After the protest structure #Shackville was erected on Monday, UCT gave those involved until 5pm yesterday to remove it – but did the students listen? Hell no. Instead, they caused havoc.

A small group of students, believed to be the ones who are yet to be allocated a residence, made a small bonfire out of paintings they sourced from the Fuller and Smuts residences on the UCT campus yesterday. Located just next to #Shackville, the bonfire was a further protest of the colonial wealth that UCT possess.

A charred black mark is all that remains of irreplaceable portraits of what the protesters called ‘white colonialists, looking at them.’

Tensions erupted when Private Security was called upon to forcibly remove the shack erected at the bottom of the Jammie steps.

#Shackville Private security called in again, to demolish structure @eNCA @RhodesMustFall pic.twitter.com/oIXUyc1YNZ

— Leigh-Anne Jansen (@LA_JANSEN) February 16, 2016

#Shackville Students have just set alight chairs, crates and other material @eNCA pic.twitter.com/dRZEsUkCDb

— Leigh-Anne Jansen (@LA_JANSEN) February 16, 2016

Police and private security eventually overpowered the protesters and tore down the shack, dispersing them with stun grenades. Private security then chased after protesters, capturing two. Later on in the evening another protester was arrested.

UCT will now be laying criminal charges against members of the Rhodes Must Fall group. Max Price had this to say:

We are in the process of obtaining an interdict and will bring criminal charges against those involved. We have taken the step to suspend eight students. We are bringing the situation under control with the help of the Public Order Policing unit and other police services.

Since student protest escalated violently on Tuesday evening, the university increased security presence on campus dramatically.

The Public Order Policing unit of the South African Police Service have come onto campus and are supporting UCT security to bring the situation under control.

Student protesters under the #RhodesMustFall banner reacted violently to the institutions request to move their protest shack. He said students invaded residencies and kitchens, burning barricades and stole portraits from residences.

We are determined not to allow a small group of violent protesters prevent 27 000 students and 4 500 staff from exercising their right to study and work in a safe environment… We have also unfortunately seen an escalation over the last hours in acts of criminality and vandalism by RMF protesters. Several fires have been started on the campus, which have been extinguished by Campus Security Services.

It is utterly regrettable that a movement that began with such promise and purport to be fighting for social justice matters has now deteriorated into a group that engages in criminality and has only one agenda, namely to close UCT operations down. Their behaviour is utterly unacceptable and can in no way be tolerated.

[source: ewn&news24&ewn&enca&groundup]