UP student DJ JBG
Student Hip-Hop group The Looneys
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Perdeby Tuks se amptelike studentekoerant / Official Tuks student newspaper / Kuranta ya baithuti ya semmušo ya Tuks
13March2017
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RAG of Hope Day Benefit Concert DITEBOGO TSHAKA
On 25 March, Tuks Rag will host the RAG of Hope Day Benefit Concert on the Rag Farm “in order to raise funds to assist students through initiatives such as food hampers and fees”. According to Rag chairperson, Roahan Gouws, some of the proceeds from the concert will go to students that need assistance the most. “This will be done by opening a communication channel for students to come to us with this particular need and we will then allocate food hampers accordingly. We also plan to use some of the money to allocate to students to help them with books and funding,” he said. Gouws hopes that the concert will have a large turnout to fulfil the Rag 2017 vision of Ubuntu, “where students are assisting other students.” The event boasts an impressive line-up, including Cassper Nyovest, A-Reece, Desmond and the Tutus, and several other notable South African artists. “For us to secure a solid line up, we knew that the artists would play the biggest role towards the participation of the event. We released statements on our social media where we asked students to comment on what artists
they wanted for the concert. This made it easier in creating a lineup that suits the needs of all of the students in a diverse manner”, said Gouws. When asked about the reaction to the redesigned annual Rag tradition, Gouws noted that although the float-building tradition of previous years and the float procession that followed “helped first years in residences bond and make friends…money was spent on floats that did not serve community engagement anymore.” He further stated that although they received positive comments from students regarding the change, others were “upset by the loss of such a long-standing tradition.” Gouws held that it was only through change that community engagement could be kept active and productive. “The most challenging part in organising this concert had to be the time constraint we worked against” adding that “with all the strikes of last year we could only start planning the concert in January this year.” He added that another challenge Rag faced was getting artists of a diverse nature to accommodate all UP students. Events to win free tickets will be held in the Piazza in the weeks leading up to the concert. Tickets are also available online and at the gate.
TSC beg for needy students - Pg. 3
RAG of Hope Day Benefit Concert Promotional Poster. Image: TuksRAG Facebook Page.
UP residence dining halls to receive upgrades MARKO SVICEVIC UP’s Department of Facilities Management, in collaboration with UP’s Department of Residence Affairs and Accommodation (TuksRes), will be upgrading UP residence dining halls this year. Dining halls and food services are currently available to residence students on the Groenkloof, Onderstepoort, Prinshof, Hillcrest, and Hatfield campuses. TuksRes also caters to residences at the Hatfield campus, through the JAKE (Jasmyn, Asterhof, Klaradyn, Erika) dining hall and a further dining hall which serves students from Magrietjie and Madelief. Dining halls in Taaibos and Kollege have been converted into resting areas and change rooms for staff at these residences. TuksVillage is identified as a self-catering residence and therefore they have a mini-market (Village Fresh), while a food outlet is available to Nerina students. The Groenkloof campus also has a dining hall for its students, with a similar facility at the Onderstepoort campus. According to Deputy Director in the Department of Residence Affairs and Accommodation, Peter Martin, TuksMonate – the most recent addition to TuksRes services – “was created to provide a centralised food service” to UP students residing on the Hillcrest campus and was an alternative to old dining halls. Martin said that TuksMonate was created to “adhere to food safety regulations and hazardous critical control points”, adding that due to UP’s financial situation this decision also decreased costs in terms of upgrading separate dining halls and purchasing new equipment. According to Director of Residence Affairs
Israeli Apartheid Week held at UP - Pg. 3
The Jasmyn, Asterhof, Klaradyn, Erika (JAKE) Dining Hall. Image provided.
and Accommodation, Sisana Machi, Curlitzia was upgraded last year to serve students on the Prinshof campus. “The Groenkloof Hub was also created and taken over by TuksRes,” said Machi. The JAKE dining hall upgrades began last November, with completion expected by June this year. The Monastery Hall (Kloostersaal) will undergo similar upgrades that will cater for both residence and day students. According to Director of Facilities Management, Prof. Susan Adendorff, Monastery Hall was procured by UP from the Roman Catholic Church (among other buildings), and is currently being used as a dining hall by TuksRes. “The building is old and the kitchen needs upgrading and, once JAKE is completed, Monastery Hall will be taken out of commission for upgrades to it, as well as converting it into a social learning space [by extending the external areas of the building],” said Prof. Adendorff. She added that funds for the social learning part of the upgrade will be provided by her Department’s
social learning spaces budget, while TuksRes would provide funding for the upgrading of the kitchen. According to Martin, “The focus of the dining halls [apart from food services] was to make them learning spaces.” The TuksRes dining halls also create spaces where Consumer Sciences and Dietetics students are able to complete practical hours associated with their study courses. These students also present different topics and discussions of relevant food topics within these dining (and learning) spaces. Prof. Adendorff added that upgrades are also being finalised to three kitchens in the Old Agricultural Building in order to serve Food Science students with their practicals, and are expected to officially open in April. Upgrades to the Monastery Hall are expected to begin in the second part of the year, with planning for the Groenkloof campus dining hall already under way. “Once upgrades to the Monastery Hall begin, students will need to make use of JAKE and Magrietjie dining halls,” said Machi.
Adelle Nqeto heads to Mieliepop
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Perdeby
Editorial | 13 March 2017
When the things get real
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For some reason during mid-March, things are always crazy. Semester tests begin, assignments are due, and in general things get a bit real. Last week Thursday, the Perdeby editorial spent almost all night in the office working on this edition, and I hope that our readers
From the Editor enjoy it. We’ve got some interesting content this week, including a look at the relationship between the International Criminal Court and the African continent, a fun interview with UP Hip-Hop collective The Looneys, and an Entertainment feature on the transformation of the Academy awards. I’m really looking forward to the Rag benefit concert that is going to be held later in the month. It’s great to see that an event is being held to assist needy students. It’s also promising that the line-up is very diverse, and caters for a range of musical taste. This will hopefully lead to students from all backgrounds attending the concert, and having a good time together. While the concert is aimed at assisting students, it is also a way for students to bond, and create a positive atmosphere on campus. It’s been a while since an official UP social
Perdeby 13 March 1992 25 years ago 63% van Tuks stem JA! / 63% of Tuks votes YES! In an opinion poll conducted by Perdeby, 63% of Tuks students indicated that they would vote “Yes” in the coming referendum (to be held on 17 March 1992). 24% of students said they would vote “No”. (On 17 March 1992 a referendum on ending apartheid in South Africa was held. The referendum was limited to white South African voters who indicated through a “yes” or ”no” vote whether they supported FW de Klerk’s negotiated reform plans for the country. 68.73% of the votes were in favour of reform). Perdeby 10 March 1967 50 years ago U.P. kry proffessoraat in verpleegkunde – Neem leiding in S.A. / UP gets professorship in nursing – Takes the lead in SA UP becomes the first university in South Africa where a professorship in nursing is instituted. Tuks alumni, Dr Charlotte Searle takes this honour on 1 March 1967. Prof Searle said that a shortage of researchers existed in the field of nursing and that the launch of this new department would lead to the expansion of this field in South Africa. She added that nursing students were reliant on textbooks from abroad but in future textbooks should be available from a South African perspective and relevance to South Africa. Provided by UP Archives
event for students was held, and students need events that allow them to just relax and forget about weekly pressures. Over the past weekend, the whole Perdeby team went on a training camp. The training camp is aimed at teaching our staff members the skills they need to ensure that this publication consistently releases content of the highest standard, but is also a great way for staff members to bond. Friendships are made, and these relationships play a significant role in the way the publication functions. I hope that everyone has a successful March, and that the things don’t get too real. We don’t have an edition next week, but our online content section will be publishing daily, so keep an eye on our website and social media pages. We’ll be back on 27 March.
