The Witness reports that on Tuesday Solidarity threatened the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) with legal action if the institution was not able to justify the distinction it was making in the awarding of bursaries and fellowships based on race.
This came after the university’s Department of Health Sciences advertised bursaries and fellowships with different financial values for different races attached to them. According to the trade union, the university’s advertisement indicated that bursaries awarded to “black South African citizens” for masters’ and doctoral degrees were to the value of R120,000 and R60,000 respectively, whereas the bursaries awarded to “other South African citizens” were only to the value of R80,000 and R45,000”. According to Solidarity’s deputy chief executive on legal matters, Anton van der Bijl, fellowships at the faculty were awarded in a similar manner. “If the university does not offer a satisfactory reply before May 4, we will challenge them in court and we will force the university to justify their actions,” he warned.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Chris Ndaliso at The Witness
- See Solidarity’s press statement regarding this matter at Solidarity News
- Lees ook, Regstappe kom dalk oor UKZN se ‘diskriminasie’, by Maroela Media
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