AfriForum Youth welcomes suspension of controversial UCT student

9 June 2015

AfriForum Youth welcomes the suspension of Chumani Maxwele, the student responsible for the #RhodesMustFall campaign at the University of Cape Town (UCT). Maxwele was suspended after uttering racist statements to a lecturer.

“Maxwele made him guilty of grave racism which does not belong on university campuses. The University has a responsibility toward the entire student community to hold students who make themselves guilty of such conduct accountable for their utterances, and they should take further steps against Maxwele,” Eduan Dupper, Spokesperson for AfriForum Youth said.

Maxwele allegedly made the following statements to a white lecturer:

-  "The statue fell; now it's time for all whites to go."

-  "We must not listen to whites, we do not need their apologies, they have to be removed from UCT and have to be killed."

-  He also stated that he was not interested in the opinion of whites and that they should be killed.

“It’s clear – from this conduct – that Maxwele is a racist, following a racial ideology in chasing a political agenda. It’s shocking to see that the ANC Youth League is taking Maxwele’s side and defending him,” Dupper said.

“It’s however great to see that the University is no longer allowing Maxwele to hold them hostage. He should’ve been suspended at the time of the #RhodesMustFall situation due to his conduct and his instigating of fellow students.”

AfriForum Youth is considering submitting complaints of hate speech against Maxwele at the South African Human Rights Commission and other human rights organisations.

Statement issued by Eduan Dupper, Spokesperson: AfriForum Youth, June 9 2015