2 August 2023

DIE MATIE IS 82!

National Student Failing Aid Scheme

In the beginning of 2023 Stellenbosch University (SU) students and other stakeholders faced a large challenge due to the National Student Financial Aid Scheme’s (NSFAS) funding cap and delay in providing funding for students. This funding cap and delay, amongst other issues, left many students across South Africa homeless, without food and other necessities. As a result of this, SU management and Student Representative Council (SRC) has had to find ways to accommodate these students.

One of the ways in which SU has attempted to do this is by applying for exemption from the accommodation funding cap. However, the institution has not received an answer from NSFAS regarding their exemption status despite applying in February of this year. Further, in response to complaints about the accommodation cap, NSFAS released a statement stating that they would be taking student accommodation providers to the Competition Court on allegations of price gouging and collusion.

NSFAS-funded students, tertiary education institutions and their stakeholders now face a new challenge posed by the scheme that is meant to support them. This challenge comes in the form of the new direct payment (of allowances) system, that NSFAS has implemented as of June/July 2023, at universities across the country.

According to the NSFAS website, the #NSFASBankAccount was introduced for students in Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Colleges in 2022.

Initially, NSFAS would pay the amount for tuition, living allowances, travel allowances etc. to the various institutions and these institutions would pay these allowances to the students. Now, NSFAS is implementing a system where it pays these allowances (tuition excluded) directly to students.

According to the government’s website, NSFAS is implementing this direct payment system in order to “ensure its accountability on student allowances and to establish a better coordinated system of transfer of funds to students.” It seems this movement was prompted by a series of delayed

and/or incorrect payments that were made as well as “incidents of fraudulent transactions to which NSFAS would not assume accountability”.

To achieve this direct payment system, NSFAS has partnered with different service providers, namely Coinvest, Zaga, Norraco and Tenet Technology. Many university management bodies, students, SRCs and political organisations have rejected this new direct payment system implemented by NSFAS.

At a mass meeting held by the SU SRC on 26 July in the Neelsie, Masilo Silokazi, SRC chairperson, said that SU management and the SRC have been voicing their rejection of the direct payment system and funding cap since they were announced in December of 2022.

“We do not support the [direct] payments, we do not support the caps and we have expressed this in different ways, either through letters, either through statements, we’ve tried to contact as many people as possible to express the rejection of this. We’ve also sat with other SRCs and attended meetings and marches with other SRCs to emphasise the rejection of the caps as well as the direct payments and unfortunately have come out empty handed both times,” she said.

In engagements with the South African Students Congress (SASCO) and South African Union of Students (SAUS) it was brought to NSFAS’ attention (again) that the direct payment

system was being rejected because it has excessive charges, the service providers are inaccessible, there is a lack of clarity regarding the accessing of funds and there are allegations that funds are not reaching the beneficiaries.

In response to these complaints NSFAS has stated that it will investigate the complaints, instruct service providers to increase their physical presence at institutions and enhance explanations of “how students can access their funds”.

Further concerns have been raised regarding NSFAS and its direct payment system after the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) released its findings from an investigation they launched into the scheme in 2022.

One of these findings was that NSFAS had awarded tenders, for the direct payment system, to service providers that do not have the required banking licences or VAT registrations.

According to OUTA, these service providers offer students banking accounts at rates that are excessively higher than those of four of South Africa’s biggest commercial banks.

The service providers were awarded these tenders instead of other, more established companies, including South Africa’s four biggest commercial banks and MTN.

OUTA has calculated that the deal between NSFAS and its service providers could be worth about R1.5 billion for a period of five years, which will be paid by the students from their allowances.

Due to these findings and lack of transparency and clarity from NSFAS, William Sezoe, ViceChairperson of the SU SRC, lodged a complaint with the Public Protector’s office and called on the office to launch an investigation into NSFAS and their seemingly corrupt dealings.

