Stellenbosch University student found guilty of sexual misconduct expelled

Stellenbosch University has expelled a student who was found guilty of sexually assaulting a fellow student at Majuba Residence in May.

The incident was reported on 18 May. The victim lodged a complaint with the university’s Equality Unit, which referred the matter to Student Discipline to investigate the matter.

The university’s Central Disciplinary Committee (CDC) undertook the student disciplinary process and a hearing was held. He was found guilty of “instances of sexual misconduct.”

Martin Viljoen, the university spokesperson confirmed that the student was found guilty of “instances of sexual misconduct” on Thursday.

“The sanctions imposed are that the student is expelled from SU and the sanction must be published to the student community in a manner that Student Discipline finds suitable. However, the identity of the parties must be redacted, and no information may be disclosed that enables the identification of any of the witnesses involved in the proceedings,” Viljoen said.

Deputy vice-chancellor of learning and teaching, Professor Deresh Ramjugernath, said the university was very concerned about incidents of sexual misconduct.

“The university condemns all forms of crime and any infringement on human rights, including gender-based violence in the strongest possible terms. In line with our Unfair Discrimination and Harassment Policy we will continue to combat gender-based violence on our campus.”

“Management respects the independence of the SU student disciplinary process and values the expertise of the CDC,” Ramjugernath added.

Source: News24, Sowetan Live, cape{town}etc, image from cape{town}etc

Doctor Mahlaule

Doctor Mahlaule previously worked as a Freelance Journalist at Find-it SA where he was responsible for writing news articles and sharing them on social media platforms. Doctor Mahlaule holds a Diploma in Journalism, BA in Communication Science and a BA Honours in Media Studies. Doctor began his journey as a knowledge Management and Communications Intern at Zenex Foundation. He was responsible for support in event management, social media, website maintenance, writing and brand management. On weekends Doctor attends prison ministry and shares the scriptures with inmates at Krugersdorp prison and plays soccer in the afternoon on some weekends. He has a passion for reading and writing and enjoys going out with friends and socialising in his spare time. He has a one-year-old son and is planning on getting married soon. When asked about what keeps him going, he said: “My family keeps me going. I’m the man I am because I come from a loving home. I have a very supportive family who always encourages me to keep pushing hard.”

See Full Bio