Letter Policy Perdeby appreciates that freedom of speech is an inalienable right enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic South Africa. We encourage our readers to engage in discussion and debate on issues that affect them through letters to the Editor, comments on our website, tweets, or posts on Facebook. We ask our readers to keep the following in mind: 1. Perdeby will not edit letters, comments, tweets, or Facebook posts in any way. 2. Perdeby will label letters, comments, tweets, or Facebook posts as opinion. These do not represent the views of Perdeby in any way. 3. The Perdeby editorial must approve letters, comments, tweets, or Facebook posts before they are published. 4. Perdeby will not publish letters, comments, tweets, or Facebook posts that are defamatory, or libelous, or that contain offensive content. 5. Perdeby reserves the right to practice discretion when publishing letters, comments, tweets, or Facebook posts. 6. Perdeby reserves the right to publish any content we receive unless the sender specifically requests otherwise. 7. Perdeby reserves the right to retract a letter, comment, tweet, or Facebook post after it has been published. 8. Perdeby will not accept responsibility for any consequences the author of a letter, comments, tweets, or Facebook posts may experience as a result of the letter being published. 9. Perdeby will only publish letters between 150 and 200 words. 10. Perdeby will not publish letters unless the writer confirms their full name, student number and contact number. Perdeby will not publish this information, we need it for our records.
13 March 2017 | News
Campus News Bites
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Safe and legal abortions via SMS
Faculty of Theology celebrates centenary UP’s Faculty of Theology held an event celebrating its centenary on Monday, 6 March. The faculty’s centenary message was that of an open gate, symbolising the invitation for those who are seeking to enter. “The original wooden gates of the Univeristy are symbollically fixed in an open position, never again to be closed, confessing to past exclusions and signifying our orientation towards the future,” stated the event’s programme. At the end of the ceremony, a plaque was unveiled at the Theology Building by UP Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Professor Cheryl de la Rey, during the Reinstating of the Gates Ceremony and Academic Opening of the Faculty in celebration of 100 years of academic excellence.
Image provided.
HENRI UYS Fem is a new service that assists South Africans with legal and safe abortions. The service was created by the organisation, safe2choose, and launched on 24 February 2017. The project is currently in its pilot phase and being used only in Gauteng. Safe2choose is a social enterprise
that offers counselling and information on safe abortions. In a media statement, Fem’s Associate Programme Officer, Phephisile Mathizerd, said that 21.6 million unsafe abortions occur globally, with 18.5 million of those unsafe abortions occuring in developing countries like South Africa. Mathizerd said, “Unsafe abortions have a massive impact on young women – the members of local society most impacted by poverty and unemployment. Young women have huge potential when it comes to contributing positively to national development. It's imperative that we find a way to make the vision of the constitution real, and that we evolve into a society where all citizens have comprehensive access to sexual health services and information.” Mathizerd added, “Women who determine their pregnancy status within the first 12 weeks have many options, but the longer they wait to test, the fewer choices there are. Therefore, Fem by safe2choose places a strong emphasis on the speedy and efficient delivery of vital
information.” Users of the Fem service can SMS the word “FEM” to 30816. They will then have to answer specific questions. After the questions have been completed, the user will receive an SMS referring them to a health facility that provides safe and legal abortions. Users will have to give permission to the system to allow it to use their geographical location. The system then uses the user’s geographical location to provide them with the nearest facility that provides abortions. Users who are unable or unwilling to provide geographical consent will be allowed to manually search for a suitable facility and receive a referral. These facilities have to meet important qualification criteria and quality standards. The facilities are also verified by safe2choose. Mathizerd concluded, “We're hoping this initiative closes the gap by providing vital information to South Africans most in need. The message is simple: if you need assistance or access to information, you just have to send an SMS.”
TuksLaw Moot best in South Africa On 25 February, UP Faculty of Law’s TuksLaw Moot team beat University of the Witwatersrand in the final round of the South African leg of the 58th Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Competition. The event, hosted at White and Case LLP International Law Firm offices, saw UP win all categories of the competition – best memorials, best oralist and best overall team. UP will represent South Africa at the international rounds of the competition which will take place in April this year on Capitol Hill in Washington DC.
UP’s EMS faculty tops the 2017 QS World University Rankings On 8 March, the 2017 QS World University Rankings by Subject were published. UP was ranked first in South Africa for Accounting and Finance, placing UP in the top 4% of all institutions ranked in the subject. UP came second in South Africa in the ranking for Economics and Econometrics, placing UP in the top 6% for all participating institutions. Dean of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences Prof. Elsabé Loots was quoted on the UP website: “These rankings are a testament to the effort put in by the faculty to ensure that the programmes offered remain globally relevant and that our graduates can confidently compete in the job market.”
UP student receives scholarship to study in Amsterdam UP Masters student in Old Testament Studies, Tshepiso Mashele, was awarded a scholarship to study at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. According to the UP website, Mashele’s research focuses on prophetic literature combined with trauma theory. The scholarship covers travel and living expenses and provides for supervision by professors.
Olympus holds Around the World social On 9 March, Olympus residence held their annual “Around the World” social at Die Windpomp, north of Pretoria. Olympus Internal Culture HK Jaco Potgieter said their theme, “Netflix and Punch”, was chosen because “movies and series [have] become such a big part of any young person”. There were over a dozen punch stalls. - Compiled by Marko Svicevic and Ditebogo Tshaka
UP Graffiti Wall depicting a message supporting Palestine (left) and peace between Palestine & Israel (right). Photo: Kaylyn O’Brien
UP TSC members approaching motorists for donations. Photo: Kaylyn O’Brien
TSC beg for needy students
DITEBOGO TSHAKA On 9 March, the TSC held a fundraising event by having a “blikskud” (begging) event on Lynnwood Road outside UP’s main entrance “as a means of approaching the public in order to raise funds towards students in need, and even more so [to] raise awareness on the lack of funding for needy students”. In what served as the launch of the TSC’s fundraising campaign, TSC members held tin cans and asked motorists for money in peak hour traffic, starting from 07:00. According to a media statement, this was part of a two-fold fundraising approach done
“to raise public awareness on the lack of funds to support needy students, especially after many qualifying students’ applications were rejected by NSFAS and the burden now falls on the university and the TSC to help these students. To blatantly turn these students away was not an option and the TSC decided to take an alternative and positive approach to raising funds”. According to TSC chairperson, Henrico Barnard, the event raised R2 000 in 2 hours. The money that was collected during the event will go into the SRC Study Aid Fund to assist students who have or intend to approach the TSC for financial aid.