Another issue that has arisen is that some NSFAS students are unable to complete the onboarding onto the Coinvest System (which is the service provider for SU NSFAS students). The reason these students are unable to onboard is because, according to Sezoe, Coinvest does not have the registration data of these students.

According to Sezoe, during an engagement between leadership members from NSFAS, SU, Coinvest and the SU SRC, on 27 June, Coinvest said that less than 50 of the 2700 NSFAS-funded SU students had onboarded to the system.

“Now that did not make sense because at Stellenbosch you don’t have 2700 NSFAS students. You have, each year, about 5000 funded NSFAS students,” he added.

In response to the discrepancy, Coinvest and NSFAS both said that they only had the data of 2700 NSFAS-funded SU students.

“The way the system works is that the university has your registration data. [The university] must send it to NSFAS and NSFAS must send it to Coinvest,” said Sezoe.

If one of the institutions does not send the registration data to

the next, then a student cannot complete the onboarding process and thus will not receive any allowances. The question at hand is: where is the registration data of the rest of the NSFAS-funded SU students?

In addition to a funding cap and a new direct payment system, NSFAS has also embarked on a process of defunding students. This was due to findings by the Auditor General and Special Investigation Unit (SIU) that wrongful and illegal allocations of funds have been made to students who fall outside of the prescription of its policies. Therefore, if a student is found to have been funded based on false information, they will immediately be defunded.

NSFAS, however, has not provided any more information regarding what the process of defunding looks like. Thus, many students have found themselves being suddenly defunded, even though they fit NSFAS’ funding criteria.

During the mass meeting held on 26 July, Phiwokuhle Qabaka, Secretary General of the SRC, explained that it is difficult for the SRC to answer the questions that students had because when they “try and ask for clarity” they are not given any.

Therefore, after consolidating with SRCs from other universities, it was decided that “on the second of August we [the SRCs] [will] all march to Parliament. Going to NSFAS is not [going to] do anything for us, we tried that, it doesn’t work”.

NSFAS claims that “the majority of [their] funded students are happy with [their] services”.

This claim, however, contradicts what students have shared on social media and in various news articles.

Furthermore, NSFAS claims that its Board and Management remains committed to a “StudentCentred model” that is focused on “the creation of an environment for the students to engage in academic activities without the inconvenience of Lack[ing].”

With some NSFAS students unable to afford accommodation (university residence included) or food, others wrongfully defunded, and others still awaiting their funding appeal results, it seems as though NSFAS will not be achieving the creation of such an environment any time soon.

Amptelike studentekoerant van die Universiteit Stellenbosch I Official student newspaper of Stellenbosch University I Iphephandaba elisemthethweni labafundi beYunivesithi yaseStellenbosch

LESEDI MNISI

PHOTO: EMMA COCHRANE

South Africa now has twelve official languages!

ANICA HATTINGH

South Africa has a new official language. After a lengthy, somewhat tedious process, South African Sign Language (SASL) will now be recognized as the 12th official language of South Africa. It is the hope of country officials and offices — such as the Department of Education, that the adoption of this new language will bridge some of the gaps between the hearing and Deaf/Hard of Hearing communities. In the pursuit of insight into the challenges the people of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community face, Die Matie corresponded with Susan (Modiegi) Njeyiyana, Junior Lecturer: South African Sign Language Acquisition at Stellenbosch University (SU), to gain her insights into understanding the importance of SASL as a recognised and official language. Njeyiyana*, who identifies as a part of the Deaf community herself, had to face a lot of challenges growing up in a dominantly hearing world. She explained that her family, except for her two sisters who also identify as Deaf, never used SASL to communicate with her, but rather expected her to learn isiZulu (to learn to lipread her mother) and Setswana (to communicate with her father). Setswana, which is also known as Signed Exact English, is when a sign is used with a spoken word and the grammar of a spoken language does not follow the grammar of SASL. Setswana/Signed Exact English wasn’t only used by people in her family, but also when she had first gone to school.

