University students arrested for protesting fee hike in Zimbabwe

By Jeffrey Moyo

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AA) - Some 16 students from the University of Zimbabwe (UZ), arrested and detained by police on Tuesday after they protested the hiking of tuition fees, are still being held in detention by police in the capital Harare, according to Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR).

According to Tinashe Chinopfukutwa, one of their lawyers from the non-profit organization ZLHR, the arrested students have been charged with disorderly conduct.

Chinopfukutwa told Anadolu Agency that 14 of them have each been fined 2,000 Zimbabwean dollars ($3) by police, while the other two students, still being held at Avondale Police station, are set to appear at a Harare court on Thursday.

“Several of them were injured by police during the time they were demonstrating,” he added.

The ZLHR said on Twitter: “At Avondale Police Station, 3 UZ female students are in need of urgent medical attention after they were assaulted upon arrest while protesting against exorbitant hike in tuition fees. Their right to privacy was violated as their WhatsApp & phone galleries were accessed.”

Tuition fees at the University of Zimbabwe were recently raised by almost 500%, rising from an average of 52,000 Zimbabwean dollars ($80) in January up to 500,000 Zimbabwean dollars (about $1,225).

The demonstration against hiked fees immediately forced authorities to the negotiating table with student leaders from the Students Representative Council (SRC) amid reports that authorities at the academic institution in the Southern African country were considering revising the fees down.

Student leaders currently locked in closed-door meetings with university authorities vowed on Tuesday to shut down the institution if authorities refused to back down on the exorbitant fees.

The University of Zimbabwe Vice Chancellor Paul Mapfumo has said his administration was seized with the fees issue as he called for calm from the irate students.

“We are engaging key stakeholders, including the Student's Representative Council. It is feedback that we value,” he said.

The University's SRC President Allan Chipoyi urged students to give their case a chance for dialogue.

“Let’s give this room for dialogue and see if we will reach a common ground in our talks with authorities. Education is our right,” said Chipoyi.