Israeli Apartheid week held at UP CHAD JOHNSTON Israeli Apartheid Week (IAW) was observed from 6 to 12 March in 250 cities, communities, and campuses around the world. Various organisations at UP hosted events throughout the week to create awareness around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that has lasted several decades. The initiative has been running consecutively for 13 years and has grown a lot according to Yusuf Hassim, chairperson of the UP Muslim Students Association (MSA). Hassim said that the aim of the MSA with regard to IAW “is to create unified and massified support for Palestine and to create awareness of the atrocities they are facing on a daily basis”. “This is no[t] [an] Arab issue, Muslim issue or Jewish issue, the issue at hand is simply a humanitarian issue,” he said. The South African Union of Jewish Students (SAUJS) Tuks Branch hosted events in conjunction with Stand with Us International. SAUJS released a statement in which they set out their goals: “[T]o tell the full story of the conflict and counter the half-truths peddled by the opposing side in order to give students and lecturers alike a different perspective on how lasting peace can be achieved between Palestinians and Israelis”. Events surrounding IAW were held at several campuses last week, including the University of the Free State, the University of the Witwatersrand, the University of Johannesburg, and Stellenbosch University.
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News | 13 March 2017
Intervarsity News
DASO UP launches student funding initiative
University of Johannesburg On 2 March, the University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) Perskor Building was renamed Qoboza/Klaaste Building after prominent anti-apartheid journalists Percy Qoboza and Aggrey Klaaste. In a statement released by the institution on 1 March, VC Prof. Ihron Rensburg describes the late journalists as leaders in the black consciousness movement through their news contributions. According to News24, Qoboza’s editorial steering of The World led to it becoming the most widely circulated black newspaper in South Africa in 1974. The newspaper was banned in 1977. In 2000, the International Press Institute included Qoboza in its list of 50 World Press Freedom Heroes in the past 50 years. News24 reported that Klaaste was the editor of The Sowetan between 1988 and 2002 and is widely recognised for pushing the concept of Nation Building that sought to heal apartheid-inflicted wounds in South Africa. At the renaming of the building, Prof. Rensburg said “The families of the media stalwarts are honoured because this building will produce great minds for the future.”
University of Cape Town
A lecture by famous Kenyan writer, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, was briefly interrupted by students on 3 March. In an article written for Independent Online, Xolela Mangcu, a Sociology professor at UCT, said she had invited wa Thiong’o to speak on decolonisation. According to News24, one of the protesters told Ngugi to “ask the oppressors to leave”. Milisuthando Bongela, Culture and Arts editor of Mail & Guardian, tweeted that Mangcu went on stage to decline the request as it would have been disrespectful for wa Thiong’o to do so. Later, Bongela tweeted that another woman walked onto stage with a poster that read “[South African] education is excluding poor, black people”. Pippa Green, a prolific journalist, tweeted, “Ngugi asked her to turn the poster toward him so he could read it.” Once he had read it, he continued with the lecture, with the protester seated on the stage. Wa Thiong’o’s lecture was centred on inequalities between Africa and Europe.
Durban University of Technology Fees Must Fall leader and student activist Bonginkosi Khanyile has been released from Durban’s Westville Prison after spending five months there. Independent Online reported that the Durban University of Technology (DUT) student was released on R250 bail after the EFF took his case to the Constitutional Court when his appeals at the Magistrate’s Court, Durban High Court, and Supreme Court of High Appeal were dismissed. Khanyile was arrested on 27 September and was subsequently charged with incitement to commit public violence, illegal gathering, and possession of explosives and dangerous weapons. While addressing people who supported him outside DUT, Khanyile said, “I have played my role. But by the looks of it, I don’t think it will be the last time I am going to prison.” Khanyisile is due to appear in court on 17 March. - Compiled by Ntombikayise Mkhandla
Halaal food petition to UP POOJA PUNDIT AND BRADLEY TJONGARERO
Image: DASO UP Facebook page.
MARKO SVICEVIC On 1 March, UP Democratic Alliance Student Organisation (DASO) Tuks Branch launched the Ubuntu Box initiative. The campaign, launched under the banner of “Your change can be the change”, aims to raise funds for students needing financial assistance by “drawing on the principles of Ubuntu.” The project involves students donating money to raise funds for those who cannot afford tuition fees. According to DASO Chairperson Kwena Moloto, if every UP student (of which there are roughly 60 000) donated R5 on a weekly basis, R1.2 million could be raised every month for financial aid towards students. Ubuntu boxes, in which students can drop their change, are located across businesses on UP’s Hatfield campus. The campaign aims to have Ubuntu boxes across all UP campuses within the coming days. The initiative draws on the principles of Ubuntu, and “I am what I am because of who we all are”, in having students help other students. Awareness of the campaign has been catered for, with posters having been placed across the
Scam artists at UP DANICA CHARLES According to a security alert e-mail circulated to staff members of the University of Pretoria, two male scam artists have been identified on campus. The Department of Security Services said the men approached UP personnel members and pretended to be workers from Hewlett Packard. The alleged scam artists provided a fake but convincing Hewlett Packard document. They informed a personnel member that they needed to replace an outdated ink cartridge in their office, and thereafter removed the ink cartridges without returning with a replacement cartridge. Security Services Investigations Manager, Rowan Watson, could not comment on the situation as the incident has already been reported to the SAPS and was said to be
Hatfield Campus. Speaking about the initiative, Moloto said, “We as DASO are part of this initiative as a political party and we are hoping that the EFFUP, Sasco, and AfriForum will also be able to be part of this initiative in their capacity as political organisations because we are trying to show that we can unify in our diversity”. Moloto further added that another goal of the initiative was to unify the student body, fostering the idea that “when one student is sleeping in the library, we have all failed as a community.” According to Moloto, other political parties have not yet officially joined, although EFFSC-UP and PASMA assisted in distributing pamphlets to students. “UP has also shown some interest in the initiative; some lecturers have sent out information about the Ubuntu boxes […] the [Director of Facilities Management, Prof. Susan Adendorff] expressed interest to send through our proposals to UP Vice-Chancellor and Principal Prof. de la Rey to hopefully have a project the university endorses,” said Moloto. “sub judice” (under judicial consideration, thus banned from public discussion). University of Pretoria Spokesperson, Candice Jooste, has however confirmed that “the safety of all students and employees is important to [the University] and [they have] put measures in place to ensure this”. These measures are as follows: 1. Access to UP campuses is monitored. 2. Regular communication is distributed to students and employees on possible threats to increase awareness, encourage vigilance, and prevent unwanted incidents. 3. Security Services works closely with local police to ensure that incidents are investigated. Jooste again encourages students and staff to “be mindful of strangers offering goods and services under suspicious circumstances and not to hand valuables to people you do not know”. Staff members and students are encouraged to contact the Department of Security Services if any suspicious activity is detected.