Njeyiyana told that when she started attending school there was little to no knowledge on how to properly teach a Deaf/Hard of Hearing child. Most teachers used Signed Exact English or Setswana and had limited knowledge on how to effectively teach Deaf children and the pedagogy in Deaf

education. Nyeyiyana further explained that these limited learning opportunities, especially so early in her life, have had a continued effect on the way she experiences and uses written and spoken languages. Perhaps the adoption of SASL as an official language will also aid in the improvement of how Deaf children are taught andDeaf education. Njeyiyana noted that, “Deaf children needed [and still need] to be taught in a fully-fledged language they understand, SASL. So, the level of education offered was very poor because of having teachers who couldn’t use SASL, my language.”

However, she did not allow any of these moments in her home life and education to hinder her from making a success of herself. She obtained her Master of Arts in General Linguistics after three years filled with long nights of reading and writing. She explained that she was fortunate enough to have an interpreter to translate the information from academic English into SASL — and again from SASL into English. During the process of writing her thesis, she was not without any challenges and hurdles. However, she said “I had to keep swimming, harder than most, to make sure that I could reach the goal I’d set out to achieve.” It was this will to succeed and refusal to give up that kept her pushing forward until she finally obtained her Master’s degree.

“The world still sees my deafness as a loss, and that I’m inferior, but I see my deafness as a gain. I have a sensory and cognitive diversity that contributes to the greater good of humanity and I have a unique contribution to make to society. Language gives us as humans the ability to express our thoughts, ideas, and emotions. Yet, for Deaf children and adults, we are deprived of these seemingly simple abilities to express ourselves, something that most people take for granted.”

It is the hope of many of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community

that the adoption of this language bill will aid not only in giving Deaf people recognition in the community at large,but to also allow them to be recognised by the government and its education system.

“The whole Deaf community of South Africa has been celebrating this important step towards recognising us as part of society. The Deaf community has been pushing for the recognition of our language, [SASL], for many generations. We’ve been fighting to be recognised by [the] government, by society and by the education system,” Njeyiyana reiterated.

Even though there are still many hurdles and challenges that lie ahead, the Deaf community can celebrate being one step closer to their goal. It is the hope of Njeyiyana, and so many of the Deaf community, that Deaf teachers can be trained to become the role models they need to be, and for Deaf students to have the choice of studying in their home language, SASL. It is the hope that the adoption of SASL, as an official language, will make this all possible.

A final note from Njeyiyana, “We welcome allies to the Deaf community, who will work alongside us to grow our community. We want to be treated as equals and be respected. Don’t assume to have answers to perceived challenges, rather ask us how we can work together. Nothing about us, without us!”

There’s a short course starting at the SU Language Centre in the second semester, you can see details at www. languagecentre.sun.ac.za or contact Michelle at mpieters@sun.ac.za You can also choose a credit bearing module in the new year named South African Sign Language Acquisition 178 with the General Linguistics department. For more details, contact the module coordinator, Dr Kate Huddlestone at katevg@sun.ac.za.

* Disclaimer: “In this article I’m only responding to content related to Deaf communities who use SASL as their primary mode of communication. It remains the choice of individuals with any form of hearing loss to learn SASL or not and this should always be respected. The word ‘Deaf’ refers to a person using SASL as their primary mode of communication, while ‘deaf’ refers to the physical loss of hearing which is a medical view. There are also groups that identify as Hard of Hearing and Hearing Impaired, and they don’t always identify as Deaf, because they have some hearing loss, but choose not to use SASL to communicate and I do not speak for them in this article.”

