
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The president cited food-insecurity as a primary problem the proposition seeks to help ameliorate, writing that, “41% of people in rural areas and 59,4% in urban areas have severely inadequate access to food.” Providing citizens with land in a more equal manner, whilst also addressing historical injustices, is also essential to ensuring South Africa’s food security, he wrote. The president also cited unequal distribution of essential means of production like land as a, “recipe for social unrest”.
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Rhamaposa called on the beneficiaries of this land to “think big” and spread their success throughout their communities. In doing so, he writes that they will heal the deep divisions of our past and dispel the myth that only white farmers are capable of success.

A Hopeful Leg-Up for Black South African Farmers

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SA designer, Sindiso Khumalo, debuts her work at Milan Fashion Week
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By Sumitra Naidoo
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
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South African designer and UCT architectural alumni, Sindiso Khumalo, debuted her Spring-Summer 2021 collection at Milan Fashion Week. The collection is based on American abolitionist, Harriet Tubman.
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<blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CFQRDsEjiA6/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12">
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<a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CFQRDsEjiA6/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Missing home&#8230;the lush fresh smell of home.</a>
<p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" href="https://www.instagram.com/sindisokhumalo/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> Sindiso Khumalo | Designer</a> (@sindisokhumalo) on <time style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;" datetime="2020-09-17T22:19:20+00:00">Sep 17, 2020 at 3:19pm PDT</time>
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Due to the ongoing global pandemic, many presentations this year took the form of a digital format. Khumalo’s label made use of a fashion film to showcase her collection. The film was shot in Philadelphia which is just outside of Cape Town. Models could be seen walking through canola fields and farmland, suggesting the landscape Tubman might have known. The collection is titled “Minty” after Tubman’s childhood nickname. Designs include tailored styles in hand-printed silk taffeta as well as handwoven cotton from Khumalo’s workshop in Burkina Faso.
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<blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/tv/CFsQlt9Daxi/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12">
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<a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" href="https://www.instagram.com/tv/CFsQlt9Daxi/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Our SS21 collection is based on our muse, Harriet Tubman and speaks to her childhood, named after her childhood name “Minty”. The collection features beautiful hand illustrations of the plants Harriet would have encountered as a child, namely the cotton plant, and the Philadelphia Fleabane. Beautifully illustrated by Cape Town artist Shakil Solanki. Some have asked me &#8220;Why Harriet and why now?&#8221; Essentially, I feel that we have to look at historical events and figures in order to understand our present. Violence against black women has been in existence since Harriet Tubman’s time and still exists today with Uyinene Mrwetyana in South Africa, Breonna Taylor in the United States and the Chibok school girls from Nigeria who were stolen by Boko Haram. These events are all linked, and the violence is still rife. What I try to do with my collections is to pay homage to women like Harriet Tubman and to all women who have been victims of gender based violence. Shot in Philadelphia, Cape Town, it tells the story of a young girl walking freely through the land. As women, we deserve to walk freely through any landscape, or place without fear. We deserve to go to a post office, to be in our home or go to school, without fear of rape, kidnapping and death. This video is reclaiming the land, that we should be walking freely in. Very grateful to @cameramoda for the opportunity to present at Milan Fashion Week on schedule, &amp; for their continued support to us. Huge thank you to ALL the amazing creative minds behind this collection and film. And a special thanks to Liat, Darina and Naeema for your amazing craft, support &amp; helping me build my brand. Thanks also to my amazing family for your support. Here is our digital presentation, for Milan Fashion Week SS21. Film Credits Director : @jonathan_kope Model : @nina.henry Hair and Make Up : @suaad_jeppie Styling : @githancoopoo Music Composer: @okzharp Creative Director: Sindiso Khumalo Special Thanks @shakilsolanki_studio @alexjrfox @ortoprintstudio @g_miglietta @nicloupis @andrealoupis @embracedig Alessandra DLM</a>
<p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" href="https://www.instagram.com/sindisokhumalo/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> Sindiso Khumalo | Designer</a> (@sindisokhumalo) on <time style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;" datetime="2020-09-28T19:20:08+00:00">Sep 28, 2020 at 12:20pm PDT</time>
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Khumalo told <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/sindiso-khumalo-milan-fashion-week/index.html">CNN Style</a> that through her collections she wants to “educate people on Black culture and Black history, as well as bring light to the violence that black women experience”. Harriet Tubman escaped slavery and rescued many enslaved people through the Underground Railroad; part of Khumalo’s work tries to ensure that the stories of historical black women are told. Previous collections highlighted princess Sarah Forbes Bonetta’s life and her future collection will be inspired by South African activist Charlotte Maxeke.
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<a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CCgHlKcjMzr/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Super excited to be featured in the FT @ft_howtospendit in the UK today. Also so wonderful to share it with friends @nicholas_daley, @supriya_lele and @kennethize. Thank you to the FT team. If you are in the UK please go pick up your copy. And if you aren’t there is the link in my bio. Xxxx ? @jonathan_kope Model @nina.henry</a>
<p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" href="https://www.instagram.com/sindisokhumalo/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> Sindiso Khumalo | Designer</a> (@sindisokhumalo) on <time style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;" datetime="2020-07-11T12:30:12+00:00">Jul 11, 2020 at 5:30am PDT</time>
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Khumalo’s work has always been remarkable, meaning that she is no stranger to the spotlight. Earlier this year she was a joint finalist at the LVMH Prize for Young Fashion Designers, which saw her sharing the prize money of €300,000 (R5.9million). Readers can follow this remarkable woman on Instagram (@sindisokhumalo) – a woman who is bound to continue pioneering her extraordinary work all over the world.
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Paying Homage to Historical Black Womxn

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By Seth Meyer
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
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With the quickly approaching tourist season and ailing tourist sector in South Africa under the economic impact of Covid-19 and the national lockdown, the implementation of Level 1 restrictions (the most relaxed set of regulations in the government’s five stage mitigation plan for Covid-19) has seen international flight and travel into South Africa was officially opened from the 1st of October.
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Global access to the rainbow nation is dependent on how the South African government determines the risk of any country, with three categories for external nations to fit into: high-risk, medium-risk and low-risk. Countries within the high-risk category include the United States of America, the United Kingdom and Brazil, amongst many others, as detailed in a press release from Home Affairs. The high-risk status is afforded to countries with a higher rate of Covid-19 infection and mortality in comparison to South Africa, meaning that leisure travel from these places into South Africa is not allowed. Exceptions include diplomatic missions. Entry for the express purposes of business travel may be applied for to the Department of Home Affairs.
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The official government website has detailed the requirements that travellers must meet if they hope to enter the country under Level 1 restrictions. Travellers must present a Covid-19 PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test no older than 72 hours, which “must be conducted by a certified medical practitioner and should have the name and signature of the practitioner who conducted such test.” Travellers will also be screened upon arrival for Covid-19 and for contact with persons infected with Covid-19.
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The website has also detailed the protocol to be implemented in the event of a positive Covid-19 test:
“Should the traveller display any COVID-19–related symptoms or been in contact with an infected person(s), they will be expected to take a mandatory COVID-19 test. This test will be at the traveller’s cost. If the COVID-19 test comes back positive, the traveller will be subjected to a 10-day quarantine at a designated site. The accommodation at a quarantine site will be at the traveller’s cost.”
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South Africa’s active Covid-19 cases have shown a steady decline since the peak in July, with a recent, slight increase in October, according to data from Worldometer.

Open skies for some international travel to South Africa

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Barcelona reign victorious in a 4-0 win against Real Madrid
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By Nelisa Khwela
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
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History was made in Spanish football this year when the first ever women’s Clásico was played between Real Madrid Feminino and Barcelona Femeni at Real Madrid’s training ground. The men’s El Clásico dates back as far as 1902 and is watched by millions of fans all across the globe therefore it was exciting news to the women’s soccer community to finally have an all-female Clásico. Barcelona Femeni was expected to be a fierce opponent as they have won five Primera División titles and played in the 2019 UEFA Women’s Champions League final. Barcelona are also the reigning champions of the Primera División league. This was the first match played by the newly-formed Real Madrid side which lost 4-0 to the more experienced Catalonian team.
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Barcelona led in the first half with a goal from Patricia Guijarro in the 18th minute. Madrid looked to equalize with a goal from Kosovare Asllani, however the goal was declared a foul, much to the home fans’ disappointment. In the second half, an own goal by Madrid goalkeeper, Maria Rodriguez, saw Barcelona maintain their lead. Barcelona’s Caroline Graham Hansen provided the assists for goals from Lieke Martens, who is a former world player of the year, and Alexia Putellas.
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Despite this important milestone in women’s soccer in Spain, the women’s inaugural Clásico was not attended by Real Madrid president, Florentino Perez. Perez’s absence brought attention to how women’s soccer receives less support in comparison to men’s as he chose to travel to watch the men’s La Liga fixture against Levante instead.
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Barcelona triumph in first ever women’s Clásico

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Newly released, A life on our Planet, showcases a naturalist legend’s journey in fighting for Earth’s biodiversity
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By James Braham
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 11 of VARSITY News.
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Sir David Attenborough has emphasised the need for humans to fight for Earth’s biodiversity in his most recent Netflix documentary A Life on Our Planet. Sustainability is what drives the message of the insightful documentary.
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At 94 years of age, Attenborough has witnessed and produced some remarkable footage of nature and all of her aspects. His career has spanned over more than 60 years, and it is in A Life on Our Planet where he conveys a devastating reality for society; how the planet’s biodiversity has significantly degenerated before his very eyes.
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The narrative attributes comparative, environmental statistics to the various time period’s over Attenborough’s lifetime. From his earliest days as a naturalist, the impressive footage shows a young Attenborough studying and interacting with gorilla’s, to encountering various species of flora. To implicate the depth of this timeline, when he first started out as a young producer, international air travel was a brand-new reality to the human species. It is the fanatic résumé of this colossal explorer which has epitomised the desperate need to change the way in which we treat our surrounding environments. Time is running out.
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Directors Alastair Fothergill, Jonnie Hughes and Keith Scholey are able to direct a focused piece on the area surrounding Chernobyl to symbolise the growth that an area can have without humans interfering in and destroying it. They pan the camera back to Chernobyl, to show that there is now wildlife growing within the region due to its vacant position of human interaction. It is the smallest sign to show how change can happen.
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Throughout the documentary, the illustration of stark contrasts in photography is crafted to represent opposite ends of the spectrum. On the one hand, we have imagery of flourishing rainforests, and on the other, we see “<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/04/movies/david-attenborough-a-life-on-our-planet-review.html">uniform rows of oil palms planted for profit</a>”. It signifies a human problem in relation to building the ‘machinery’, which ignorantly destroys the ecological diversity of the planet. The imagery used perpetuates an ugly truth to an oblivious eye.
Attenborough will not be around for the future disasters that the human species will experience. He has used his platform to express the urgency to sustain our global ecosystems, to break down human traditional endeavour with industry, and to develop an ecological footprint which encompasses what it means to let nature flourish in all its splendour.
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‘A Life on Our Planet’: Attenborough at His Finest