Since 8 March, a petition to the University of Pretoria has been circulating on Twitter based on the issue of the lack of accessible Halaal food on Hatfield campus. Hatfield campus contains the majority of UP’s Muslim student population as well as the Muslim Students Association (MSA). According to the petition, a student who would like to remain anonymous wishes for the University to relocate the Halaal food outlet, “The Jaffel Lady”, on South campus to Hatfield campus. This outlet caters for Muslim students on South and Hatfield Campuses. The anonymous student added, “We just want a place where Muslim students can come together and enjoy Halaal food with their friends on [Hatfield] campus. Often we go with our friends to places on [Hatfield] campus but we are unable to eat”. He said that the inaccessibility to strictly Halaal food has been an issue for a while and he needed to take a step forward for the Muslim community on campus to communicate the woes they are facing. The location of the Halaal food outlet has generally proven an inconvenience for Muslim students on Hatfield campus. The bridge to South campus has been demolished and the tightened security has caused the access to Halaal food to be a time-consuming task. The chairperson of the Muslim Students Association, Saaif Essa Suliman, said that it is imperative that the issue of Halaal food on campus be dealt with as soon as possible. Suliman said, “I believe that since our country has become so diversified, it's about time our university does so too. This is a worldrenown university with a wide variety of international students from multiple cultures and backgrounds. Surely our university should be a platform for these students to study at, while also catering for their needs and making them as comfortable as possible.” The petition had 300 signatures at the time of going to print.
13 March 2017 | Features
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Interview with Rag Chairperson, Roahan Gouws The ICC and
Tuks Rag Chairperson, Roahan Gouws. Image provided.
LORINDA MARRIAN For those who do not know, what does Rag do at the University of Pretoria? Rag is a substructure [of ] the SRC and it focuses on community engagement. It’s basically the university’s community engagement structure that deals with all of the community structures, charities, orphanages. It’s basically the goodwill image of the university outside. It’s there to improve the community as a whole and there to uplift. It’s a completely student-run substructure of the SRC. Whose idea was it to change some of the elements of Rag? Was it the University or was it the Rag committee? Usually people affiliate Rag with procession. Procession is gone, not Rag. In the old days it was very easy to accumulate funds due to the floats being outside the university because students did “Blikskud” [begging]. Due to safety reasons; one year it was limited a bit to only certain streets and then it was restricted completely to LC De Villiers [...] so the floats raised no money at all. It still takes a lot of money to build the floats, between us and TuksRes we spend about a million rand a year. It’s not community engagement anymore and that is the reason why Rag is here. It’s a great tradition to have, but […] we can’t fund it anymore. The university has been telling us to do something else. So that is why we as an executive committee took recommendations from management to change the entire format. A lot of the inspiration actually [for the market day] came from Dr Matete Madiba, when she said she visited a market day in Chicago. What exactly will be happening at the market day that will be hosted next semester? The residences have to build a chest of hope with minimum requirements. We are requiring [them] to put in maize meal,
Eating Halaal at UP KATHERINE ATKINSON UP’s Hatfield Campus has a range of restaurants including Tribeca, Coffee Buzz, and Haloa that offer a variety of food choices for students. The dining hall is the only place that allows students to use their student cards to pay for their meals. It provides food that is suitable for most students, but does not cater for Muslim students. This problem was brought to light by president of the UP Muslim Students Association, Saaif Suliman. Suliman said that many students used to get Halaal food from the South Campus, however, “with the demolition of the bridge [connecting Main Campus to South Campus], it makes it next to impossible for Muslim students to access the Halaal food outlet on South [Campus].” This has proven to be an inconvenience as travelling to Halaal food outlets in the Hatfield or Brooklyn area can waste time. UP’s webpage explains that the demolition of the bridge is due to a construction project on South Campus. Although UP estimates that the project will be completed and the bridge replaced come mid-2018, Suliman says that [the Muslim community] would love to see a permanent Halaal food outlet on Main Campus as the Muslim demographic is rather large and is only growing. Muslims can eat vegetarian food offered by restaurants and the dining hall on campus, but this is not ideal due to possible cross-contamination from non-Halaal meat products. According to Peter Martin, Deputy Director of Residences Affairs and Accommodation at UP, “TuksRes kitchens are not certified as Halaal, but most of our products we serve come from Halaalcertified suppliers. For some students this is acceptable, but for others not.” Suliman, on the other hand, claims that because there is no strictly Halaal section in the dining hall, it “does not cater for
tin[ned] food, soap [and] toothpaste. Things charities, orphanages and organisations always need, because you can never have enough food. We are also having them make quilts and they have to make 20 quilts. Then they have to identify a problem in whatever they choose from their charity, organisation, orphanage and from that problem they have to incorporate it into a chest. An example [of this is], I think it is an orphanage, [has] a dire need for books, so they are putting in books. So in this way they are actually solving a problem. We are also making the chest mobile because a lot of these orphanages, [and] especially old age homes [...] need storage space. On the market day, each partnership or faculty house is going to get a gazebo and under the gazebo they will display their chest. They can decorate the chest and the gazebo how they want. It’s like a nice family market. We will also have each partnership perform one talent [...]. We are also working with SSC to have them play a bit of rugby or football or like the sports day they normally have. Are there ways for day students to be involved with the market day? Every year the residences and the day houses and their partnerships build floats[...], [this year] we are actually not limiting it to residences. We incorporated societies as well as faculty houses [...] so that is a big thing for us this year – incorporating all of the day students. Societies and faculty houses will make their own chest of hope. They will have the same requirements as the residences. How can students become involved in Rag activities? We have a host of events throughout the year that a lot of people don’t actually focus on. What we are planning to do in April or May is have an entrepreneurs’ day, because a lot of the time students have these small businesses. We are giving a platform for students to come and promote [their] business. We are also doing “I am Susan” this year, which [is related to Pledge-a-pad]. All the activities and events we host are open to day students. We are actually regularly busy with that so that people can stay up to date. What is the main goal for Rag this year? One of the big things we have decided as an executive committee is to change the image of Rag, make sure students know about it. People think that Rag is only procession and it is not, it happens throughout the year. I am not too sure about this, but apparently we won an award for last year’s Casual Day for selling the most tickets among students. We sold 5 000 tickets. We have a bit of a lack[ing] reputation in the past few years, so the biggest goal we have this year is getting our reputation back. How do you envision RAG as a service provider at UP? I want Rag to be one of those substructures that first years hear about from their parents [...] like when I get to University, I want to be part of Rag. That willingness that students have to help people, there is no better feeling and a lot of the times, I feel that students miss it because you get so busy with academics [and] you get so focused [on] your problems. But you don’t always see there are people sleeping at night that don’t even have a bed, don’t have textbooks [or] don’t have funds. I want students to get excited about helping other people and that is in essence [the concept of] Ubuntu: “I am because you are”. My goal is to come back in ten years and people are saying [that] they want to be part of Rag this year and let’s make it a big thing and get students more involved like in the old days.
