From the Chair of Council
Announcement of IRTC commissioners
26 January 2018 | Sipho M Pityana
Dear members of the UCT community
I am pleased to announce that the Institutional Reconciliation and Transformation Commission (IRTC) has been established and will convene for a briefing meeting on 2 February 2018.
The choice of commissioners received the full and unanimous support of the IRTC Steering Committee, which finalised its recommendation to Council on 8 December 2017. Council responded the following day with its full support for the candidature of those put forward.
The establishment of the IRTC signals a historic landmark for the university, one that emerged out of an inclusive, consensus-building process, albeit at times a protracted one. The success of the process was due in no small measure to the strenuous efforts of the multi-stakeholder IRTC Steering Committee.
It is with great pleasure that I announce the esteemed membership of the IRTC:
- Dr Yvette Abrahams
- Dr Malose Langa
- Former Minister Mosibudi Mangena
- Ms Yasmin Sooka
- Justice Zak Yacoob
We are highly appreciative of all 18 nominees who agreed to put themselves forward for consideration, and we hope to be able to count on them all for their continued support in the future.
As reported previously, the IRTC Steering Committee has set provisional Terms of Reference, which will be refined and finalised by the IRTC. The provisional Terms of Reference stipulate that the IRTC will:
- look into what is referred to as the ‘Shackville protests’ of February 2016, including any related and subsequent protest actions
- invite submissions from all constituencies on the clemencies granted and make recommendations on converting clemencies into amnesties (or the continuation of clemencies) and what the nature of these amnesties will be
- make recommendations on how to deal with the outstanding cases in the spirit of restorative justice
- inform itself on all recent and ongoing initiatives to address the issues that fall within the broad scope of the IRTC
- invite all constituencies – and be able to request relevant individuals and structures, including task teams – to make submissions on institutional culture and practices, including decolonisation and any that entail unjust discrimination, domination or violence, including sexual violence
- make recommendations on institutional culture, transformation, decolonisation, discrimination, identity, disability, labour relations and any other matters that the university community has raised over the years, or may wish to raise.
Please join me in wishing them every success in their endeavours.
Mr Sipho Pityana
Chair of the IRTC steering committee (and Chair of UCT Council)
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Institutional Reconciliation and Transformation Commission (IRTC)
The Institutional Reconciliation and Transformation Commission (IRTC) Steering Committee was established as a result of a period of unprecedented tension at the University of Cape Town (UCT) at the end of 2016. The creation of the multi-stakeholder steering committee that will oversee the proposed IRTC was one of the resolutions made in the 6 November 2016 agreement, which effectively brought the waves of continuing protest at the university to a halt.
The agreement, which was signed between the UCT executive and protesting student groups, paved the way for the establishment of the IRTC, whose aims are to
- consider all Shackville-related protests of 2016, including disciplinary procedures and interdicts
- invite submissions from all constituencies on clemencies that were granted and decide whether clemency should be turned into amnesty
- make recommendations on how the university should deal with pending cases and other such matters in the future
- make recommendations on institutional culture, transformation, decolonisation, discrimination, identity, disability and any other matters that the university community has raised over the past 18 months, or may wish to raise in the future.
The IRTC’s objective is to map an inclusive and fair course for the university as it tackles the legacy of the so-called Shackville protests and to focus on the issues that have caused division on our university campus.
Read IRTC documents:
- Read the 6 November agreement
- Read the declaration by students seeking clemency
- Read the FAQ about the agreement
- Read the criteria and process for nominating commissioners - List of Steering Committee Members
- Names of the IRTC Steering Committee members
- Email addresses of the IRTC Steering Committee members
- See the announcement of the IRTC Commissioners
- IRTC Final Report
A summary and analysis of the Terms of Reference are given in Chapter 2, starting on page 7
Feedback and responses to the IRTC report:
IRTC Final Report
Statements by the IRTC
Latest news
Reports from the Steering Committee Chair
2018 IRTC Steering Committee meetings
2017 IRTC Steering Committee meetings