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By Res4Res UCT
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
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Res4Res is the annual theatre festival held for UCT Residence students. This often includes two weekends of workshops where students receive crash-courses in writing for theatre, performing, directing and designing. Then, students are given a theme and each residence creates a theatre piece that performs in a week-long festival held at the Baxter Theatre Centre.
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This year, however, things had to be done a little bit differently and the organisers of the festival decided to shift the festival onto a virtual space, allowing students to submit various art pieces on Vula. The workshop element of the festival was presented on videos made by industry professionals, including Larissa Mwanyama, Jemma Kahn, Ameera Conrad, Tiisetso Mashifane wa Noni, Tailyn Ramsamy and Kim Adonis. These could be viewed by students and had a bunch of tips, advice and guidelines for students wanting to create work for both physical and virtual spaces.
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Every year a theme is announced and students interpret their work around this theme, allowing intricate understandings of socio-political issues or simply personal experiences with relation to the topic and this year was no different. Students were given the theme, Your Silence Will Not Protect You, which is a 2017 posthumous collection of essays, speeches, and poems by African American author and poet Audre Lorde.
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Throughout August and September, 32 art works were submitted to the festival and will be showcased on Vula (<a href="https://vula.uct.ac.za/x/J1nxUo">https://vula.uct.ac.za/x/J1nxUo</a>), Facebook (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/Res4Res2020">https://www.facebook.com/Res4Res2020</a>) and Instagram (<a href="https://www.instagram.com/res4resuct">https://www.instagram.com/res4resuct</a>) and we are excited to feature the following work selected as finalists of the festival:
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Visual:
&#8211; <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Y7mN1hh0glLVQhasTAkyGZS8CyS_lYXg/view">Piet Khabo</a>
&#8211; <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/15TN3GJm7pEjmHoIFC8ZWAWJaSJSUplMa/view">Wandile Nyembe</a> (Speak Out and Break the Chains)
&#8211; <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pqtUGYP8GilyCyacp4zalaJ6D4jYKJoU/view">Reatlegile Malatji</a> (Thoughts)
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Written: 
&#8211; Ntsako Mlambo (A Story for Worker&#8217;s Day)
<img loading="lazy" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-6336" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_1-300x300.png" alt="" width="300" height="300" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_1-300x300.png 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_1-150x150.png 150w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_1-768x768.png 768w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_1-1024x1024.png 1024w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_1.png 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
<img loading="lazy" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-6339" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_2-300x300.png" alt="" width="300" height="300" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_2-300x300.png 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_2-150x150.png 150w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_2-768x768.png 768w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_2-1024x1024.png 1024w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_2.png 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
<img loading="lazy" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-6335" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_3-300x300.png" alt="" width="300" height="300" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_3-300x300.png 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_3-150x150.png 150w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_3-768x768.png 768w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_3-1024x1024.png 1024w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_3.png 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
<img loading="lazy" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-6338" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_4-300x300.png" alt="" width="300" height="300" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_4-300x300.png 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_4-150x150.png 150w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_4-768x768.png 768w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_4-1024x1024.png 1024w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_A-Story-for-Workers-Day-by-Nsako-Mlambo_4.png 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
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&#8211; Thobile Mahlangu (Your Silence Will Not Protect You)
<img loading="lazy" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-6341" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_1-300x300.png" alt="" width="300" height="300" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_1-300x300.png 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_1-150x150.png 150w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_1-768x768.png 768w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_1-1024x1024.png 1024w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_1.png 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
<img loading="lazy" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-6340" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_2-300x300.png" alt="" width="300" height="300" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_2-300x300.png 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_2-150x150.png 150w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_2-768x768.png 768w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_2-1024x1024.png 1024w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Your-Silence-Will-Not-Protect-You-by-Thobile-Mahlangu_2.png 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
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&#8211; Sarah Du Preez (She closed her eyes)
<img loading="lazy" class="size-medium wp-image-6334 alignleft" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_She-Closed-Her-Eyes-by-Sarah-Du-Preez--300x300.png" alt="" width="300" height="300" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_She-Closed-Her-Eyes-by-Sarah-Du-Preez--300x300.png 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_She-Closed-Her-Eyes-by-Sarah-Du-Preez--150x150.png 150w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_She-Closed-Her-Eyes-by-Sarah-Du-Preez--768x768.png 768w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_She-Closed-Her-Eyes-by-Sarah-Du-Preez--1024x1024.png 1024w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_She-Closed-Her-Eyes-by-Sarah-Du-Preez-.png 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
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&#8211; Anam Magudu (Hush)
<img loading="lazy" class="size-medium wp-image-6333 alignleft" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Hush-by-Anam-Magudu-300x300.png" alt="" width="300" height="300" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Hush-by-Anam-Magudu-300x300.png 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Hush-by-Anam-Magudu-150x150.png 150w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Hush-by-Anam-Magudu-768x768.png 768w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Hush-by-Anam-Magudu-1024x1024.png 1024w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Written_Hush-by-Anam-Magudu.png 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
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Video: 
&#8211; <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1n_oo_-3ukMaNmQKLOCTgWFvK7KNLddQE/view">Hope Banda</a>
&#8211; <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/15Y_66PdLBNJLhoPOeIOQ0pidZFMfax7N/view">Thato Mahlo</a>
&#8211; <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LZtgGaslaoNJBndnOV61HMKKkTXoqPY4/view">Luxolo Ta Mdizo Mdolo</a>
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The judges were truly blown away by the quality of the work submitted and struggled to select the finalists. “The technical execution and interpretation of theme was truly impressive. The students are super talented!” was Mwanyama’s summary of the submissions.
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Winners will be selected by the panel of judges and will be featured on platforms like <a href="https://www.satod.co.za/post/res4res">South African Theatre on Demand</a>, <a href="https://www.threemag.co.za/">Three Mag</a>, <a href="https://twopointoh.co.za/">Two Point Oh!</a>, <a href="http://thecritter.co.za/">The Critter</a> and <a href="https://www.thesouthafrican.com/">The South African</a>.
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Be sure to catch the panel discussion with students from the festival and the festival judges, Ameera Conrad, Tailyn Ramsamy and Larissa Mwanyama, as well as Res4Res’s Creative Director, Kanya Viljoen, on Thursday 24 September on South Africa Theatre on Demand. UCT students and staff are also encouraged to go view all the submissions on the Vula site, Res4Res 2020 Virtual Fest, where they can vote for their own favourite as well.
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Res4Res Virtual Festival: Your Silence Will Not Protect You

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By Bathandwa Magqaza
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
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Identity politics in South Africa and, elsewhere where colonial imprints can be discerned, is a very contested phenomenon. It is, therefore, perplexing and disheartening that twenty-six years post the demise of the apartheid regime a company like Clicks dogmatically publishes hair advertisements which portray and label black African women&#8217;s hair as dry, dull and damaged.
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The Clicks advertisement became a double edge advertisement. It irked black African peoples and united them in denouncing the company advertisement, publicly and explicitly calling the Clicks company what it is, i.e. racist. However, on the flip side, it sowed divisions among black African peoples on tactics to denounce the Clicks advertisement. The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) henceforth, popularly intervened on the matter &#8211; with the clarion call to all their members to shutdown all Clicks stores across the country. The EFF’s intervention intensified the issue.
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Clicks boss, Vikesh Ramsunder, demonstrated remorse, accountability and further said, “I am deeply disappointed that we allowed insensitive and offensive images to be published on our website&#8220;. Moreover, Ramsunder said, &#8220;negligent employees&#8221; had been suspended. Ramsunder’s response, however, seemed to have failed to quell the EFF leadership and its constituencies, because their Clicks shutdown efforts across the country, were intensified. The previous assertions that Ramsunder’s response failed to quell the EFF leadership and its constituencies can be solicited from the outgoing Wits Vice Chancellor and Principal, Professor Adam Habib. In his recent Daily Maverick article, Professor Adam Habib characterised the EFF’s shutdown of Clicks to be an “incitement and violent imagery that was evident in the communication of the EFF leaders”.
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Furthermore, Professor Adams Habib defined the EFF’s involvement as “a power grab”, because their actions were of someone “awaiting an opportunity for political spectacle”. He thereafter insisted South Africans to take a stand against, “the cohort who romanticise war and violence”, because South Africa is a constitutional democracy after-all and all anger should be within the boundaries of our constitution.
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Former Public Protector, Professor Thuli Madonsela, who was an illuminating beacon in the darker days not so long ago, was lambasted for her response regarding the matter. She claimed that “Clicks was legitimate, but anarchy and violence was not”. Mbuyiseni Ndlozi responded, “Find the nearest hell Thuli… when you get there, you know the cerebral thing to do. We need no approval from your coconut logic”.
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I spoke to the UCT SRC deputy secretary general, Siseko Kosani about this issue, he is also a member of the EFF constituency. I told him, “our economy is in tatters, we have just witnessed numerous retrenchments which exacerbated the country’s unemployed rate to 40%”. Thereafter, I asked him, “in what way is the EFF’s mode of reaction (protest &amp; demands) effective for our economy?”. From a Marxist perspective, Siseko eloquently asserted, “the South African economy is divided into two extremes, there are those who have and those who do not have. Our economy benefits the minority, those with the means of production”. He substantiated his assertion by arguing that even if our economy and GDP preforms well, the wages of the proletariat class are likely to remain stagnant while the bourgeoisie get richer.
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Nonetheless, South Africa is not isolated from the global economy, thus President Cyril Ramaphosa has a strategic goal of attracting foreign investments to reinvigorate our economy. However, his goal might be obstructed by these incidents because which investor in their right mind would invest in a country where a minority party in Parliament can muscle a company and close its operations through violence without a single murmur from government?
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EFF’s controversial response to a controversial Clicks advertisement

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Ramaphosa has called the three bills part of a coordinated government response to the “pandemic” of GBV in South Africa.
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By William Barron
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
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In the president’s weekly letter from 7 September, Ramaphosa discussed the introduction of three new bills to Parliament. They are intended as part of a response to the calls for criminal justice reform which chiefly women’s organisations have been making in the year since 2019’s widespread protest action over gender-based violence (GBV). The legal reforms contained in the bills include declaring sexual intimidation an offence; expanding the scope of the National Register for Sex Offenders; and mandating government departments to provide relief for survivors of domestic violence.
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The bills have all been introduced to Parliament by the Minister for Justice and Correctional Services, Ronald Lamola. According to the president, they are part of a “multipronged strategy” which includes a R1.6 billion Emergency Response Action Plan which will give extra resources to government departments to combat GBV. Specifically, the bills are designed to address calls for harsher punishments for perpetrators of GBV, and to make it harder to evade punishment.
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The first is a Bill to amend the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act (Bill 16 of 2020). This puts forward sexual intimidation as a new offence and widens the definitions of the offence of incest. It also requires the National Register for Sex Offenders to include the particulars of all sex offenders (currently only those of perpetrators of sexual offences against children and people with disabilities are included). It also increases the duty of persons who suspect an offence to have occurred to report it.
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The second is the Criminal Law and Related Matters Amendment Bill (Bill 17 of 2020). It increases bail for suspected sex offenders and expands the offences for which minimum sentences must be handed down. Ramaphosa says these are efforts to “fill the gaps” that allow some perpetrators to “evade justice”. Hence, reforms place new requirements on officials. Prosecutors must place their reasons not to oppose bail in cases of GBV on record.
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The third is the Domestic Violence Amendment Bill (Bill 20 of 2020). Under the amendment, more types of relationships will be specified as contexts for domestic violence. It also intends to protect older people from abuse by members of their family. It obliges the departments of Social Development, Basic Education, Higher Education, and Health to provide services for survivors. People with knowledge, belief, or reasonable suspicion of the commission of offences against children or people with disabilities will be liable to fines or imprisonment.
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These reforms relate to the treatment of GBV as a criminal justice issue, one to be addressed by the increase policing and making punitive measures stricter. This has earned the response criticism for not being constructive enough as a victim-centred approach. Further, it does not focus on the shortcomings of police in the processing of cases.
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Ramaphosa announced that South African Police Service (SAPS) members who do not meet their legal obligations under the Acts will be committing misconduct, subject to reporting to the Civilian Secretariat for Police Service. This is not the same strict treatment with which the amendments intend to treat civilians with the knowledge or suspicion of the commission of sex offences.
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President Announces Three New Bills in Parliament to Address Gender-Based Violence