Muslims adequately.” The Halal Food Authority webpage states that the word “halaal” simply translates to “permissible”. To make meat Halaal, or permissible, the animal needs to be slaughtered in accordance with a ritual known as “Zabihah” or “Zibah.” The Quran says that the animal must be slaughtered with a razor-sharp knife and in a single movement so that the jugular vein, carotid artery, and windpipe are all severed at once. The blood must then be drained from the animal. Any death incurred by strangulation or violent beating is forbidden. In addition to this, all pork and alcoholic products are forbidden. “As Muslims, we are ordered to eat Halaal food and only Halaal food”, says Suliman. “Halaal food refers to food items that are permissible for Muslims to eat, as well as meat or poultry that has been slaughtered in accordance with Islamic laws and rites. These laws and rites outline more than just a prayer, but include the method of slaughtering so as to bring about as little pain as possible to the animal and maintain as much nutrition in its meat.” Although finding Halaal food on campus may prove to be difficult, Suliman says “alternative measures have been made available for some Muslim [residence] students.” Martin explains these alternatives: “TuksRes Food Services made an arrangement with one supplier to provide strictly Halaal meals that will not go through our kitchens. [The meals] will be frozen and students will need to book these meals beforehand. Last year only a few students in residences made use of this provision.” Suliman concludes by saying, “We believe that for the most part, the University has taken the diverse nature of our country into consideration and we are proud to be part of such a diverse nation. With that being said, it sometimes gets difficult to know what needs to be catered for every aspect of this demographic. However, we are confident that this issue will be resolved once brought to the attention of the relevant people within UP’s management.”
Africa: a blurred relationship? MARKO SVICEVIC On 26 October 2016, Gambia became the third African country to announce its intention to leave the International Criminal Court (ICC). The decision came shortly after both Burundi and South Africa expressed similar intentions, claiming as several other African countries have, that the ICC is biased and used as a tool against African nations and their leaders. On 22 February, a full bench of the North Gauteng High Court found South Africa’s decision to withdraw, invalid and unconstitutional. It ordered the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, and the President, to revoke the notice of withdrawal sent to the UN Secretary-General. While the decision of some African countries to withdraw from the ICC has been criticised, in an article in The Guardian titled “African revolt threatens international court’s legitimacy”, Simon Allison expressed the concern that the ICC may lose credibility if states continue to leave the court. In the New York Review of Books, Kenneth Roth assesses the ICC’s focus on Africa. Roth questions whether the court’s focus on Africa was taking advantage of its “weak global position” or alternatively, “as a sign that finally someone is concerned about the countless ignored African victims”. The ICC was established in 1998 as an international tribunal to prosecute crimes of genocide, crimes of aggression, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. Only states that have signed the agreement are bound to it. According to the ICC website, there are currently 10 situations under investigation by the ICC. Nine of these situations are found in Africa with the tenth being in Georgia. However, there are 10 further preliminary investigations, only four of which are based in Africa. These are Burundi, Gabon, Guinea, and Nigeria. Furthermore, there have been 39 indictees to date, all of whom are from African countries. Due to this, the ICC has faced harsh criticism, especially from African heads of state. Former Gambian President, Yahya Jammeh, was quoted on Gambian state television saying that the ICC was “an International Caucasian Court for the persecution and humiliation of people of colour, especially Africans.” Furthermore, the ICC is currently prosecuting cases in eight African countries. However, out of the eight cases, five were referred to the ICC by the states concerned with the matter. These states are the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Ivory Coast, Mali, and Uganda. The situations being prosecuted by the ICC in Libya and Sudan were referred to the ICC through the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). In the case of Sudan, 11 votes favoured referring the case to the ICC, with no votes against the decision. The situation in Libya, which arose from the Libyan crisis in 2011, saw the UNSC also refer the matter to the ICC through a UNSC resolution. According to an article on the Human Rights Watch website, titled “Burundi: ICC withdrawal major loss to victims”, Africa Director for Human Rights Watch, Daniel Bekele, criticised the move by African countries to withdraw, pointing out in the case of Burundi that “[it] had failed to hold people responsible for brutal crimes to account and [had] sunk to a new low by attempting to deny victims justice before the ICC.” Bekele added that African countries should distance themselves from ICC withdrawal, reiterating that the ICC “remains the only path to justice for many victims of the gravest crimes when national courts are unable or unwilling to try these cases.” On 7 March, South Africa issued a notice formally revoking its withdrawal from the ICC, following the Gauteng High Court’s February judgement. This was confirmed by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a statement titled “South Africa: withdrawal of notification of withdrawal” published on the UN treaties website on the same day: “I wish to inform you that the Gauteng High Court of the Republic of South Africa has on 22 February 2017 issued a judgement [...] and found that the approval of the Parliament of South Africa had to be obtained,” adding that “the abovementioned depositing of the Instrument of Withdrawal was found to be unconstitutional and invalid.” He continued, “In order to adhere to the said judgement, I hearby revoke the Instrument of Withdrawal from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court with immediate effect.” According to an article on TimesLive dated 8 March citing Reuters news agency, it said that the South African government had been requested to appear before the ICC at The Hague on 7 April, following its failure to detain Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir.
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Entertainment | 13 March 2017
Student Hip-Hop group The Looneys LINDO KHOZA
KwaZulu-Natal is home to some of the biggest names in South African Hip-Hop, boasting the likes of Nasty C, Riky Rick and Okmalumkoolkat. Perdeby managed to catch up with one of Ladysmith’s rising Hip-Hop groups, The Looneys. The group has four members: OBZ, Bzurk, Skitos and SaNa MLK. Perdeby chatted with two of the group’s members to find out more about this Hip-Hop collective, which has been making music for seven years. How long have you known each other? Bzurk: Round about 2005, I was in Grade 3 when we met. Who would you describe as your biggest musical influence? Bzurk: Kanye West, yeah...Kanye West. Taking a lot of songs as well from different sub-genres of Hip-Hop. It’s not just only one type of Hip-Hop. If you listen to a lot of our songs, sometimes we incorporate Trap... It’s like a new sound, sort of like that’s coming out here in South Africa. Like Tribal Hip-Hop. What’s the story behind your stage name, The Looneys? OBZ: It was round about 2011 [when] we started making music as a collective. At first we thought this is some crazy stuff, lunatic type of stuff. It started off as Lunatics and we switched it into something that’s not as hardcore. Bzurk: It also goes back to the way we started as individuals as well. It was around the whole idea of crazy reactions we’d get from battle raps. People would go crazy. That’s why [even] my name is Bzurk, for example. Your hometown, Ladysmith, is very small. From your perspective, do you see a lot of music talent coming from there to the big cities? OBZ: Yeah, in terms of Hip-Hop there are some really cool artists from back home. A lot of talent in that town, very small town, but the talent there is like crazy. Bzurk: And the thing that we’re trying to do is instil that sort of belief into people that are from Ladysmith [that] stuff can
From left to right: Skitos, OBZ, Bzurk, and SaNa MLK. Image provided.
actually go beyond...I think that there’s so many talented people in Ladysmith, but they see it as a phase in high school. With the whole team being students, how do you juggle between music and academics? OBZ: We started in high school, so when we come here it’s more self-discipline. It’s a hustle when it clashes, but when it’s time for school, it’s time for school. Bzurk: It doesn’t feel like work when we’re doing the music. It’s not really difficult, it’s not that hard anymore. You can’t force it, in a way. What are you guys currently working on as individuals and as a collective? Bzurk: I feel like it’s a lot better to introduce us as a collective. We are dropping a sort of introductory sort of project. Like this is Bzurk of The Looneys, this is OBZ of The Looneys...We’re dropping projects to make the group bigger.
