Central SA
UFS gets approval to relocate MT Steyn statue─── KATLEHO MORAPELA 12:29 Thu, 04 Jun 2020
The University of the Free State (UFS) confirms the relocation of the MT Steyn Statue to the War Museum in Bloemfontein has officially been permitted by the Sports, Arts, Culture and Recreation MEC, Limakatso Mahasa.
The university says they received confirmation from Mahasa’s office on 1 June and are also informed that a permit will now be issued by the Free State Provincial Heritage Resources Authority (FSPHRA) for the dismantling, temporary storage, and relocation of the statue to the War Museum.
The decision to relocate the statue was announced by the university’s Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Francis Petersen, in November 2018 after the Council at the University resolved to relocate it to a place off-campus. The statue has in the past years drawn much controversy with students vandalising it during the height of #FeesMustFall protests, calling for its removal on campus. The university’s Student Representative Council (SRC) and other organisations have for years alleged that the statue do not represent the values of the university and demanded that it be removed.
The university in a statement outlines that “the notice from MEC Mahasa comes after the Appeal Committee of the FSPHRA decided on 20 August 2019 to uphold appeals from interested parties and to keep the statue at the UFS. Subsequently, the Special Task Team appointed by Prof. Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS, to develop and implement a framework to engage with a review process on the position of the statue in front of the Main Building on the Bloemfontein Campus, submitted an urgent request to MEC Mahasa to appoint a tribunal and refer the university’s appeal in terms of and in accordance with the provisions of Section 49(2) of the National Heritage Resources Act (NHRA), No 25 of 1999”.
“While we await the issuing of the permit by the FSPHRA, we will now proceed with the necessary arrangements for the relocation of the statue, such as appointing a team for the dismantling, temporary storage, and re-assembly of the statue at the War Museum and appointing a heritage architect to oversee the process. The wishes of President Steyn’s family will be accommodated during the relocation process, as per the findings of the Tribunal Committee,” said Petersen in a statement.
Steyn was the sixth and last president of the independent Orange Free State from 1896 to 1902. His descendants remain members of the Bloemfontein society with many of them among the university’s alumni.
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