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By Seth Meyer
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
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The second quarter report of the Republic of South Africa’s fiscal year has given a dire and disheartening number that many South Africans had come to expect under the harsh impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the nation and the world at large. Statistics South Africa outline the various sectors of the economy that have suffered, with a total reported contraction of 51%. To briefly summarise, from a report in the Wall Street Journal:
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<li>In comparison to last year’s second quarter report, South Africa’s Gross Domestic Product has fallen by 17.6%</li>
<li>Manufacturing contracted by 74.9%</li>
<li>Trade, catering and accommodation shrank by 67.6%</li>
<li>Mining sector output decreased by 73.1%</li>
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The country already struggled with a weal economy before the pandemic and subsequent lockdown. The recent crisis of Covid-19 had only served to exacerbate deterioration. The country’s debt is forecast to reach 81.8% of the national GDP at the end of the fiscal year.
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The rate of infection and case numbers in the country have been steadily declining. The President has now mandated a move to Level 1 in the country’s 5 level lockdown strategy, hoping to ease stress on and kick start the economy back towards a normal level. Yet, as economist Duma Gqubule reported to the Wall Street Journal, the combination of Covid-19 and an already ailing economy has become “the worst crisis this country has ever faced”
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Economy Suffers in SA as Contraction Reported at 51%

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By Bathandwa Magqaza
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
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Industrialisation and modernity have made us accustomed to many things, efficient network conditions (internet connectivity) in particular. Nevertheless, load shedding has had detrimental effects on this privilege as well as on our economy, industries and productivity. However, did you ever stop to think about the benefits that can be sown and reaped during load shedding?
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Televisions, laptops, cellphones and social media have deprived us from being fully present and spending quality time with those closest at heart &#8211; families. We spend so much time binging on Netflix, checking our newsfeeds and story panels, capturing moments that would have been more enjoyable had there been no cameras involved. All of this for the sake of clout, more followers and likes.
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When all lights are out and there’s poor connectivity with the Wi-Fi or mobile data, don’t whine, sleep or pass time with unproductive activities. Rather say, “YES! FINALLY, I HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEND QUALITY TIME AND HAVE GENUINE CONVERSATIONS WITH MY FAMILY.” The importance of this cannot be overemphasised. Life is bounded by mortality, we are all here for a limited amount of time. Therefore, spend time with and show love to your families while we’re still here.
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Since we are living in unprecedented times and enduring a pandemic, it most likely that fear and pessimism will permeate the minds of many. Meditating and exercising during load shedding could be gatekeepers of such. Dr. Emmett Miller &#8211; one of the first practitioners of modern mind-body medicine &#8211; claims, “Meditation equips one with a potential to treat physical illnesses, emotional imbalances, and maladaptive habits and addictions.” Moreover, he asserts that it enables one to heal, improve performance of both mind and body. Therefore, I advise you read on meditation and mindfulness, first, before you practice it.
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The recommended sources to find out about load shedding schedules are <a href="http://www.capetown.gov.za/Family%20and%20home/Residential-utility-services/Residential-electricity-services/Load-shedding-and-outages">http://www.capetown.gov.za/Family%20and%20home/Residential-utility-services/Residential-electricity-services/Load-shedding-and-outages</a> and <a href="https://www.eskom.co.za/CustomerCare/Towns/Pages/default.aspx">https://www.eskom.co.za/CustomerCare/Towns/Pages/default.aspx</a>
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How to avoid falling into the trap of inactivity during load shedding

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With the easing of lockdown regulations, it’s natural that we all want to go out for a drink with friends, but it is still important to take the necessary precautions while doing so.
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By Emma Sacco
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
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Since the 17th of August, South Africans have been experiencing the new lockdown regulations under Level 2 of the Coronavirus Lockdown. Life under level 2 has meant the opening of malls, stores, sit-in restaurants and gyms, as well as the lift on the notorious cigarette ban. With things seemingly going back to “normal”, one wonders if this means that Covid-19 is no longer a big risk in South Africa.
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The decision to move into level 2 of lockdown is based on two reasons: South Africa has seen a significant decline in Covid-19 cases over the past few months and so it can be assumed that it is “safe” to begin getting back to regular life, and South Africa is also facing economic difficulties due to the closing of many businesses during the pandemic.
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While the country is recording significantly fewer positive cases of Covid-19, this does not mean that the virus is no longer a threat. Those with compromised immune systems are still at risk of contracting the virus and possibly becoming very ill. With a current 656 000 cases still active in South Africa it is important to stay vigilant while exploring your new-found freedom.
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Now that bars and restaurants are open again it is only natural to want to enjoy an afternoon or night out having a drink with your friends and you should! We all deserve some social interaction and joy after being cooped up at home for five months. However, gathering in public environments does still put you at risk of contracting or passing on Covid-19 and so it is important to enjoy these activities responsibly.
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When going to a bar or restaurant, be sure to wear your mask until you are seated and have your hand sanitizer easily accessible so that you can clean your hands after touching new surfaces. The laws put in place entailing how many people are allowed in a closed space do ensure that you will not come into contact with too many people while enjoying your evening at your favourite bar. However, it is still vital to remember to take the necessary precautions to guarantee your own safety.
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The odds of contracting Covid-19 may be less now that we have gotten past the “curve” of the virus, but it is definitely still possible. Going out and enjoying yourself during this time is important for your mental health and happiness, but don’t forget that there is still the risk of becoming sick with the Coronavirus as well as infecting others. Enjoy your life outside of lockdown – but be smart and safe while doing it!
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Life Under Lockdown Level 2 – How Safe Are We from Contracting Covid-19?

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By Hannah van Teylingen and Laylaa Edross
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
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Covid-19 has transformed public events due to social distancing protocols and regulations around the world. Fashion weeks have been postponed, music concerts were attended by socially distanced guests in their own private boxes and celebrities have donned masks with ballgowns while attending the latest movie premiers. However, that did not stop the distinguished VMAs from being another hit and a pivotal event in itself.
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Hosted by Keke Palmer, who also made history by being the first woman of color to host the event solo, it was a night of celebration for music lovers but also one of much-needed reflection around the societal injustices occurring over the last few months. “Enough is enough” and “music has that power” to bring us together were just a few key phrases Palmer used in her opening monologue to highlight the most recent Black Lives Matter movement that has been on everyone’s minds alongside the pandemic. A tribute to Black Panther icon Chadwick Boseman, who died last month, was a perfect touch to kick off the night.
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No crowds could attend the event, causing the show to resemble an eerie game simulator with the use of green screens, projectors and fans cheering to create the atmosphere in the background. Watching it felt surreally strange. It looked far too staged and far too organized considering its drama-filled past. Remember Kanye interrupting Taylor Swift onstage? Welcome to the 2009 VMAs.
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As if the holographs and virtual stages weren’t odd enough, various artists performed all over various locations in New York City, with Lady Gaga singing through several extravagant masks throughout the night. Gaga went on to win the famous Tricon Award, with The Weeknd winning Video of the Year and Best R&amp;B Video. Ariana Grande swept through numerous categories with her wins, such as Song of the Year for her hit Rain on Me, and BTS also reigned supreme.
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This year’s VMAs was a peculiar one to say the least, but the performances were still phenomenal. Hopefully in a year’s time, we will be watching jaw-dropping drama and in-person chaos just a few meters away from our favorite artists. It was still an event that joined musicians together, allowing them to be deservedly awarded for their work. Most importantly, it was a night of reflection on the society we currently find ourselves living in and how using music, art and activism may bring about some form of change.
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The 2020 VMAs: Covid Edition

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By Mary-Anne Desai
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
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The International Cricket Council (ICC) was founded back in 1909 and is known to officiate all international matches through specific non-bias guidelines and systems. Most importantly, they acknowledge cricket talent on a global scale.
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The ICC provides rankings of men and women cricket players who have shown potential to become legends in the great hall of fame. The ICC hall of fame is the equivalent to Meryl Streep winning an Oscar for the first time, or football supernova Ronaldo winning the annual Golden Boot. Only a few lucky players get chosen and remembered for the rest of cricket history.
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They recently announced on the 23rd of August via social media that their 2020 inductees are Lisa Sthalekar from Australia, Zaheer Abbas from Pakistan, and South Africa&#8217;s one and only, Jacques Kallis.
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Jacques Kallis started his international career in 1995 and retired from it in 2014. He received this award for not only getting 10 000 runs and taking 250 wickets in the Test and ODI cricket series, but also ranked as ICC&#8217;s player of the year in 2005 and his continuous achievements within South Africa.
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Jacques’ other accomplishments include being the top test batsman for 592 days and remaining top player during 493 matches. He also spent 4028 days as best all-rounder during the test series.
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Besides Jacques&#8217; rankings, he is also an incredible Protea player who when received this award said that, &#8220;it was nice to be recognised’’, especially in this sport, and that he found joy in ‘’winning games’’, no matter what team he played for.
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Our Protea in the ICC Hall Of Fame

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Dr Eugenia Kula-Ameyaw urges compensation for players, through a potential Restoration Fund.
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By James Braham
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
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The independent director and transformation chair for Cricket South Africa (CSA), Dr Eugenia Kula-Ameyaw, intends to restore financial obligations to current and former players who were victims of racial abuse during their tenure under CSA’s leadership.
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The newly appointed transformation Ombudsman, Dumisa Ntsebeza, has a critical role to play in the process surrounding the potential establishment of a players Restoration Fund. Ntsebeza will fulfil the duty of listening to the complaints of former and current players, and reaching a verdict based on the circumstance.
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Interestingly, it is notable that the financial obligations to fulfil this intended fund cannot come from CSA alone. Dr Kula-Ameyaw has admitted that there will be a delay in the process due to the areas of raising funds for these players and coming to a verdict on each case. She states, “We’ve got to still raise the funds to see how we are going to restore. There are a lot of companies, even government, that is ready to restore people” … “It could even be after a year because the ombudsman will take a few months to set up and deal with complaints”.
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The reinforced commitment to focus on transformation also gives current players the opportunity to voice their complaints on a ‘targeting’ system. According to The South African, Dr Kula-Ameyaw added that, “Players who see themselves as victims of the current target system which requires franchise teams to field a minimum of six players of colour of which three must be black African, could also approach the ombudsman.”
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Dr Kula-Ameyaw made further ground on the need to expand the diversification of the sport. According to Sport24, the Institute of Race Relations (IRR) wrote a statement to the International Cricket Council (ICC), reporting CSA for “straying from the values of the ICC” and implementing a “blatantly racist policy” that “violated the ICC’s Anti-Discrimination Policy”. Since the statement, Dr Kula-Ameyaw has made it known that she would be willing to engage with the ICC on measures surrounding diversity within the sport of cricket.

