While the Khampepe Commission's report highlights some of Stellenbosch University's progress made in our transformation journey, there are also points of weakness that we must address, writes Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University, Wim de Villiers.
With the findings and recommendations of the Khampepe Commission of Inquiry into incidents of alleged racism at Stellenbosch University now released (see the full report here), what have we learnt as an institution and a community in higher education?
While perusing the Commission's report I was reminded of the words of the renowned humanist philosopher and holocaust victim, Hanna Arendt, who thought very provocatively on education as a tool for the establishment of a common world with democratic values at its core as opposed to education being subservient to political ideology.
Notably, in the Commission's report, following an intense and arduous inquiry into allegations of racism as it pertains to unsavoury incidents on our campus earlier this year, is the acknowledgement that our institution has made meaningful strides in its quest to "renew a common world" for our staff and students, albeit in a slightly different context: dealing with the remnants of our apartheid past.
The report essentially provides us with a dual view on the progress made on our transformation journey:
- An aerial perspective of our transformation apparatus, the overlaps, missing linkages and need for greater coherence in our institutional endeavours to address the serious tasks of social justice and equality; and
- It brings into sharp focus some of the deficiencies at the deeper levels of human interaction that stymie our efforts toward meaningful human restitution that will radiate the true character of the SU that we aspire to – a welcoming place where we celebrate the richness of diversity.
These weaknesses, for the most part, relate to the list of known unknowns that undergirds the realities of our institution.
To explain my latter statement, I borrow liberally from the evidence of the expert witnesses before the Khampepe Commission.
Key strands from their evidence, with reference to transformation, racism and social justice in the SU-context, point to the set of known unknowns that require deeper attention in order to shape attitudes and behaviour that are more aligned with our institutional values, which sit at the heart of our vision to renew our common world:
- The beliefs and worldviews of white students (and staff) formed through the process of socialisation at home. They arrive at universities having spent their entire lives internalising the beliefs and culture and in some instances, the bigotry of their families, peers and communities. Thus, tensions and opportunities for hostile interactions are heightened when they find themselves in an environment where they must act as equals across lines of race, culture and language.
- Moreover, many white students have also never encountered black people as equals. They have mostly experienced relationships of servitude with black people. For the first time in their lives, they now have to interact with blacks as equals.
- The inclination and propensity of white students to experience student life along the lines that past generations enjoyed under apartheid with all its "fun" elements. Hence the romanticised and glorified positions of residences and their unique cultures, at times, surpassing the value and place of the institution in the lives of students. This is further reinforced by the influence of powerful alumni who regard the residence experience and culture as untouchable. (Elements of residence culture run counter to the South African Constitution and our Bill of Rights).
- Some white staff members seem to be struggling with transformation, despite their overt commitment to the process and journey. They are more comfortable in keeping things the same. Their contention seems to be: Why fiddle with a system that has delivered academic excellence over decades?
- For black people, the university and its close association with apartheid invites memories of the past, which evokes feelings of unwelcomeness. In most instances, black students arrive at the university mostly from impoverished backgrounds and are proud to attend an institution that historically was reserved for whites. But through their proximity with white students, the difference in their socio-economic circumstances gets accentuated: they cannot afford the expensive accommodation close to the university or the fun activities offered in an around Stellenbosch. Moreover, the unavoidable comparisons with their white counterparts just show how much they have missed out as a result of the unjust past. Black students (and staff) thus experience the university through the prism of the memory of apartheid and colonialism.
A compounding factor is that these beliefs among students and staff of what is normal to them tend to manifest as the immutable norm. It points to the deeper layers of the task at hand – disrupting misguided beliefs, unlearning inappropriate modes of behaviour, shaping new and shared perspectives on what I want to call the "cocktail of immutable norms".
The key to unlocking the essence of shaping a renewed common world lies in the sincerity and commitment with which we embrace our shared humanity and diversity in a way that will fulfil the promise of social justice and human restitution as articulated in our university's Restitution Statement that we declared during our Centenary Year:
I thus want to acknowledge with thanks the work of the Khampepe Commission and the independent gauge on the progress of our transformation journey. As a leading higher education institution dedicated to contributing to the well-being of our country and all its people, we shall consider the findings and recommendations of the report with a view to intensifying our efforts to shape a common world at SU, free of racism and all forms of social injustice, and recognised globally for its inclusive excellence.
- Professor Wim de Villiers is Rector and Vice-Chancellor of South Africa's Stellenbosch University.
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