OBZ: You venture while you’re within the group. We’re working more on individual things which will of course come up to a point where it’s like a collective as well. Once everyone is recognised individually, yeah. Are there dates for any of those projects? Bzurk: I have a [mix] tape titled Loading, dropping end of March. It’s almost done. I’m actually waiting for a verse from OBZ. It’s like a fire verse, he’s going to drop it soon. Thereafter, it’s getting the right promotional material out for building the hype for the mixtape. We’re working on projects – a lot of work. How can your fans keep posted and show support for you? Check out our social media networks, Facebook, Instagram [and our] website. We want to have an organic relationship with our fan base – they are a part of this nationwide clique, it’s like a movement type of thing. The Looneys is in everything that we do – we just want fans to be a part of that.
Pssst...
UP student Jagger Bellagrada, who performs as DJ JBG. Image provided.
UP student DJ JBG rising through the ranks MARKO SVICEVIC In UP lectures he goes by the name Jagger, but on the music scene he is JBG. Third-year Informatics student and DJ Jagger Bellagrada has been making waves in the music industry. Perdeby recently caught up with this young and upcoming musician to get a taste of what it’s like being a student and a DJ. What are some of the places you have performed at? I have performed at a number of different venues across Gauteng, but the biggest highlight for me would be making my H2O debut in 2014 when I was 18. Other highlights include playing at the Holi One Colour Festival as well as Nicci Beach in Boksburg. How would you describe your style? The style of music I make is a mixture of Big Room and Progressive House, however I am still searching for my signature style. What festivals or events would you like most to perform at? On top of my list would definitely be Ultra South Africa and Rage Festival. When did you first start DJing and what influenced you to start? I started DJing when I was 15 years old. I used to be a provincial swimmer and up until I was 15, my goal was to go to the Olympics, but I never enjoyed the competition and it became an effort for me so I stopped. In 2011 I attended an event where I saw a DJ mixing on a pair of turntables and I just watched him
for basically the entire night. I saved up and bought my first set of equipment and six months later I won my first competition on 94.7 Highveld Stereo and the rest, as they say, is history. What are some challenges you currently face in your line of work? There are a lot of challenges in the music and DJ industry for an aspiring DJ/producer, but I guess there are challenges in every industry. From small things, like drunk fans spilling their drinks on you at gigs, to the more intensive challenges, like the haters in the industry who just want to see you fail and the rejections from labels on your work, but it is all positive in my eyes because you either gain a hilarious story or you gain the advice and use it to better yourself in your craft. What do you think of the DJing landscape in South Africa at the moment? I think South Africa has one of the best DJ and music landscapes in the world. The amount of talent in this country is insane and by just looking at the artists who have done really well on an international platform, such as Black Coffee, Black Motion and Goldfish, it just goes to show that South Africa is producing some serious talent that can easily stand up against the best in the world. What do you find yourself doing when you’re not on the stage? Studying. Between music and varsity, I don’t really have time for anything else. For a taste of JBG’s music, follow him on Facebook and Instagram.
Pssst… has had another slow week, much like most of the residences as they prepare for Serrie. Olienhout seems to be exceptionally quiet, but Pssst… thinks that maybe the Houte should focus on their Serrie to avoid yet another year of not quite hitting the mark. Maroela also seems to have forgotten all about Serrie and are instead annoying the poor Madelief and Magrietjie ladies with their wailing. Pssst… thinks it’s quite rude to put more effort into entertaining the side-resses. Pssst… thinks “It’s cold” is a sad excuse. Madelief doesn’t seem to mind; Pssst… saw all the Maroela men at their open night. Pssst… also saw that Olympus had a slightly too successful Around the World party. Pssst… would like to warn the Med students about the dangers of having an overly successful party. Speaking of Around the World, Curlitzia seniors need to stop keeping their first years away from fun. Pssst… thinks it looks like they’re jealous. After the too-successful Around the World, Pssst… worries that Taaibos and Klaradyn will disappoint with their Vamos de Fiesta. Pssst… hears that they are struggling to find acts, but the whole Trump party is starting to get old. It seems that the residences are interested in charity this year, but Pssst… would like to inform Sonop that donating blood really isn’t that bad, there’s no need to force Vividus Ladies to be the brave ones. There are also first years that would rather attend lectures, Sonop.
Love, Pssst...
13 March 2017 | Entertainment
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Ten minutes with PHFat ahead of Mieliepop CLAUDINE NOPPE Producer PHFat will be performing at The Republic of Mieliepop Music Festival from 17 to 20 March in Lothair. Perdeby caught up with PHFat ahead of the festival. Your last album was released in 2013. When can fans expect a new album to drop? That’s a really good question. I’ll be pretty p***ed off with myself if I don’t have an album out before 2017 is done. How have fans responded to you since your split with Narch? I think people picked up that it wasn’t some major Machiavellian split that went down. Narch and I just came to different places in our lives. With the way it played out it was pretty easy to see for anyone looking in from the outside, and the general consensus has been very supportive. Shows still go nuts and I’m also sitting on a couple unfinished tracks that we started together that we both want on the next release. You are a hot festival commodity, playing at Rocking the Daisies, Oppikoppi and now Mieliepop. Which festival has been your favourite and why? They’re so different. But I always go in on the festival sets. They’re what I live for musically. Myself and Jonathon from Bad Weather literally get hold of stage plans and shit to customize for those sorts of shows. I haven’t played Mieliepop before but all of my Pretoria homies say it’s currently their favourite festival, which is an endorsement if I’ve ever heard one. Pretorians are like those fancy wine connoisseurs but for festivals. You have started working with new DJs. What do you look for in a DJ to share the stage with you? Someone who can deal with my ADD. Someone who can deal with me changing the show on the fly and who can deal with all the weird s*** that often goes wrong on stage that the crowd isn’t aware of. Things like monitors cutting out and people climbing into the booth and that sort of thing. Obviously they need to know the show and the layout backwards. Desert Head is so good on stage. He keeps his cool and reads the crowd mad well – never misses cues. I also work with Greg Abrahams occasionally who is like a jazz genius, plus he’s got funky dance moves. Which other artists inspire you either lyrically, musically or just in general? That’s a moving target. The most long-standing at the moment are Kendrick Lamar and Vince Staples. Kendrick pulls whole albums together like nobody’s business. I put on his albums and literally just
get lost listening to them. No one has suspended my disbelief like him for ages. There is a keyboardist named Omri Dahan who has been working with me on a day to day basis, and he keeps me pretty sharp on what’s happening in that kind of pre-popular-culture scene where all the coolest s*** happens first. When you enter into a new musical project, do you take the audience into consideration or do you make music more for yourself? If I took the audience entirely into consideration as a philosophy then PHFat would have just existed for about a year and a half as a “We love animals” cover band, and I would have never moved past straight-up shock factor in shows. Nah. I think about the audience occasionally when I’m writing but I’m mostly writing for the dork in the mirror. It can p*** people off occasionally but in the long run it means that you stay invested in your own opinion of yourself, which is what you were using when you wrote your first song and got your first fan. Do you have anyone around you who is comfortable enough to tell you when something with your music is just not working? Yeah. Lots of people. At the moment my main sounding board is Omri Dahan. He’s super quick to call stuff whack if it’s whack. Otherwise the producers I’m working with are all pretty straight forward. In a recent interview you stated that an honest performance is one of the most important things. What makes an honest performance? Just a sincere interaction. Don’t tell a crowd comfortable lies. Nobody likes that. It’s crazy how many people forget to be themselves onstage. They take on their idea of how a performer should be and it stinks of lies. It’s uncomfortable and facade-y. When I see someone on stage saying “I’m so happy to be here” I want to shout at them when I can see they are lying: “Lies! Your cat just died and your girlfriend hasn’t messaged since Thursday and you’re pretty sure it’s because she doesn’t intend to message again because being in a band means that you spend Sundays trying to catch up on sleep instead of drinking Pimms with her family in Constantia.” Why don’t you try a nice honest: “Hello you lot. I won’t lie. I’m feeling some pretty complex things right now. My cat just died and I’m pretty sure my girlfriend is about to dump me. But I’m happy to see you, you’re the best thing I’ve seen all week. Let’s all put our hearts on the line shall we?” Start blaring intro and use the intensity of your feelings to show said crowd that you mean business.