CSA make ‘commitment’ to transformation

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Advice from Miss Earth South Africa semi-finalist Jamie Cloete
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By Sumitra Naidoo
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
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Miss Earth South Africa is more than just a beauty contest. It is a leadership programme which teaches young women about what their impact is on the environment and how to become changemakers within their communities, in order to combat the destruction of our environment. With their knowledge, they educate communities around them on how to live more sustainable lives.
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I spoke to UCT alumni and Miss Earth semi-finalist, Jamie Cloete, on how students can live more eco-friendly lifestyles and make their lives a little greener. Here are some easy tips which Cloete mentioned for students to implement:
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<a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CDoojT1pAEJ/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">A Women&#8217;s Day Beach Cleanup in collaboration with @saveafishie @capetown.cares @the_pact_official @visions_of_change @missearth_sa These organizations are doing incredible work. It was an eye &#8211; opener to see the amount of litter we picked up in just 2 hours. We need to change and make more environmentally conscious decisions, so that future generations can experience clean beaches. #WasteStopsWithMe #leaveonlyfootprints #MissEarthSouthAfrica #ecowoman</a>
<p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" href="https://www.instagram.com/itsjamiecloete/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> Jamie Cloete</a> (@itsjamiecloete) on <time style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;" datetime="2020-08-08T16:23:37+00:00">Aug 8, 2020 at 9:23am PDT</time>
</div>
</blockquote>
<script async src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>
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<ol>
<li> Putting plants in your apartment/room/house</li>
</ol>
We are living in a modern, urban time, and this comes with many environmental pressures such as air pollution. Including small pot plants in your living space provides many benefits to both humans and our environment. Cloete noted that there are certain plants that we can have in our home to purify the air from toxins, dust and germs. Some plants that purify the air are: Mother in Law Tongue (Snake Plant), English Ivy and Aloe Vera.
&nbsp;
<ol start="2">
<li> Starting a compost heap/bin</li>
</ol>
This tip is well-suited to students who have an outdoor area such as a yard, lawn or garden, as the heap or bin needs to be connected to the earth so that worms and insects can break down the compounds. Starting a compost heap or bin reduces waste that goes into the landfills. This is a naturally occurring process that breaks down kitchen and garden waste, turning it into organic and nutrient-rich soil that improves the growth and health of your plants.
&nbsp;
<ol start="3">
<li> Participating in Beach/Street Clean- ups</li>
</ol>
You can start a beach or street clean-up with a few friends or join the many clean-ups which occur on most weekends. Additionally, next time you visit the beach bring a bag with to pick up litter. Cleaning the beach and streets of litter saves the lives of marine life and wildlife, as well as restores the creature’s habitats and keeps our earth clean.
&nbsp;
<ol start="4">
<li> Make use of re-usable items</li>
</ol>
Often when we order take-away food, it comes in plastic containers that cannot be recycled. Take and make use of re-useable straws, mugs, plates &amp; bowls with you when ordering take-aways. Bringing your own re-usable straw, coffee mug or bowl with you is a better option. Additionally, re-use glass containers. Cloete mentioned how she turned a honey jar into a smoothie or juice jar instead of throwing it away completely. An important tip to implement during the COVID-19 pandemic is making use of re-usable masks, or make a mask instead of using the disposable ones. Disposable masks are littering our earth and causing danger to our marine and wildlife.
&nbsp;
<ol start="5">
<li> Reducing your meat intake</li>
</ol>
Living in a braai culture can make it difficult to go completely meat-free. Cloete suggests that the simplest way to do this would be to cut out one type of meat or, alternatively, dedicate one day a week to being meat-free. Meat is also a very expensive product in South Africa so cutting down or buying veggies instead will benefit you in more ways than one.
&nbsp;
Finally, in her closing remarks, Cloete stated that, “If each of us do a small thing to save the earth, together we are making a big difference. There is no planet B and it is up to us now to make small changes so that future generations can experience a clean and healthy environment”.
&nbsp;
Readers can follow Jamie’s journey on Instagram @itsjamiecloete as well as keep up to date with Miss Earth South Africa @missearth_sa.
&nbsp;

Green living whilst being a student

&nbsp;
By Belene Demeke
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
Disclaimer: The purpose of this article is to give a brief description of what family planning is and the various contraceptive options available. This article is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice.
&nbsp;
According to the WHO, family planning allows individuals and couples to anticipate and attain their desired number of children and plan the spacing and timing of their births. This is achieved through the use of contraceptive methods. Deciding on which contraceptive method is right for you can be a difficult and overwhelming decision. One has to consider a wide range of factors, this includes one’s medical history, future pregnancy plans, side effects, costs etc.
&nbsp;
The various contraceptive options include:
<ol>
<li>Male/Female Sterilisation</li>
<li>Long acting reversible contraceptives</li>
</ol>
These are methods that act over a long period of time but are reversible. The duration of use can range from 3 months to 12yrs. These type of contraceptives include:
a. Intrauterine Devices (Placed within the uterus):
<ul>
<li>Levonorgestrel IUD</li>
<li>Copper IUD</li>
</ul>
b. Subdermal Implants:
<ul>
<li>Single rod containing a hormone (progesterone) inserted under the skin of the upper arm.</li>
</ul>
c. Progesterone only injectables:
<ul>
<li>Can either be a 2 or 3 monthly injection.</li>
</ul>
3. Combined oral contraceptives (COC pills)
&nbsp;
All the above methods should always be used in conjunction with a condom as they do not offer any protection against STIs and HIV.
&nbsp;
Besides preventing unplanned pregnancies, some contraceptives have other medical benefits including:
<ul>
<li>Regulating the menstrual cycle</li>
<li>Decreasing dysmenorrhea (painful periods)</li>
<li>Controlling hormonal acne</li>
<li>Helping with the management of endometriosis</li>
<li>Long term use has shown to decrease the risk of uterine cancer.</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
It’s impossible to provide all the necessary information on each contraceptive option here, however, the following websites are an excellent source of information. They contain information on how the different methods work, their effectiveness and side effects. In addition to that, both websites have a quiz aimed at helping you find a contraceptive option that may work for you:
<ol>
<li>https://www.itsaplan.ca (Developed by the Society of Obstetricians and Genealogists of Canada).</li>
<li>https://www.contraceptionchoices.org (Developed by the NHS and University College London).</li>
</ol>
&nbsp;
Student Wellness does offer family planning to UCT students. They provide COC pills, subdermal implants and the progesterone only injectables. One can book a consultation with a clinical nurse practitioner for appropriate counselling as well as the insertion/dispensing of the chosen contraceptive. This whole process is at no cost to the student. The clinical nurse practitioner will arrange the necessary follow up consultation.
&nbsp;
This brief overview of contraceptives would not be complete if emergency contraception (EC) was not discussed. Emergency contraceptives are intended for use after intercourse where no contraception was used (i.e. unprotected intercourse) or where a method was used incorrectly (i.e. condom slipped or broke, pills or injections were missed).
&nbsp;
EC works by disrupting the timing of ovulation or preventing fertilization of an ovulated egg; it is not an abortifacient (i.e. abortion-inducing drug). ECs are not meant to be used as regular contraceptive methods. There are two EC options:
<ol>
<li>Copper IUD:</li>
</ol>
It is the most effective form of EC. The copper IUD can be inserted within five days of intercourse and remain effective. Although, one will need to see a health professional for consultation and insertion.
<ol start="2">
<li>Levonorgestrel (LNG) pill:</li>
</ol>
LNG pill is easily accessed at most pharmacies. One does not need a prescription. However, one will need to answer a questionnaire. The questionnaire is used to screen that there are no possible contraindications to the use of the LNG pill. It’s effective if used within 72 hours of sexual intercourse.
&nbsp;

Family Planning 101

&nbsp;
The socialist party’s protest action against a racist Clicks advert could result in more hurt for the party and those they claim to protect.
&nbsp;
By Alinaswe Lusengo
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
The Clicks advert is unquestionably distasteful and offensive. If by some slight chance you do not know the advert in question, the retail and pharmaceutical company Clicks ran an advert on their website wherein a white woman’s hair is depicted as “fine &amp; flat” and a black woman’s natural hair is described as “dry &amp; damaged” and “frizzy &amp; dull”. This perpetuates a beauty ideal steeped in racism and colonialism where Eurocentric features are standardised and black women are forced to assimilate their natural features as close to whiteness as possible. There is no doubt in the harm an advert such as this produces, and South Africa’s outrage is just but is the EFF’s response and call for a Clicks shutdown going too far?
&nbsp;
The EFF reacted to the racism of the advert by mobilising their supporters to protest outside of Clicks outlets and calling for nationwide shutdowns of the store. Consequently, various Clicks stores had to close down for majority of the week. The EFF saw this as successful protest action against racism. However, the worker who depends on the wage earned at Clicks and is now forced to sacrifice their income because of these protests, might not think the same. It is a deep irony when the country’s supposedly socialist opposition party, whose uniform is an ode to the South African worker, enacts protest that end up hurting the workers they claim to protect. The irony deepens when anti-racist demonstrations negatively impact the majority black working-class citizens being fought for.
&nbsp;
The literal and digital violence of the EFF’s response is also worrying. The literal violence being the petrol bombs aimed at Clicks outlets after the advert that the EFF subsequently denied responsibility for. The digital violence being the twitter response that many prominent EFF members have engaged in, such as Mbuyiseni Ndlozi telling Thuli Madonsela to <a href="https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2020-09-08-the-clicks-shutdown-mbuyiseni-ndlozi-and-thuli-madonsela-exchange-clapbacks-over-protests/">“find the nearest hell”</a> after her critique of his party’s protests. Many have called this comment misogynist, especially considering the high gender-based violence rates in the country which some have said the EFF have not reacted to with the same energy. It is another terrible irony to berate the black women you are meant to defend, especially when your response to the gender-based violence they are disproportionately affected by has been <a href="https://citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/politics/2355478/eff-challenged-to-direct-their-energy-toward-gbv-fight/">deemed inadequate</a>.
&nbsp;
Ultimately, though some of <a href="https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2020-09-10-eff-stops-protests-clicks-to-award-scholarships-to-black-female-students/">the EFF’s demands have been met</a> by Clicks, the optics of these protests may end up damaging the already fickle relationship the party has with South Africa.
&nbsp;
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

Are EFF protests causing more harm than good?

&nbsp;
By Zinhle Geluk
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
The past week saw racism rearing its ugly head once again. This time through hair politics&#8211; a lingering debate that has been going on for decades on end. Twitter was taken by storm when a hair advert from one of the national pharmaceutical stores, Clicks, was released. One could see a white woman’s hair said to be straight and normal and a black woman’s hair deemed damaged. This saw a huge outrage from the country which caused radical organisations like the EFF to embark on a protest at all Clicks stores located across the country. I believe this time around Clicks thought they could slightly get away with it by the usual drive that often happens. By using the notion of “any publicity is good publicity” and that they would simply issue an official apology and hashtags would trend for a day or two and blows over. However, it was far from the ‘usual’ when the EFF embarked on protests and some stores were vandalised. There were concerns about as to whether that would affect jobs of the employees working at Clicks especially given the tough economic challenges that were brought on by the current Covid-19 pandemic.
&nbsp;
One would also recall that a similar boycott was done in H&amp;M in 2018, who were also under the crossfire for the same thing when they displayed a black child in a monkey top captioned “coolest monkey in the jungle”. After many protests and hashtags, life went back to normal and today people still shop there. With Clicks it seemed to have left an even more bitter stain and taste. It could be that perhaps as people of colour, we have reached our limit in terms of contending with corporate racism. One renowned media personality mentioned something which I found valid. They mentioned that we always quickly forgive. A brand will ‘realise’ something problematic that perpetuates racial discrimination and, as mentioned previously, will later post an apology saying that “we didn’t know” or “it was a mistake” and we move on and continue supporting them. He mentioned that is why they see no problem because everyone knows the drill.
&nbsp;
This time around it went radical and has sparked huge conversations across the country. One which I found interesting was that these series of events point out the internal errors with South Africa’s historical transformation. Government needs to consider stronger and more realistic policy measures against racial discrimination. Ultimately, circumstances like these in the South African context of systemic racism through corporations require pragmatic systemic responses in order to put an end to this.
&nbsp;
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.
&nbsp;

