STUDENTS BOYCOTT CLASSES

Students at the University of Swaziland are boycotting classes after government officials refused to meet their leaders to discuss the crisis over scholarships.

The university term started this week and no classes have taken place.

The Students’ Representative Council (SRC) at the university is reporting that no government scholarships have been given to first year students. Class boycotts have begun in an attempt to force the government to address the problem.

The Centre for Human Rights and Development, Swaziland, reported SRC President Sibusiso Nhlabatsi saying there were no first year students at the university and students transferring from other colleges and universities were also being denied scholarships.

Nhlabatsi said the Swazi Government had on numerous occasions refused to meet with the students.

The Centre reported that in 2011 the government turned back more than 700 students who had been admitted by the university and other colleges due to the financial crisis presently gripping the kingdom.