UP’s Adelle Nqeto heads to Mieliepop SHAUN SPROULE Adelle Nqeto, one half of the Flint, meet Spark duo, is heading to The Republic of Mieliepop Music Festival from 17 to 20 March in Lothair. Flint, meet Spark recently released their final EP as Nqeto shifts her focus to her solo career. Perdeby spoke to the UP alumna as she prepares for the festival. You’ve performed in Flint, meet Spark for the last four years and have just released your last EP. What did this stage mean for you and your career? It means quite a bit, and is definitely the highlight of that stage in my life. It also is a marker for the beginning of music for me, in the sense that it’s the time that I decided I might want to do this thing for reals, as a career. Flint, meet Spark helped me break out of my shell and it was an incredible moment in time that I’m grateful for. You’re no stranger to performing live and at festivals. What makes Mieliepop exciting for you? The atmosphere and people, for sure. It’s so beautiful and the people are nice, and the line-up is so eclectic and I always find a band I’ve never heard before on the line-up, which is good. You say your songs are inspired by observations about life, with hope as a recurring theme. Why is this important to you? Because I think I’m generally an optimist, and I’d like my music to reflect that. There’s already so much darkness in the world and I don’t want to take away from the gravity of that, but I like to see beyond it, and write about those particular experiences in light of the doom and gloom. Given the nature of your music, what do you want to covey to audiences? That life is good, and beautiful, and that our experiences matter. Looking to the future, what does your solo career have in store? More recording, definitely. And hopefully getting to play in more interesting places.
Adelle Nqeto. Image provided.
You’ve been featured on Jeremy Loops’s album, you’ve collaborated with Willemien Rust, and grew in your time in the duo Flint, meet Spark. It seems you enjoy working with people. What does this add to your music? I love collaborating because you get to bounce off your creativity off someone else, and also get out of your own head. Sometimes I get bored with my own way of creating, so working with other people means I get to jump in and experience and share the way they create. I also learn a lot in that process, and get to take it away in my solo time of creating and writing. So far, most of your solo music has been released on your SoundCloud page. Do you have any plans to release anything soon? Yes, my EP is set to be released on 31 March.
Illustration: Michelle Hartzenberg.
Oscars becomes a platform for transformation CLAUDINE NOPPE AND CARLY TWADDLE The 2017 Awards season will be remembered for its amount of recognition for minority groups. The Academy Awards, which has been known for its lack of diversity, transformed this season. The Academy attempted to diversify by adding a group of 683 brand new voters to their panel. On 26 February, the Oscars awarded more than three people of colour for the first time in 89 years. One of the winners was Mahershala Ali, who won for his supporting role in the film Moonlight. Ali is also the first Muslim actor to win an Oscar. Moonlight is the first LGBTQ-themed film to take home the coveted Best Picture award. Viola Davis made history by becoming the first black female to win an Emmy, Oscar, and a Tony award for acting. Davis received her Oscar in the category Best Supporting Actress for her role in the film Fences. Even though there has been improvement in the representation of minorities in the entertainment industry, there is still a lot of work to be done. The wage gap and lack of recognition for transgender people in the industry is something that needs to be looked into. The Oscars also provided a platform for celebrities to advocate change and to challenge the current political atmosphere in America. Celebrities have often been criticised for using their fame to push their own stances, but current social and political climates are calling for it. Many of those who walked the red carpet this year donned blue ribbons with their formal wear. This was done to show support for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) – an organisation that fights to protect the civil rights of all citizens. Ruth Negga, who starred in the film Loving, felt very strongly about the ACLU’s cause. Loving follows the story of an interracial couple who was supported and assisted in court by the ACLU. Model, Karlie Kloss, also pinned a blue ribbon in support. The ACLU reached out to notable celebrities attending the Academy Awards to spread awareness, as they have been busy since president Trump has started revoking and implementing laws. This is also why Moonlight winning best picture has been an incredible feat. The LGBTQ-themed film won the award right after the Trump Administration reduced protections for transgender students by disallowing them to use facilities that correspond with their gender identities in public schools across the nation. Emma Stone was also seen wearing a badge with Planned Parenthood’s logo to show her support for women’s rights and reproductive healthcare. The Iranian filmmaker, Asghar Farhadi, boycotted the Oscars by not attending, despite winning the award for Best Foreign Film for The Salesman. He did this to protest Trump’s travel ban and to show sympathy for his and the other six countries affected by the ban. The lead actress of The Salesman, Taraneh Alidoosti, also missed the awards show for the same reason. When combined with the acceptance speeches that poked fun at Trump’s wall, the need to accept and love one another, and staying strong together, the various political stands were very effective. The messages they conveyed were perfectlytimed with the Oscars’ new-found diversity. Next year’s Academy Awards has a lot to live up to, with the way things are going they are sure to achieve these high standards.
Sport UP sprinter Tebogo Mamatu. Image provided.
UP sprinter Akani Simbine. Image provided.