Corporate controversies and South Africa’s response to racial discrimination

&nbsp;
By Lehlohonolo Shale
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
Hair is political. This is the postulation of writer and lawyer, Christine Qunta, in her book Why We Are Not a Nation. I agree.
&nbsp;
The recent events at retail store, Clicks, in our country has shown that matters of hair can no longer be left to the domain of the fashion and beauty industry anymore. Clearly, they are worth more than that. The healthcare group recently posted an advert on its marketing platforms claiming that African women’s hair is “dry and damaged” whilst European hair is fine and normal.
&nbsp;
Many people took to social media, and correctly so, to protest this anomaly. As it is, political action followed. Leading the pack on this front was the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) who threatened to shut down the chain store’s outlets. They eventually did&#8211; or at least most stores did close.
&nbsp;
Looking back, it was an appropriate and immediate action against the transgressing store. At the same time other social media users felt a parody on Clicks would work better so they took onto social media to post counter-narratives, or at least the same train of thought to invert the pyramid &#8211; so to speak. This device is a powerful tool in the hands of the oppressed and has been used in the past to open new battle fronts against racism. It is the same tool that is used successfully by satirists in literature.
&nbsp;
Due to the causalities suffered by Clicks a truce had to be called. Today we are at a stage where Unilever SA, the company which licences TRESemmé products, has agreed on several concessions. Amongst these is a commitment to “set up a new diversity and inclusion assets committee.”
&nbsp;
However, in order to cure a disease (i.e. if you view racism as such) you need a good diagnosis which will result in a possible cure. You also need to administer the correct prognosis. Again, you don’t want a situation where after a hard-fought struggle all that is offered becomes cosmetic. Our people have gone through that many times resulting in a sense of despondency when it comes to possible political solutions.
&nbsp;
Empowering those who suffered economic exclusion in the past is a good thing but more needs to be done.
&nbsp;
In one of his writings the late Nigerian writer, Chinua Achebe, shows that for the ideology of colonialism to succeed the invading power must degrade the dispossessed. This they do, amongst others, by shaming their bodies. An unworthy body, in a sense, becomes justified to be denigrated. Once this logic becomes hegemonic then the African body is obliterated, safe for abuse in an exploitative economy.
&nbsp;
If we take Achebe’s argument to its logical conclusion then we begin to understand that Clicks’ ad and similar reactionary actions are not to be unexpected. In fact, it would be surprising if the likes of TRESemmé were to valorise the oppressed.
&nbsp;
So, what then is the way forward? For me, the capitalist/imperialist mentality of many institutions needs to be dismantled. You can’t effectively do it without dismantling the capitalist/imperialist economic base itself. A new people-centred base will ensure that the racialised social relations are abandoned and destroyed.
&nbsp;
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.
&nbsp;

The Clicks controversy and the politics of hair

&nbsp;
By Bathandwa Magqaza
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
During the second week of September, the South African domain witnessed a political crisis around a Clicks controversial advert. The company launched an advertisement around hair which included African hair labelled as dry, dull and damaged, while an example of white hair was described as fine and flat. It is indisputable that these overtones were explicitly racist hence they provoked a public outcry. Unsurprisingly, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), vigorously intervened on the matter and their intervention intensified this issue.
&nbsp;
Clicks’ CEO, Vikesh Ramsunder, showed remorse and accountability and said, “I am deeply disappointed that we allowed insensitive and offensive images to be published on our website&#8221;. Furthermore, he added that the &#8220;negligent employees&#8221; had been suspended. This response, however, seemed to have gone in one ear and out on the other, in the ears of EFF leaders and their constituency. This assertion can be validated by the “incitement and violent imagery that was evident in the communication of the EFF leaders” Wits University Vice Chancellor, Professor Adam Habib argued. They formally insisted for a protest by using words such as “attack” to their constituencies.
&nbsp;
The EFF’s intervention might have appeased its constituencies, however, some people were skeptical and critical of their actions. For instance, Professor Adams Habib in his recent Daily Maverick article, defined the EFF’s involvement as “a power grab” because their actions were of someone “awaiting an opportunity for political spectacle.” He thereafter insisted South Africans to take a stand against “the cohort who romanticise war and violence” because South Africa is a constitutional democracy after-all and all anger should be within the boundaries of our constitution.
&nbsp;
Former public protector &#8211; Thuli Madonsela, who was an illuminating beacon in the dark days not so long ago was lambasted for her response regarding the matter. She claimed that “Clicks was legitimate but anarchy and violence was not.” However, Mbuyiseni Ndlozi responded: “Find the nearest hell Thuli… when you get there, you know the cerebral thing to do. We need no approval from your coconut logic” and he was the gentle one…
&nbsp;
I spoke to the UCT SRC deputy secretary general: Siseko Kosani about this issue &#8211; he is also a member of the EFF constituency. I told him, “our economy is in tatters, we have just witnessed numerous retrenchments which exacerbated the country’s unemployment rate to 40%”. Thereafter, I asked him, “in what way is the EFF’s reaction (protest &amp; demands) effective for our economy?” Siseko’s response was from a Marxist perspective, he asserted, “the South African economy is divided into two extremes, there are those who have and those who do not have. Our economy benefits the minority – those with the means of production”. He substantiated his assertion by arguing that even if our economy and GDP preforms well, the wages of the proletariat class are likely to remain stagnant while the bourgeoisie get richer.
&nbsp;
Nonetheless, South Africa is imbedded in an International Political Economy, and President Cyril Ramaphosa has a strategic goal of attracting foreign investment to reinvigorate our economy. However, his goal might be obstructed by these incidents, because which investor in their right mind would invest in a country where a minority party in Parliament can muscle a company and close its operations through violence without a single murmur from government?
&nbsp;
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.
&nbsp;

EFF’s controversial response to a controversial Click advertisement

&nbsp;
While ordinary people continue to contract the Covid-19 Coronavirus, so do some of your favourite A-list celebrities, each with their own individual experience.
&nbsp;
By Emma Sacco
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 10 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
Covid-19 has affected millions of people worldwide, with some experiencing the coronavirus as a mild flu and others having intensely painful and long-lasting symptoms. Among these millions of people are some of our favourite celebrities, each with a different story to tell.
&nbsp;
Famous celebrity couple Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson both reported experiencing symptoms of Covid-19 in March while shooting Baz Luhrmann’s new Elvis Presley biopic in Australia. While they both had the coronavirus, Hanks described how different their symptoms were, with Wilson experiencing intense nausea, a high fever and a loss in taste and smell. While Hank also had a fever, he stated that it wasn’t nearly as high as Wilson’s, and that his main symptom was that of “crippling body aches”.
&nbsp;
The couple quarantined together and after two weeks began feeling better. After experiencing Covid-19 up-close, Hanks has urged his fans to wash their hands, wear a mask and socially distance in order to stop the spread of the virus.
&nbsp;
Another A-list celebrity who contracted the virus is famous singer-songwriter Pink. Pink reported on April 3 that her and her 3-year-old son had both been diagnosed with Covid-19. After her recovery Pink appeared on the Ellen Show to share her experience of having the coronavirus.
&nbsp;
Pink stated that she was “really, really sick”, but that what was most frightening was the intense symptoms that her son displayed while ill with Covid. She described how her son suffered from diarrhoea, vomiting and an extremely high temperature. In a Mother’s Day article Pink reported that caring for her son while he was sick with the Coronavirus was “the most physically and emotionally challenging experience [I] have gone through as a mother”.
&nbsp;
Pink has since then announced that she will be donating $1 million to two Covid-19 emergency relief funds in America. She continues to raise awareness about the virus, telling her fans that “no one is safe from this”.
&nbsp;
Many other celebrities have contracted the virus since March, some of them including Game of Thrones star Kristofer Hivju, famous actor Idris Elba, well-known singer Charlotte Lawrence and The Bachelor star Colton Underwood.
&nbsp;

Contracting Covid-19 with Your Favourite Celebrities

&nbsp;
By Anathi Godlo
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
On 29 August 2020 a nationwide protest against gender-based violence (GBV) was held in Durban, Johannesburg, Pretoria and Cape Town. The protests began at 11am and this wasn’t the first GBV protest that I had attended in Cape Town, in fact just a year ago we were outside parliament protesting for the exact same reason. We were addressed by the president Cyril Ramaphosa who made several promises to us that included the law changing where convicted abusers/rapists would receive a life sentence in prison with no bail. With no surprise, nothing has changed since a year ago, nothing has been put in place to protect women and children of South Africa and instead it seems that we are being murdered and raped at a much higher rate.
&nbsp;
Early Saturday morning my two friends and I headed towards parliament with our placards that read ‘Am I Next?’ and ‘Who do we call when the police are also the murderers/rapists?’ these were prompted by the news of Nathaniel Julius who was murdered by the police, the everyday news of another women found dead and a News24 headline that read ‘Child gets raped by police officer’. This has become the new norm in South Africa, and we are once again saying enough is enough, but no one seems to hear us. This was evident at the protest when with just fifteen or twenty minutes of being there, the police dropped stun grenades and teargas on the peaceful protestors who were there fighting for the rights of the women and children of this country.
&nbsp;
I am aware that the protests weren’t legal however I am appalled at how quick the police were at enforcing their violence on the peaceful protestors, I ask why they aren’t as angry as we are and why they are unable to address us in a manner that does not involve stun grenades and teargas which seems to be the only thing they truly know. I go back to the placard that I was holding, ‘Who do we call when the police are also the murderers/rapists?’. I found myself drowning in feelings of rage and heartache that led me to post a video onto my Instagram where I expressed my anger towards the police and our president who has failed the women and children of this country.
&nbsp;
I can’t help but wonder how many more have to die before our government recognises GBV as a top priority and a disease that just keeps spreading. I wonder why it is that peaceful protesters are treated like criminals when rapists, murderers and abusers continue to walk free. The cries of the women and children of this country continue to be our anthem but the big dogs in power can’t hear us, they don’t want to hear us or perhaps they are too busy stealing from the poor to even acknowledge or care about us…in South Africa our land!
&nbsp;

Enough Is Enough

&nbsp;
Violence is normalised, the headlines do not come as a surprise.
&nbsp;
By Ntsako Mlambo (Child.of.Afrika)
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
Gender-Based Violence and femicide are persistent problems in South Africa. Between the month of March and April there were 5,082 cases reported of violence inflicted on women and children, out of those 3,373 arrests were made but only 204 were prosecuted. Gender-Based Violence can be blamed on three things: Our highly traumatic past, our highly patriarchal society and our justice system.
&nbsp;
During the era of apartheid, human lives did not matter. The dehumanisation of people during that time has bled its way into today. Women and children are treated and killed in unimaginable ways and our highly patriarchal society does not want to speak about this. Two in five women will be beaten by their domestic partners every day. Violence is normalised in our country and our justice system is to blame for that. Our justice system is flawed, the persecution rate is very low and police do not investigate properly. Perpetrators infringe the rights of women and children knowing that they will not be held accountable. Perpetrators are let out on bail, they come back to society and they reoffend. The cycle of violence continues.
&nbsp;
Kwasa was brutally murdered recently, so was Shanice Jonathan and Uyinene Mrwetyana last year. Lerato Moloi was harassed and the hands of justice have not been there to save her. This all feels very familiar. Right now, as we speak there is a woman or child who is being harassed or violated in this country. The citizens of this country do not have trust or any faith in the justice system because of its continuous failure of serving justice and protecting people. The justice system needs to do better; police must be trained well so they are able to investigate cases properly, there must be strict and substantive consequences so that perpetrators think twice about offending the law. Education about our past must be taught extensively; teaching it at surface level is only putting us behind, traumas must be addressed so we progress and post-trauma counselling must be offered in the education curriculum.
&nbsp;
Gender-Based Violence in our country gets worse every year. Women and children cannot live their lives in fear. We cannot dedicate time into protests every year for someone to get raped and murdered again. The justice system needs to stand up for its people; they know what they need to do.
&nbsp;
We are done talking.
&nbsp;
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

How do we heal Azania?

