DUT must enable access to higher education for people with disabilities - it is a human right!

Durban University of Technology (DUT) has violated a right to access to education for a young woman living with disability in KZN. Durban University of Technology (DUT) has earlier this year registered a young deaf woman in the faculty of Management Sciences and later failed to provide a sign language interpreter to assist this particular student. They have instructed her to stay at home for the past three weeks now, while lessons are continuing for other students.

DUT has been illtreating and abusing #OurDaughterStudent emotionally by threatening to deregister her from the faculty. They have forced her to stay at home, not attending her classes, as a result she is left behind with her studies.

South African Positive Women Ambassadors (SAPWA) and SANAC Civil Society Forum Women's Sector are asking for Durban University of Technology (DUT) to the following, urgently!

1) Provide a sign language interpreter for #OurDaughterStudent

2) Stop threatening #OurDaughterStudent to deregister her from DUT

3) Urgently bring back #OurDaughterStudent to class

4) Provide psychological support for #OurDaughterStudent ASAP!

5) Protect #OurDaughterStudent from further human rights violations

Where is the spirit of Ubuntu in DUT? The fact that a young woman with a disability is forced to stay behind alone at the student residence while other students are in classes puts her life at high risk of being further violated, given the high rates of gender-based violence in South Africa.