Former SRC member calls on government to drop charges against UKZN 11

The group appeared in the Pietermaritzburg Magistrate's Court yesterday, where the matter was adjourned to next year.

The 11 - who are all out on bail -  were arrested on various charges - including public violence and damage to police and public property, during Fees Must Fall protests on campus in September. 

The matter was adjourned to next year, to allow for a Senior Public Prosecutor to decide whether the matter should be escalated to the Regional Court.

But Nhlakanipho Ndlovu - who has consistently been in court to support the group - believes they should be given the benefit of the doubt, since there have been no further disruptions on campus. 

Ndlovu says students have been disciplined since the arrest of the 11, and exams are running smoothly.

"We think government is not meeting us halfway. Government should drop the charges against the students because we can talk about the judiciary and so on but at the end it is government that has an influence in what is happening in the judiciary," he said. "We are not happy about all the charges the students are facing, but it is the reality we are facing."