&nbsp;
By Christopher Williamson
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
Have you ever stopped and thought about what it is exactly that you are saying? This is a broad question, but the words or phrases which we use do have meaning and even if we believe they are not offensive can divulge on being just that. Ableism is discrimination and social prejudice towards people with disabilities. This takes place in the form of social pressures and abuses, but it’s also influenced by what we say.
&nbsp;
The phrase, “Did I stutter?” has flooded the social sphere, with many using it as way of showing that they have not made any mistake in what they have said. Perhaps you have used this phrase, or perhaps you’ve used phrases such as “Are you blind?” or “Are you deaf?”. These phrases are almost exclusively used aggressively; they are used to imply that something is “wrong” with you. We forget that these phrases are incredibly violent in nature, not only due to the context in which they are said in, but in what they are undeniably referring to.
&nbsp;
Are we forgetting that there are people with disabilities? Well the simple answer is probably no, but we are forgetting that these statements are creating a violent distinction between people with disabilities and abled-bodied and/or neurotypical people. When we say statements such as “Are you deaf?” or “Did I stutter?” it is saying that people with disabilities cannot either comprehend or participate in discussions. In some senses it says that these people do not belong and are isolated from particular spaces and discourses. These statements are violent and need to be revised by society.
&nbsp;
Within society, people with disabilities continue to be discriminated against, whether it be for work opportunities or within structures of power, why further the narrative of social isolation through the conversations we have? It’s time to check the violent language that we use so freely in the performance of privilege.
&nbsp;
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

People with Disabilities still exist, don’t forget it

&nbsp;
By Munaka Munyai
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
The tragic murder of 16-year-old Nathaniel Julius on the 26th of August at the whim of South African law enforcement served as a dual display of violence to the country and media. On the first level, the overt use of brutality by law enforcement is an unfortunate reality South Africans have become accustomed to fearing and expecting. On the other level the event was also bolstered by a less acknowledged yet equally violent level of ableism.
&nbsp;
The unarmed Nathaniel’s context becomes especially disturbing when it reveals that the aggravation of brutality by officers on a 16-year-old was because he was ‘differently abled’ to the socially and systemically expected and enforced hegemony of ability. This hegemony is pedestalled as ‘normalcy’ whilst any and every other variation of existence and ability is dismissed to the periphery of “abnormal”, “disabled” etc.
&nbsp;
The violence that exudes from the oppressive and exclusionary repertoire of ableism permeates and manifests violently into daily life activities. It reduces humanity to ability; limits the accessibility that people with disabilities have to facilities, society, healthcare etc. It also devalues the livelihood of people who are perceived as ‘anomalous’ to ableist hegemony by violently degrading them with slurs and attacks. The experiences people with disabilities have in society is quintessentially their reduction as people who are “disposable” or need “to be fixed” in the ‘best’ case scenario or murdered in the worst-case scenario.
&nbsp;
Ableism isn’t far-fetched. The glamorised “ps*cho/cr*zy girl” trope in Taylor Swift songs; the “are you blind”, “uh did I stutter?” and “tone-deaf” hyperbolic references on Twitter and even ‘comedic’ inferences to wearing glasses are all instances of microaggressive invalidation and the main-streaming ableism. In the media, ableism is exacerbated when there is an unchecked, nuanced and wide-spread use of ableist language by celebrities and social media. The mental and physical assignment of human value to ability pervades language and serves as an invalidation to the experiences of people with disabilities.
&nbsp;
By now, one ought to even realise the mainstreamed ableist aggression that appears in the school system where speech rubrics that deduct marks according to how often you stutter or fidget (stinting). The other example may be the severe degradation of people’s whole lives being reduced to a “disability” that renders them as inspirational/pity porn in order to gain any sense of adequacy or respect.
&nbsp;
Ableism and its mainstreaming appear in many spheres and there is need for movements of social progression to foreground those experiences of people with disabilities in order to make substantive social change. It shouldn’t take the life of people like Nathaniel Julius to realise and confront that.
&nbsp;
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

The Mainstreaming of Ableism

&nbsp;
An inclusive framework for antispeciesist advocacy.
&nbsp;
By Chloe Kingdom
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
It is part for the course that liberation movements evolve ideologically. However, in the case of the vegan movement, a chasm grows between those who peddle veganism as a ‘lifestyle’ led by dietary change and activists who remain committed to advocating for animal rights by campaigning against systemic oppression. The emergence of plant-based capitalism not only obscures the main message of the movement, but it prevents it from achieving its goal of total liberation for all animals.
&nbsp;
The huge amount of exposure in the media and the growing number of vegan food products for sale are testament to the fact that cultural opinions are changing around the exploitation of animals. However, this has not influenced the dismantling of the animal agricultural industry nor has it directly contributed to landmark progressions in the case for animal rights. Notably, the rights of workers in the agricultural industry have also not been impacted by plant-based-focused activism.
&nbsp;
Vegans with a comprehensive understanding of animal ethics know that antispeciesist ideology is the all-encompassing, fundamental ethical position with which one needs to align to establish a consistent approach to social justice advocacy. Tom Regan, a philosophical heavy weight in animal rights theory, made the succinct observation that, “To be &#8216;for animals&#8217; is not to be &#8216;against humanity.” Our aims are united under the same system of oppression. To dismantle this system, humans need to address all aspects of affected society within their anti-oppression advocacy, and this advocacy needs to include all persons that it harms—both human and nonhuman.
&nbsp;
Mainstream veganism does not work hard enough to fight for the rights of workers in the agriculture industry—slaughterhouse workers, in particular. Some activists may find this stance antithetical, but workers, like animals, are exploited by the capitalist system. They often succumb to repetitive stress injuries in a highly dangerous work environment, with little safeguards and pressure from floor managers not to report injuries. They are also sourced from low-income communities—many with immigrant or refugee status—thus, leaving them vulnerable to work-place exploitation.
&nbsp;
The industry’s normalisation of violence is also pathological: It has one of the highest rates of worker turnover and PTSD, as workers are forced to kill a huge number of animals in a short space of time. Under capitalism, both the animals and the workers are treated as disposable resources for profitable gain.
&nbsp;
Thus, the search for a theory that connects the different experiences of animals within the capitalist system has been the focus of recent attention. Many activists have landed on Kimberlé Crenshaw’s intersectionality theory as a possible framework. However, it is meant to be applied to feminism, where the experiences of black and brown women and femmes are to be understood at the intersections of their various identities.
&nbsp;
The oversight of human rights in mainstream vegan activism can be addressed by endorsing intersectional feminism within the broader ideological framework–but that is not enough; nor is it appropriate to appropriate a framework developed explicitly for a community to redress specific instances of discrimination and oppression.
&nbsp;
Radical veganism has been presented as the solution: As an inclusive framework, it acknowledges and incorporates the shared struggles of marginalised and exploited communities across society. This consolidated understanding of systemic oppression can then be used to navigate the myriad ways in which all animals are bound up within exploitative capitalism.
&nbsp;
Mainstream vegan advocacy reflects how far the movement has strayed from its original ideals for total liberation. Radical vegan activists can repair this damage and bring about sustainable societal transformation if we educate the community about our first and foremost commitment to completely rooting out oppression in all respects.
&nbsp;
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.

Making the case for radical veganism

&nbsp;
By Anouschka Tollig
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
On the 27th of August I went running with my friend, I was wearing leggings and a top. My chest, legs and arms were covered. As my friend and I were walking back, a man shouted from a taxi, “What you are wearing isn’t right girls”. My response was, “THANK YOU!” because it was my body and it was my choice.
&nbsp;
For a man to tell me, wearing leggings that covers my legs (despite the fact of how much I was sweating under them) and a top that covers my chest and arms (even though I was sweating myself to death with the heat) is not right, then I ask what is?
&nbsp;
I feel like, as a young girl, I cannot wear jeans because my butt is too big, I can’t wear a crop top, my stomach shows, I can’t wear shorts, my legs show and even if I put on a hoodie and sweatpants, it still would not be right because no matter what a girl wears or dresses, she gets raped and murdered. I don’t feel it’s fair. Why must women be fully covered while men can walk around as they wish? What’s wrong with wearing shorts on a hot day? Why can’t I wear a swimsuit at the beach?
&nbsp;
My simple answer? Because in South Africa, women and young girls are being drugged, abused, kidnapped, raped and murdered and thrown in trash or a lake and left there to rot as if they were nothing.
&nbsp;
Telling me what I was wearing was not right is like telling a dog that eating when their hungry isn’t right. Women should not be treated this way because we don’t deserve it. Innocent women are being murdered for just going outside or walking to the post office. It happens everywhere, outside and inside their homes.
&nbsp;
If you are a young girl, cis-woman, queer gendered, femme-bodied or any identity that does not subscribe to conditions of patriarchy in South Africa, pray that God watches over you and protects us because we are not safe here.
&nbsp;
DISCLAIMER
This section of VARSITY is a vehicle for expression on any topic by members of the UCT community. The opinions within this section are not necessarily those of the VARSITY collective or its advertisers.
&nbsp;

I don’t feel safe, anywhere

&nbsp;
By Seth Meyer
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
As of 31 August, the coronavirus has infected 25.1 million people, around 623 000 of which have come from South Africa, putting us in sixth place globally in terms of the number of confirmed cases. The USA currently has the most cases, having accrued a total of 6.06 million confirmed cases. Globally, around 844 000 people have died, while in South Africa, we have had 14 028 deaths. Gauteng province carries the highest caseload of any other province with over 87 000 confirmed cases.
&nbsp;
South Africa has conducted over 3.6 million COVID-19 tests, and, with the number of recoveries measuring 538 604, we have a current recovery rate of over 85%.
&nbsp;
Since 17 August, South Africa has been on lockdown level 2. Along with it has come a lift on the tobacco and alcohol ban, inter-provincial travel and domestic flights are now allowed, restaurants, bars and taverns can now operate, and accommodation facilities are permitted to operate. International travel is still banned, and a curfew from between 10:00PM and 4:00AM remains in place.
&nbsp;
Sun City, one of South Africa’s largest tourist destinations, opened on 2 September, and is welcoming visitors for the first time since lockdown began five months ago, in March.
&nbsp;
Over R40bn has been dispersed to workers as temporary relief from the economic effects of lockdown.
&nbsp;

COVID-19: Latest statistics, updates and news

&nbsp;
Ellen Degeneres has recently been under scrutiny as former employees and guests of the show come forward with stories of racism and sexual harassment.
&nbsp;
By Emma Sacco
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
The Ellen Degeneres Show has been a popular variety talk show since it was started in 2003, with the talk show host Ellen always encouraging her audience to “be kind to one another”. 2020 has seen a rebranding of The Ellen Show as former staff employees and celebrities have spoken out against the programme and have labelled it as “toxic”, claiming that Ellen’s kind and generous appearance is only an act.
&nbsp;
Various people began speaking out about the show when rumours started circling about Ellen mistreating her staff and creating a “toxic work environment”. Over 30 former employees of The Ellen Show have described incidents of sexual harassment and racism taking place behind the scenes of the popular talk show.
&nbsp;
A former black female employee reported experiencing racist micro-aggressions while working for The Ellen Show. After suggesting that the staff take a diversity and inclusion training course the employee was accused of “walking around looking resentful and angry”.
&nbsp;
Soon after these allegations against the show arose, others started to come forward and comment on Ellen’s character. The tweet that began a series of allegations was posted by comedian Kevin T. Porter, where he stated that Ellen is “notoriously one of the meanest people alive”. He then requested “insane” stories about Ellen being mean, saying that for every story he would donate $2 to the Los Angeles Food Bank.
&nbsp;
From there the stories began rolling in. Youtuber Nikkie de Jager, who appeared on The Ellen Show in January, claimed to have had a very negative experience on the show. She describes Ellen as “cold and distant” when the cameras are off, and states how Ellen didn’t even say hello to her before the show began.
&nbsp;
Next came the Everybody Loves Raymond star Brad Garrett and Back to the Future actress Lea Thompson to comment on Ellen, both stating that Ellen’s mean streak is “common knowledge”.
&nbsp;
As 2020 has proven to be the year of holding celebrities accountable, it seems both fitting and important that people are coming forward and exposing The Ellen Show for its underlying racism and covertly mean host.
&nbsp;
Previous movements such as the #MeToo movement have shown how celebrities in the entertainment industry frequently get away with sexual assault and racism. By calling Ellen Degeneres out for her unacceptable treatment of her staff and guests it sends the message that it is not okay to disrespect or harm anyone, whether you are famous or not.
&nbsp;
While cancel culture isn’t the most popular at the moment, call out culture is better than ever as it exposes celebrities and holds them accountable for their actions. It seems as though Ellen couldn’t take the heat of her recent exposure, as there are now rumours that she may cancel The Ellen Show as a way to save her “personal brand”.
&nbsp;

Ellen De-not-so-generous?

