By Musa Zondo
Some students who stay in one of the South Beach residences of the Durban University of Technology (DUT) were apprehended by police after they’d been drinking in the residence’s entrance on Friday night.
They say the police assaulted them during their ride to the station and at the station. “I absolutely hate the police who tossed me in the car,” says one of the students.
Weekends are usually known as times of joy, relaxation and celebration for students. This is the case for many in the Durban University of Technology (DUT) where students might buy a few drinks as students do in many universities in South Africa and elsewhere in the world.
However, residents of a neighbouring building called the police after a group of students had been drinking in an entrance that they share with them.
A man who identified himself as Superintendent Simelane arrived and introduced himself as “The Devil of the Point”.
Housing Committee Secretary, Bright Simelane says the police were not friendly as they pulled him aside. “I was manhandled due to the fact that I had seen one of the students being manhandled as well. As soon as the police officer heard that I’d also been drinking, he dismissed me as someone he could no longer reason with,” says Simelane.
While the Residence Administrators vehemently criticised the strong hand of the police when they arrived, they also condemned students who drink in public spaces such as residence entrances and the streets.
The students who had been apprehended were fetched by other students who then returned them to res after a few hours.
