The number of arrested students at Bindura University has surged from seven to twenty five. More arrests are expected as more students who demonstrated over high examination fees yesterday are on the run.
Bindura University authorities have since postponed the examinations that were supposed to commence yesterday due to disruptions of normal university business by the demonstrators. Lawyers from Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) have been dispatched to avail legal representation. Incidences of victimization of students and academic rights violations at tertiary institutions are likely to increase in anticipation of demonstrations against set exorbitant fees at the University of Zimbabwe and other Institutions.
University of Zimbabwe is charging US$404 as tuition and US$400 as accommodation fees and shall open its doors for the 2010 academic crash year on January 25, 2010 and shut them in late July or early August. This is designed to allow the return to normal academic years that start in early September and cascade to May of the following year. The academic calendar was disrupted during 2008-2009 academic year by series of chaos at the university that included spiraling inflation, water shortages and striking lecturers.