&nbsp;
The French film continues to receive backlash for the sexualisation of underage girls.
&nbsp;
By Emma Sacco
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
The 2020 French film Cuties, originally titled “Mignonnes” has recently been advertised on Netflix and will be uploaded to our South African Netflix on the 9th of September. While Cuties has been positively received by many and won multiple awards at the Sundance Film Festival 2020, others haven’t been so accepting of its plotline and supposed sexualisation of young girls.
&nbsp;
Director Maïmouna Doucouré created the now well-known film to comment on the way that young girls are sexualised in society and are encouraged to act in sexually explicit ways due to social media.
&nbsp;
While the intention of the film seems to be focused on raising awareness around the sexualisation of young girls, many disagree with the movie being made at all, claiming that the film itself sexualises the young actresses and allows adults to look at these underage girls in a sexual manner.
&nbsp;
The movie only received more negative feedback when Netflix published a cover photo to advertise the release of the movie. The photo displayed the 11-year-old main actresses in sexually provocative poses and wearing minimal amounts of clothing.
&nbsp;
People were quick to respond to this wildly inappropriate image on both Twitter and Instagram, with one user saying that “Netflix just normalised pedophilia”.
&nbsp;
Other comments on Netflix’s sexualised image included well-known Twitter user Sister Outrider speaking out about the sexualisation of young black girls: “It is so revealing that the first major @netflix original to centre young black girls hinges on explicitly sexualising 11-year-old children. Whether it’s acting or music, a sexualised image is too often the price of mainstream success for black women &amp; girls. Disgraceful”.
&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
It is so revealing that the first major <a href="https://twitter.com/netflix?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@netflix</a> original to centre young Black girls hinges on explicitly sexualising 11 year old children. Whether it’s acting or music, a sexualised image is too often the price of mainstream success for Black women &amp; girls. Disgraceful. <a href="https://t.co/18ItsgIZLb">pic.twitter.com/18ItsgIZLb</a>
— Sister Outrider (@ClaireShrugged) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClaireShrugged/status/1296391233867325440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&nbsp;
Netflix was quick to respond to the backlash and promptly removed the sexualised cover poster, replacing it with a photo of the main young actress, Fathia Youssouf Abdillahi, looking over her shoulder.
&nbsp;
A spokesperson for Netflix then released an apology, stating: “We’re deeply sorry for the inappropriate artwork that we used for ‘Mignonnes’/’Cuties&#8217;. It was not OK, nor was it representative of this French film which premiered at Sundance.”
&nbsp;
While Netflix’s fast removal of the photo and apology was a good and appropriate response, it is still highly concerning that the image was published in the first place. The sexualisation of underage girls is a problem that seems to be growing in our society, and with a huge platform such as Netflix normalising such a sexually explicit photo of young girls, society will only continue to expect and encourage the sexualisation of these minors.
&nbsp;
There are still many people who think that the film is problematic in itself, and many petitions have been created to urge Netflix not to release the movie at all. Despite these online petitions, one of which has gathered over 170 000 signatures, Netflix is still set on releasing Cuties in September.
&nbsp;

The Sexualisation of Young Girls Continues with Netflix’s Release of “Cuties”

&nbsp;
Richard Mille Racing team ready to compete in this year’s race.
&nbsp;
By Nelisa Khwela
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
2019 was a significant year for women in motorsport as the W Series (an all-female equivalent to Formula 1) was established and the first all-female team since 1991 raced in the Le Mans 24-hour race. This year on the 19th of September another all-female team, Richard Mille Racing, will be competing once again in the male-dominated sport of endurance racing. The Le Mans Race has been dubbed the “Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency” as success in Le Mans requires achieving a balance of speed and endurance as the cars have to complete the 24-hour race, often covering up to 5000km, without mechanical failure.
&nbsp;
The Le Mans 24-hour race is held annually in June at the Sarthe Circuit in Le Mans, France and draws about 110 million viewers in 190 countries. However, the race date was shifted this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Richard Mille Racing team will be competing in the LMP2 category which features smaller, independent race teams. The 2020 drivers are Sophia Floersch (Germany), Katherine Legge (England) and Tatiana Calderón (Colombia), who all have notable achievements within the world of motorsport. Floersch was the first-ever female Formula 3 driver at 19 years of age. Calderón is the test driver for the Formula 1 Alfa Romeo team and competed in the 2019 Formula 2 championship alongside male drivers. Legge is the more experienced of the three in endurance motorsport as she has participated in the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and is an ex-IndyCar and DTM (German Touring Car Masters) driver.
&nbsp;
The Le Mans Race is televised annually on DStv’s Supersport 5 with this year’s race starting at 14:30 on Saturday, 19 September and ending at 14:30 on Sunday, 20 September. Tune in to watch accomplished women breaking barriers and taking up space in endurance motorsport.
&nbsp;

All-female team to compete in 2020 Le Mans 24-hour race

&nbsp;
Judge Nye becomes the second federal judge this month to reject a new anti-transgender law in Idaho.
&nbsp;
By James Braham
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
On Monday, the 17th of August 2020, a federal judge in Idaho published a temporary injunction which would prevent Idaho from passing a law banning transgender girls and women from participating in women’s sports.
&nbsp;
US District Judge David Nye has given hope to LGBTQ+ advocates who have challenged this form of legislation in court. The ruling paves the way for the participation of transgender athletes without the patriarchal nature of the global sporting system. This law will apply to both college and secondary school systems in Idaho.
&nbsp;
The lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on behalf of two students at Boise State University, Lindsey Hecox &amp; an anonymous student. According to ACLU, Hecox is transgender and is wanting to compete for a place in the cross-country team. The anonymous student is cisgender and “concerned about being subjected to the law’s invasive ‘sex verification’ testing”.
&nbsp;
According to CNN, Governor Brad Little had signed the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act back in March. An athlete would have to verify their own “internal and external reproductive anatomy” if her sex is disputed. This would prevent athletes participating on a women’s team. Hence, the preliminary injunction was issued by Nye in response to yet another move by Idaho to push forward an anti-transgender law in the state.
&nbsp;
Nye had the following to say, “In making this determination, it is not just the constitutional rights of transgender girls and women athletes at issue but, as explained [in the decision], the constitutional rights of every girl and woman athlete in Idaho. Because the Court finds Plaintiffs are likely to succeed in establishing the Act is unconstitutional as currently written, it must issue a preliminary injunction at this time pending trial on the merits.”
&nbsp;
Additionally, Hecox exclaimed that she felt a “major sense of relief” – “I’m a girl, and the right team for me is the girls’ team. It’s time the court recognise that and I am so glad that the court’s ruling does.”
&nbsp;
Simultaneously, another federal judge rejected the Trump administration’s rollback of an Obama-era legislation which prohibits discrimination health care against patients who are transgender. The federal system continues to be challenged in all shapes and sizes.
&nbsp;

Fighting the Repressive System: Idaho judge rules that transgender athletes have the right to compete in women’s sports teams

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Getting the most out of remote learning 
&nbsp;
By Sumitra Naidoo
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
Students now have a new normal when it comes to learning online. Making sure that each day is as productive as possible has become a never-ending struggle for many of us, for some students learning whilst at home can prove to be quite a challenge. Here are 5 tips that you can implement to ensure you reach your full potential this semester:
&nbsp;
<ol>
<li> Get organised and plan ahead</li>
</ol>
Create a planner for what you’re going to do and when you’re going to do it. This will help you with dividing up tasks that you want to complete for each week and will help you avoid cramming in chunks of work before deadlines. Set realistic goals for each week in your planner, if you know that you won’t get through all your readings in one week, don’t set yourself up for disappointment by putting it in your planner. Remember: SMART goals (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timeous)
&nbsp;
<ol start="2">
<li> Manage your study space</li>
</ol>
This is probably the most difficult one when you’re at home as every space seems to be distracting. Identify the quietest space in your household that will get you into that working mindset and maximise your productivity (try and avoid spaces such as in front of the TV as it will be noisy and disturbing). Some students are lucky to have a desk to work at, but if you don’t, try find a surface where you’re comfortable with your laptop and notes. Additionally, make sure your study space is clean and clutter free.
&nbsp;
<ol start="3">
<li> Take breaks</li>
</ol>
If you find yourself procrastinating a lot, the chances are high that you’re about to reach burn out. Identify when your most productive hours are and work around that. Try and go for walks or do some exercise instead of watching TV as it will avoid you binging a whole series. Especially during pandemic times, taking mental health days can see you being more productive since you will be properly rested and ready to work again.
&nbsp;
<ol start="4">
<li> Co-ordinate group chats</li>
</ol>
Creating group chats with your classmates will be a reminder that you’re not in this alone. Group chats can be a useful way to find out information or get help with course material. It is also a useful way to keep track of whether you are falling behind on work and will help you maintain a good productivity level.
&nbsp;
<ol start="5">
<li> Don’t neglect your well-being </li>
</ol>
Take care of your health and make sure you are getting enough sleep. Studies show that a well-rested body sharpens your focus and improves your working memory (that’s why professional athletes have strict sleeping schedules). If you feel unhappy and low, never underestimate the power of a shower and some clean clothes. Remember to always wear your mask when you go out and to regularly wash your hands.
&nbsp;

5 tips to studying online this semester

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The best decision for your period, planet and pocket.
&nbsp;
By Tiyani Rikhotso
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
For those who haven’t yet made the switch, the menstrual cup can seem like an intimidating period product. However, what seems like a foreign object that your body may reject from afar, is actually a flexible silicone cup that is easy to insert and use. The cup sits comfortably, low in the vagina and can be worn for up to 12 hours depending on your flow. The menstrual cup collects more blood than other products making it a convenient swap that only has to be changed twice a day.
&nbsp;
The silicone used is hypoallergenic and free of harmful substances. Conventional menstrual care products can include plastics, chemicals such as dioxins, phthalates and parabens as well as other ingredients that feminine hygiene companies don’t have to declare. As these products are typically used every month for decades, this can not only lead to irritation but have long-term health effects. Thus, the menstrual cup is a safe alternative that doesn’t expose your body to harmful toxins. In addition, the cup is not associated with Toxic Shock Syndrome.
&nbsp;
Unlike conventional menstrual care products like pads or tampons that you toss with each use, the menstrual cup is reusable for 5-8 years. It is estimated that someone who menstruates will use between 5 and 15 thousand pads and tampons. As these products contain and are packaged in plastic, this contributes to the growing crisis of plastic waste that builds up in landfills and harms our wildlife and environmental landscapes. Not only does this put a strain on the environment but also has great financial implications as on average this lifetime use of menstrual products can cost up to $6000.
&nbsp;
<iframe loading="lazy" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/o9fPUfm-uYE" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&nbsp;
Before use, the cup is sterilised by boiling it for several minutes in an open pot. Using your fold method of choice, you insert the cup and manoeuvre it slightly until you hear a popping sound. This is the suction in action which is what prevents leakage. Don’t give up if you don’t get this right on your first few tries! It can take some practice to master the cup so you may want to use it in conjunction with a natural, organic or reusable cloth pad for the first few months. To remove, insert your index finger and thumb into your vagina and grab a hold of the stem. Pull this down until you can firmly pinch the base of the cup to release some of the suction. Spill out the blood, rinse and reinsert.
&nbsp;
Between cycles you simply boil it to sterilise and store it in a breathable container or cloth bag.
&nbsp;
The online retailer <a href="https://www.faithful-to-nature.co.za/catalogsearch/result/?q=menstrual+cup">Faithful to Nature</a> stocks a variety of different menstrual cup brands. Prices range from R269,00 for their own menstrual cup range to R659,00 for the popular Mooncup. There are also local menstrual cup brands such as <a href="https://www.myowncup.co.za/online-store/Cups-c38337078">My Own Cup</a> who extend their business past products and run workshops and community projects around menstrual education and upliftment. My Own Cup’s prices range between R250,00 – R375,00 depending on the size. The size variations of menstrual cups are dependent on factors such as age, the length of your cervix, your flow and whether you’ve given birth naturally.
&nbsp;
If you weren’t open to the idea of using the cup before, hopefully the reality that you’re most likely to spend nearly R100 000 on menstrual care products in your lifetime has piqued your interest. Not only is making the switch a financially sustainable option but it helps reduce waste, plastic pollution and your body’s exposure to harmful toxins.
&nbsp;

