Wamkelekile, Welkom
Final call for IRTC submissions
26 September 2018 | DVC A/Prof Lis Lange
Dear colleagues and students
The Institutional Reconciliation and Transformation Commission (IRTC) is finalising its report and has extended the submission deadline to 30 September 2018.
This is therefore a final appeal to encourage the university community to make submissions to the IRTC. To facilitate the process of healing, it is important that all constituencies are given a platform to tell their side of the story.
I particularly urge students and professional, administrative support and service (PASS) staff to take advantage of this extended deadline and make submissions. The submissions by PASS staff are crucial as these staff members enable and support what we do at the University of Cape Town and are often the ones who have to support students during protest periods. Students sometimes feel more at ease when communicating and sharing their experiences with members of the PASS staff.
I would also like to give an assurance that no one will be victimised or side-lined for participating in the IRTC process. It is important to note that all evidence or information provided by any person to the IRTC in the course of its work will be confidential if so requested, and will be disclosed to other persons or entities only with the consent of the person who has given the information. Such a disclosure will only occur in an effort to achieve greater understanding, reconciliation and transformation. The commissioners undertake not to disclose the evidence provided by any person to any law enforcement authority, including the police or the prosecution service.
Submissions can be made to Candice Amon (candice.amon@uct.ac.za) or on 074 505 4159.
In conclusion, I thank all of those who have made submissions – oral and written – to the IRTC so far. It is my hope that the IRTC final outcomes will advance the cause of reconciliation and transformation at the institution, and will enable our university to carry out its work in a conducive environment.
Sincerely
Associate Professor Lis Lange
Acting Vice-Chancellor
Read previous communications:
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Please view the republishing articles page for more information.
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