Tuition fees at state universities were increased by 500 percent with those at the University of Zimbabwe increasing from Z$6 million to Z$30 million a year while meals went up from Z$1.5 million a semester to Z$21 million.
A cable released by Wikileaks even quipped that the conventional wisdom that a term’s fees once equated to one cow no longer applied as it now took at least six head of cattle to get through a semester.
Political science professor John Makumbe told United States embassy officials that enrolment had dramatically reduced with only about 50 social studies students registering as compared with about 1 000 normally.
Full cable:
Viewing cable 06HARARE227, STUDENTS PROTEST IN RESPONSE TO COLLEGE TUITION
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 HARARE 000227
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
AF/S FOR B. NEULING
SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR C. COURVILLE
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/24/2015
TAGS: ASEC PGOV PHUM SOCI PREL ZI
SUBJECT: STUDENTS PROTEST IN RESPONSE TO COLLEGE TUITION
HIKES
REF: HARARE 177
Classified By: Ambassador Christopher Dell for reasons 1.5 b/d
——-
SUMMARY
——-
¶1. (C) Massive tuition increases at state colleges have
triggered student unrest as the academic year resumes this
month. The GOZ announced in early February that tuition for
the coming year would jump from between Z$6 and Z$9 million
to between Z$30 and Z$45 million. Upset that scholarships
were not increased accordingly, at least 200 students
demonstrated on February 15 at Bulawayo,s National
University of Science and Technology (NUST), causing damage
to one university building. Police arrested and quickly
released 22 students at NUST and 15 students at a later
demonstration at Masvingo Polytechnic. At the University of
Zimbabwe (UZ), a professor tells us that student leaders are
planning more demonstrations once classes resume next week.
End summary.
————————
Massive School Fee Hike
————————
¶2. (U) Reflecting the ever-increasing cost of living in
Zimbabwe, the government on February 6 announced that tuition
and related fees at state colleges would increase as much as
500 percent this academic term. Tuition at UZ for arts and
humanities students was increased from Z$6 million to Z$30
million per year, while tuition for medical and veterinary
students rose from Z$9 million to Z$45 million. Fees for
room and board were increased also; meals, for instance, went
from Z$1.5 million per semester to Z$21 million. Totaling
the bill, a medical student who lives on campus must pay Z$93
million for the current year (equivalent to US$940 at the
official rate or US$490 at the parallel rate of
Z$190,000:US$).
¶3. (U) Scholarships and student loans, however, were
increased at a far lower rate, pushing local university
education out of the reach of many. Student can hope for
financial assistance of only between Z$11.4 and Z$17.5
million (equivalent to US$115 and US$176, respectively, at
the official rate). For the bulk of UZ students who come
from poorer backgrounds, the conventional wisdom that a
term,s fee once equated to one cow no longer applies; now it
will take at least six head of cattle to get through a
semester. UZ political science professor John Makumbe told
poloff on February 21 that enrollment was therefore
dramatically reduced; with only days left to enroll, about 50
social studies students had registered as compared with about
1,000 normally. In the law faculty, Dean Emmanuel Magade
told poloff on February 23 that only 30 students had
registered, as opposed to about 700 normally.
¶4. (C) Elinor Burkett, a Fulbright scholar at NUST, told
Post that students there who had not paid their fees by March
27 would not be permitted to attend class. She estimated
that only about 10 percent of students could raise the
necessary funds. Unable to raise revenue through tuition,
Burkett said the university would likely be unable to cover
the salaries of lecturers. (N.B. NUST received a budget of
only Z$49 billion this year, having asked for about Z$540
billion.)
———————————
Prompts Wave of Student Activism
———————————
¶5. (C) The climbing costs of education have fueled unrest on
campuses as students return from holidays. At least 200
students at NUST demonstrated on February 15 against the new
fees and demanded a meeting with Vice Chancellor Lindela
Ndlovu, according to Burkett. Ndlovu, however, refused to
talk to the students and campus security descended on the
demonstrators, reportedly beating up one of the leaders. The
students responded by rioting and breaking the windows of an
administrative building. According to Zimbabwe Lawyers for
Human Rights, a core group of 22 were to be charged with
malicious injury to property and public violence.
¶6. (U) Students at other universities have taken up the
campaign against the new fees. On February 16 thousands of
students at the UZ Medical School and at Bulawayo Polytechnic
boycotted classes over the hikes, according to accounts in
the independent press. Student demonstrations then spread to
Masvingo Polytechnic on February 21 where students marched on
the campus to protest the new fees. According to press
accounts, police riot squads disbursed the demonstrators and
briefly detained 15 students.
¶7. (C) The Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU) has
called on students to take to the streets and has begun
addressing colleges nationwide with the message &we can,t
pay, won,t pay.8 Professor Makumbe told poloff that ZINASU
was planning a demonstration at UZ on February 27 to coincide
with the resumption of classes. According to the usually
fiery Makumbe, the students were highly organized and were
determined not &to duck the bullets.8 Makumbe said the
demonstrating students would also highlight other economic
problems ) such as joblessness – and speculated that the
activism could snowball to other groups nationwide.
——-
Comment
——-
¶8. (C) After recent years of dormancy and infiltration by
the security services, the students appear to be regaining
their radicalism of several years ago. Between 2000 and
2002, demonstrations and even riots where commonplace at UZ
and, to a lesser extent, NUST, leading to violent suppression
by police and frequent closures that delayed graduation for
many by one to two years. However, with the graduation of
student activists such as Raymond Majongwe and Nelson
Chamisa, the ZINASU became thoroughly penetrated by the GOZ
and started to be viewed with increasing skepticism by the
student body. The recent fee hikes, however, have combined
with the ever-crumbling economy to produce a potentially
volatile mixture. This is especially true for poorer
families, who lack the opportunity to send their children
abroad and are faced with a deteriorating domestic education
system that comes at an ever-higher price. Nonetheless,
adding to the surrealist quality of Zimbabwe these days,
Mugabe singled out the Education Ministry for special praise
for &sustaining the education system8 during his birthday
interview that aired on Sunday.
¶9. (C) It Remains to be seen whether the students, plight
will resonate with the general population. Although the
Morgan Tsvangirai-aligned MDC National Youth Council has
condemned the new fee structure and ZINASU has reportedly
reached out to some key NGOs, civil society has to date been
largely silent on the issue. Much will depend on how
effective the students are, among themselves and with the
wider population, at articulating the connections between
their personal economic predicament, the country,s general
economic decline, and the ruling party,s economic
mismanagement. The arrest of 300 WOZA activists last week
(reftel) and 105 NCA activists at two demonstrations this
week (all but the 62 NCA activists arrested on Thursday have
since been released) demonstrate that broader dissatisfaction
exists, but it far has yet to spur any concerted form of
wide-scale civil resistance. There is fertile ground for
rallying Zimbabweans against the economic decline of recent
years, but the strength of students, determination to
postpone or even derail their studies for the sake of
activism remains to be tested ) especially given that a
college degree is one,s surest way out of Zimbabwe and to a
better future.
DELL
(172 VIEWS)