UP athletes perform in Potch and Pretoria KWAZI SOKHELA
From 3 to 4 March, athletes from the University of Pretoria descended upon Potchefstroom and Pretoria for the 2017 Varsity Athletics and an Athletics Gauteng North (AGN) meeting. It was a weekend where several athletes enjoyed success and displayed record-breaking performances. On 3 March at North-West University, the fifth instalment of Varsity Athletics kicked off. UP enjoyed a fruitful campaign in the first instalment of the 2017 Varsity Athletics action. They currently find themselves top of the standings with a points tally of 15 604 in Division A of the competition, in which seven other universities feature and compete, while four other universities compete in Division B. In the track events, the Victor Ludorum and the Victrix Ludorum were Thando Roto and Rikenette Steenkamp. Roto clocked 10.18s to win the men’s 100m sprint, whereas Steenkamp clocked 13.24s to win the women’s 100m hurdles, despite having to run the event twice due to technicalities in the first run. Among other results were those of Rio Olympian, Gift Leotlela, who ran a time of 20.50s to win the men’s 200m event, and Tebogo Mamatu who won the women’s 100m sprint. Gezelle Magerman finished in third
position in the women’s 400m hurdles, while Constant Pretorius finished in second in the men’s 400m hurdles. Both George Kusche (men’s) and Michelle Redelinghuys (women’s) claimed third in their respective 800m events. In the field events, Chene Coetzee (women’s hammer throw) and Ruan Combrink (men’s shot put) claimed silver, while Patrick Duvenage managed to claim gold in the men’s discus. UP will be looking to reclaim the title this year in the second and final meeting on 31 March. In Pretoria at the Tuks Stadium, 4 March proved to be a historic day for South African athletics during an AGN league meeting, when UP sprinter Akani Simbine opened his season campaign with a bang. Simbine made history by clocking the fastest ever time in the 100m sprint in South Africa when he crossed the finish line with a time of 9.93s. Simbine also became the first South African to run sub10 seconds in the 100m and sub-20 seconds (posting a time of 19.95 in the event) in the 200m on the same day, joining none other than Wayde van Niekerk as the only other South African to have achieved such a feat. In addition, 19 year-old Clarence Munyai who competed in the Olympics last year, also broke the SA junior 200m record, stopping the clock with a time of 20.10 seconds.
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Multiply Titans and former Assupol TuksCricket wicket-keeper Heinrich Klaasen. Photo: www.cricket.co.za
Heinrich Klaasen called up by the Proteas CHAD JOHNSTON Multiply Titans and former Assupol TuksCricket wicket-keeper batsman Heinrich Klaasen has been called up to the Proteas test squad for the three-match test series against New Zealand, which gets underway in a few days. The call-up comes after an impressive domestic season that saw him finish seventh on the run-scoring charts in the Sunfoil series with 635 runs at an average of 48.84, including a season-best high score of 195 against the Dolphins in Pietermaritzburg. Klaasen has built a successful domestic career with 3 140 runs and an overall average of 49.06. He has become a mainstay in the Multiply Titans set up and a key link in their batting line-up. He has received praise from the likes of the Powerade National Academy coach, Shukri Conrad, who said that the young wicketkeeper batsman could develop into “South Africa’s very own M.S Dhoni”. Former Head of the Assupol TuksCricket programme, Pierre de Bruyn, compared Klaasen to Adam Gilchrist with the bat and praised his keeping skills saying that “he has great hands and reach”. Klaasen said that he’s been working towards this call up his whole career and it means a
lot to him: “It’s something you dream of as a young player and to be able to get that call is unbelievable”. Klaasen came into light when Proteas backup wicket-keeper, Dane Vilas, signed a Kolpack deal with English county side Lancashire. Klaasen has stiff competition for the top spot of South Africa’s first choice wicket-keeper with Quinton de Kock in the mix. However, he seems content with his position in the team at the moment: “I am the next keeper in line so it is a big step forward in my career”. De Bruyn congratulated Klaasen on his call up: “I know how much this means to him but I know how hard he worked [over] the last 6 years”. De Bruyn continued praising Klaasen, saying that he is one of the top three wicketkeepers he has come across in his career: “He knows the game and has a good cricket brain, reading situations very well on the field”. De Bruyn also said that Klaasen will have a “successful international career in white and red ball [cricket]”. He also called the move by the national selectors to call up Klaasen “proactive”. Other inclusions in the squad include pacer Morné Morkel and all-rounder Theunis de Bruyn.
Steenkamp makes triumphant comeback THORISO PHASHA UP 100m hurdler Rikenette Steenkamp recently made a heroic comeback from the sidelines after struggling with a recurring foot problem. Steenkamp was sidelined after undergoing surgery to remove an extra bone in her foot that had been causing her discomfort for quite some time, preventing her from running. She went through rigorous rehabilitation and hard training to return to the track, and this culminated in Steenkamp running a Varsity Athletics record time of 13.24s at the Varsity Athletics meeting in Potchefstroom on Friday, 3 March. Steenkamp spoke to Perdeby about the long journey back. How were you injured, and how did it lead to you needing a two-year break? I was in Grade 12 in 2010 so I struggled with a few injuries back then as well…and then it went very well [through] 2013 and 2014 [when] I won the African Championships and the National Championships. And then the next year my ankle just started to give me problems and we didn’t know what it was, nothing happened. It wasn’t like I hurt it at
training or anything like that, it just started to get sore. I couldn’t train throughout the whole of 2015...I went for an MRI and they didn’t pick up anything, then I went to a podiatrist and he said he wanted to do an x-ray, and then they saw that I had an extra bone in my ankle. So I’d been running with it and it had gotten pinched…So they had to get it out, so [in January] 2016 I decided “let’s just do it”. I went for an operation and I had four weeks [of] bed rest, and [I] had a process of two months going through rehab, and had to learn to walk properly again…But I decided to start training again because I love it, so I started with a new coach in October last year. What do you think your future holds for you? For me something that’s very important, as cliché as it may sound, is to enjoy the journey, and to enjoy the processes of reaching those goals. In the 100m [sprint], the 10 second barrier is the barrier to break, with the 100m hurdles it’s the 13 second barrier, and I think to be able to do that would be awesome [especially] for South African hurdles because we need to break that barrier. But I’m not in
the prediction game, but to know that it is possible, I believe it is. Winning a national track event after coming back from a two-year absence is quite an amazing feat, how did you feel after the win? Last year I told my parents [that] the day I run the 100m hurdles again is going to be a miracle, so that’s how I felt, like [I was] incapable of doing it back then. I’m overwhelmed with thankfulness. I’m a believer so I also thank God and I give Him all the glory, and He’s writing a story that’s bigger than I can understand […] because it doesn’t make sense coming back after two years and running a personal best. What motivation would you give to other athletes who find themselves in an injury situation similar to the one that you found yourself in? I think in that time, nobody sees you [or] misses you…and that feeling of [being] forgotten is very bad, but to get your identity in that moment, to say [to yourself], “You know what? I love what I do”, and to start training again because you love it…And
UP 100m hurdler Rikenette Steenkamp. Image provided.
just believe in yourself [because] I think sometimes you’ll reach a point where only you believe in yourself, and that’s something you need to hold onto on the inside. So I would say keep your head up [and] speak positively over your body.