Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU) President Joshua Chinyere, Secretary General Grant Tabvurei and five other Bindura University students have been arrested after staging a demonstration on the Bindura University campus today January 14, 2010 over high examination fees.
Bindura University authorities have since postponed the examinations that were supposed to commence today due to disruptions of normal university business by the demonstrators. The arrested students are currently being detained at Bindura Central Police station waiting to appear before court within 48 hours after their arrest.
Tertiary education fees including tuition, accommodation and examination fees have been propelled sky high beyond the reach of an average Zimbabwean parent or guardian who is earning a meager salary. The major employer in Zimbabwe; the public service commission is paying as salaries to civil servants an average of US$150 per month yet the government is extorting between US$400-US$1000 per semester as fees from the very same civil servants. The situation is compounded by the government and university authorities who are reluctant to engage in dialogue and negotiations with student leaders. ZINASU leaders had gone to Bindura University to engage responsible authorities so that the examinations can be postponed to allow more students to look for the fees required before seating for the examinations.
In the past University Authorities have responded by suspending and expelling those students who dare to protest over violations of academic rights and this trend persists currently despite the framework of the limping inclusive government. The five Bindura students arrested together with the ZINASU leaders are likely to face the same fate of either being expelled or suspended. Students had pinned their hopes on the Inclusive Government; however those hopes are constantly being shattered by the unchanging learning and living conditions in tertiary institutions.