Making the menstrual cup switch

&nbsp;
The xenophobic sentiments associated with #SAMediaMustFall and its link to a network 
of xenophobic accounts rallied behind the anonymous @Lerato_Pillay.
&nbsp;
By Lerato Botha
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
&nbsp;
Xenophobia and Afrophobia are concepts that South Africans have become all too familiar with over the years. Many citizens have argued the want for the prioritisation of South African citizens in all facets, stemming both economically and socially, but some have gone even further, growing to perpetuate hate and blame for our country’s struggles and downfalls onto African foreign nationals in a generalised manner. Some have expressed this contempt most especially on Twitter, through use of hashtags such as #NigeriansMustGo and #VoetsekForeignersGoHome along with many more. #SAMediaMustFall is among the most recent of these and is aimed towards South African news outlets. Under the hashtag, Twitter users have expressed their dissatisfaction with South African media and the alleged protection of foreigners in the news.
&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet align-center">
This is what&#8217;s happening since you tool over as minister of Transport, South African Citizens don&#8217;t have trains anymore your foreign criminals stole railway networks and cables. South Africans can&#8217;t go to CBDs because of Foreign criminals <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/VoetsekForeignersGoHome?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#VoetsekForeignersGoHome</a> <a href="https://t.co/InSZ9ALEEE">pic.twitter.com/InSZ9ALEEE</a>
— Lerato Pillay (@Lerato_Pillay) <a href="https://twitter.com/Lerato_Pillay/status/1294215470686535681?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 14, 2020</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet align-center ">
Every Country in the World is prioritizing their own Citizens, why must we starve while Zimbabweans are Employed in our Country, Charity begins at home <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SAMediaMustFall?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SAMediaMustFall</a> <a href="https://t.co/ocy1jwV9qj">pic.twitter.com/ocy1jwV9qj</a>
— Lerato Pillay (@Lerato_Pillay) <a href="https://twitter.com/Lerato_Pillay/status/1297663232123994113?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 23, 2020</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;
The #SAMediaMustFall campaign accompanied by #PutSouthAfricansFirst have been used to express how the media, according to certain accounts, have turned a blind eye on the so-called damage that immigrants impose onto the country as a whole and onto South Africans’ job security. They claim that media outlets are protecting foreigners by avoiding reporting on these issues and that they are attempting to bury the voices of those who speak out against them. Most of these accounts have rallied behind the anonymous, notoriously xenophobic account of @Lerato_Pillay, formerly going under @uLerato_Pillay before the account was removed from the site. Thi account has often been the spearhead promoter of these anti-immigrant messages. The previous account @uLerato_Pillay has been linked to the South African First (SAF) political party which is said to “promote the closing of South Africa’s borders and removal of foreign nationals from the country”, according to Tessa Knight and Jean le Roux of ‘Daily Maverick’. An investigation made by the DFRLabs links the account to another, @SfisoGwala_SA who is apparently affiliated with the SAF.
&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet align-center">
The mentality of saying we&#8217;re brothers and sisters with everyone coming to our country needs to stop. People are benefiting at the expense of our people with that phrase, knowing very well they are here to take <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/VoetsekSAMedia?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#VoetsekSAMedia</a>
— Lerato Pillay (@Lerato_Pillay) <a href="https://twitter.com/Lerato_Pillay/status/1298039643653451776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 24, 2020</a></blockquote>
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eNCA, SABC and Newsroom Afrika are all disgusting news channels with idiots who call themselves News Anchors. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SAMediaMustFall?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SAMediaMustFall</a>
— Mr Handsome (@MrHandsome_ZA) <a href="https://twitter.com/MrHandsome_ZA/status/1297669931979481088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 23, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Given the xenophobic history of the account and its affiliates, a seemingly simple hashtag finds its links to xenophobic and afrophobic sentiments. Under #SAMediaMustFall, Twitter users have criminalised foreigners and expressed that South African media has put these foreign nationals above South Africans in their representation in the media. Twitter users have also expressed their belief that South Africa and its media outlets are under the control of African foreign nationals. According to them, South African media has turned a blind eye to immigrants which they label as criminals, and reporters are supposedly puppets that do not speak on the criminal truths of these immigrants. These statements present undertones of xenophobia and afrophobia that bring to light the complications of hashtags like #PutSouthAfricansFirst and #SAMediaMustFall, as although they do not seem it, they are often accommodated by highly xenophobic sentiments.
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet align-center">
eNCA, SABC and Newsroom Afrika are all disgusting news channels with idiots who call themselves News Anchors. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SAMediaMustFall?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SAMediaMustFall</a>
— Mr Handsome (@MrHandsome_ZA) <a href="https://twitter.com/MrHandsome_ZA/status/1297669931979481088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 23, 2020</a></blockquote>
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#SAMediaMustFall: The Xenophobic truth behind the tag

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“Disgusting and disheartening” images flooded out of Cape Town’s CBD as police brutalised protesters outside Parliament. Seventeen Gender-based violence (GBV) activists were arrested after Bikers Against Farm Murders allegedly derailed their peaceful protest on Saturday, August 29th.
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By Jeremy Simpson &amp; Caitlin MacDonald
This article is exclusive to the Online Edition 9 of VARSITY News.
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<figure id="attachment_6203" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-6203" style="width: 299px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" class=" wp-image-6203" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Protest3-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="299" height="224" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Protest3-300x225.jpg 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Protest3-768x576.jpg 768w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Protest3-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Protest3.jpg 1280w" sizes="(max-width: 299px) 100vw, 299px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-6203" class="wp-caption-text">Image by Kelsey Maggott</figcaption></figure>
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On Saturday, August 29th, Cape Town police arrested anti-GBV protesters marching to Parliament after members of Bikers Against Farm Murders, protesting at the same time, breached a police barricade, instigating the violence.
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The protest began peacefully at 11 a.m., where police had set up a barricade preventing protesters from reaching the Parliamentary Precinct. “[Protesters were] met with intimidating police presence”, antigbv_su said in an update posted to their Instagram page, “Adhering to their orders, protesters peacefully gathered on the pavements.” They gathered at the intersection of Roeland and Buitenkant streets.
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Ayesha Abou-Zeid, an organiser of the march and a student at Stellenbosch University, noted that organisers were concerned about police intimidation. “There was concern for police presence,” Abou-Zeid explained, “but due to previous protests, we did not expect the violence that ensued on Saturday.”
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The National Anti-GBV Collective has accused Bikers Against Farm Murders of attempting to “hijack” their Cape Town protest by aggravating police and then leaving the anti-GBV protesters to face the fallout. According to sources, bikers, who arrived at around 11:30, knocked their motorcycles against police shields and threw a stun grenade back at the police. Anti-GBV protesters have also accused the bikers of verbal harassment.
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In a video captured by Cape Town News photographer, Esa Alexander, the police are seen dragging a biker off his motorcycle after he ran over the Roeland/Buitenkant barricade and then attempted to punch an officer. Soon after, smoke engulfed the crowd and loud bangs echoed as police threw stun grenades and tear gas into the crowd. 
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Video captured by Cape Town News photographer, Esa Alexander shows police dragging a biker off his motorcycle:
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet tw-align-center">
People against <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GenderBasedViolence?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GenderBasedViolence</a> with bikers clash with police in Roeland Street, Cape Town <a href="https://twitter.com/TimesLIVE?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TimesLIVE</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GBVmustfall?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GBVmustfall</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gbv?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#gbv</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/antigbv_su?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@antigbv_su</a> <a href="https://t.co/5gmES7WUKx">pic.twitter.com/5gmES7WUKx</a>
— Esa Alexander (@ezaap) <a href="https://twitter.com/ezaap/status/1299667932675534850?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 29, 2020</a></blockquote>
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At this point anti-GBV protesters thought the bikers were expressing their support for the movement. They were not aware that this was a separate protest and so, according to witnesses, the protesters followed the bikers motions to move down Roeland Street to Parliament. “So we thought they were there for us,” explained VARSITY’s Online Editor, Kelsey Maggott. The Bikers stayed at the gates of Parliament for a short time and then began leaving. 
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<figure id="attachment_6202" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-6202" style="width: 300px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" class="wp-image-6202 size-medium" src="http://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Protest4-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" srcset="https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Protest4-300x225.jpg 300w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Protest4-768x576.jpg 768w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Protest4-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https://varsitynewspaper.co.za/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Protest4.jpg 1280w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-6202" class="wp-caption-text">Image by James Braham</figcaption></figure>
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Outside Parliament, Thandile Ngxikwe, a student at Stellenbosch University, called for a moment of silence for victims of GBV before being interrupted by police stun grenade blasts and shots into the circle of protesters, many of whom were kneeling. “Police brutality became very real in that moment,” Ngxikwe said. “Had I moved a second later, I would have gotten shot at.” According to witnesses, bikers who had not yet left began leaving after this. 
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet tw-align-center">
This moment is one that defines our justice system.
Thandile Ngxikwe asking anti-GBV activists outside Parliament to have a moment of silence to mourn the loss of so many women, children and queer bodies. The police respond with tear gas and rubber bullets. <a href="https://t.co/tR2MTOoxHw">pic.twitter.com/tR2MTOoxHw</a>
— Anti-GBV Movement SU (@antigbv_su) <a href="https://twitter.com/antigbv_su/status/1299721663731445762?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 29, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Various VARSITY editors were at the protests, capturing the scenes as they unfolded. James Braham, the Print Edition Sports Editor, described the police violence which ensued as “disgusting and disheartening.”
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Women were dragged on the ground and protesters forced into arresting vehicles by the police, without being given reasons for their arrest and without being read their rights according to witnesses and the National Anti-GBV Collective. Police are also alleged to have pointed firearms with live ammunition at protesters, seen in videos on social media platforms. 
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In addition, the National Anti-GBV collective has accused the police of failing to adhere to the correct Gatherings Act and lockdown protocols, claiming that, despite the best efforts of the Cape Town organisers to encourage social distancing, the police’s crowd control measures forced protesters to cluster together.
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The protest was illegal since the Disaster Management Act prohibits gatherings of over 50 people. Police spokesperson, Captain FC Van Wyk, said reports estimate that the protests in Cape Town were 1000 strong. Ultimately, the police arrested 18 protesters on charges of public violence, malicious property damage, and violations of the Disaster Management Act. Those arrested appeared in the Cape Town Magistrate’s court on Monday, August 31th. According to Ayesha Abou-Zeid, 17 were GBV protesters and one was a biker arrested on a charge of attempted murder. They were released at 1 a.m. on Sunday, August 30th.
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<a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CEeqTGXH5rF/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">An Anti-GBV march to gates of Parliament descended into chaos as police arrested several protesters after firing off stun grenades. ?@thehumansnarrative/@ana_pix_1 #capetown #westerncape #southafrica #antigbv #genderbasedviolence</a>
<p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" href="https://www.instagram.com/thecapeargus/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> Cape Argus</a> (@thecapeargus) on <time style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;" datetime="2020-08-29T15:57:52+00:00">Aug 29, 2020 at 8:57am PDT</time>
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The Anti-GBV Collective expressed their vehement reproval of the police response, stating, “We are of the view that we, as women, queer bodies, youth and anti-GBV activists, do not feel safe with the police at our events. Police exude violence.”
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Shudufhadzo Musida: Breaking Mental Health Stigma Through Educational Conversations

Posted on Oct 30, 2021 by Online Editor

Posted in Arts & Culture

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