LSAL 2023: “Cultivating the leader within”

The Leadership Summit for Aspiring Leaders (LSAL), hosted by the Centre for Student Leadership, Experiential Education and Citizenship (CSLEEC) on 29 July, challenged the way students view the idea of leadership. Many students may believe that stepping into a university leadership role means that you have to be the loudest person in the room, the one with the most academic accolades or had to have been in prominent leadership positions in high school. LSAL challenged these preconceptions and suggested that anyone can learn and refine the qualities required of a leader. These qualities, proposed by Prof. Zeblon Vilakazi (Vicechancellor and Principal of the University of Witwatersrand), are “humility, having humanity and humour”. Humility, in a leadership role, allows a person to avoid hubris and pride. Having humanity creates

an environment for different people of different backgrounds to connect with one another. Finally, humour assists a person in taking their job seriously but not themselves seriously. Prof. Vilakazi drew attention to the value of humour as an aid to understand that criticism of a person’s job is not something personal when he said, “It is not about the man but the office.”

Criticism is a fundamental aspect of leadership as it facilitates the refining process of the qualities of humility, humanity and humour.

The theme of LSAL 2023 was ‘Cultivating the leader within us’, which championed the idea that anyone can be a leader and the qualities required for such a position can be developed and honed. Prof. Vilakazi mentioned that a lot of people think that having courage as a leader means you are tough. In reality it is about having the heart to take on the biggest problems.

The discussion then shifted to

student panellists who discussed the topic, ‘How do I make sense of a culture I step into?’ Caitlin Sithole (2023 Tygerberg Student Representative Council (TSRC) Vice Chair) said , “We, in essence, are the institutional culture and we play a role in it. Institutional culture can be both a barrier and a way of change.” Nina Hugo, former Chairperson of the United Nations Association South Africa (UNASA) Stellenbosch chapter, added, “The stakeholders that develop and change the institutional culture at SU are the students.” Emma Bowers Swart, Chairperson of the Academic Affairs Council (AAC) commented, “The university has made great strides but it is only the beginning.”

Edwina Brooks, director of Student Development at the University of Cape Town (UCT), said, “If we do not do the work to address inequalities and institutional culture, the future is at stake.” Addressing these

issues will serve to strengthen the institution and its culture. It was discussed that the institutional culture of SU needs context. SU has had a history in line with South Africa where racism, discrimination and prejudice were once at the heart of the institution. The event allowed the different groups to discuss three key questions: Why would some people not choose to come to leadership events such as LSAL? What problems do current leaders face? What do you do if the institution’s values do not align with your morals?

During the discussion, students also came up with solutions to the problems they listed. This cultivated an environment where healthy communication could be fostered to enable students to work together to find solutions to problems that plague institutional culture. It illustrated that students from different backgrounds with different views of life could come together

and find solutions together. The closing speaker, Rukshana Parker, Mail and Guardian Top 200 Young South Africans 2023 nominee in the category ‘Education’ and private law lecturer at SU, offered words of encouragement. “You do not need a title to make a difference,” she told the students. Student do not necessarily need to serve on formal leadership bodies such as our residences’ House Committees or the Student Representative Council (SRC) in order to address issues affecting our community. “Leadership emerges from the qualities you exhibit everyday, Parker continued, “All you have to do is try.”

The key message of the event was therefore that students should take note of their weaknesses but grow their strengths – the rest will fall into place. Not everyone will step into a leadership position but anyone can make a change.

PHENYO LEWANIKA

PHOTOS: STEFAN ELS

It’s the hot topic of current world affairs: Climate change is happening now, and it is worse than we ever could have imagined. The science behind it is irrefutable, and it is now widely known that the worst effects of climate collapse will be felt by the most vulnerable communities, who did almost nothing to contribute to climate change itself.

Luckily, there are groups of people who are working tirelessly to re-imagine and create a future for South Africa. One of these groups is The Climate Justice Charter Movement, who launched a book titled People’s and Workers’ Climate Justice Charter: Futures for South Africa

The book launch event was held at Heemstede Residence on 26 July, in collaboration with Stellenbosch University (SU) students, SDG/2063 Impact Hub, Social Impact and Facilities Management. In the panel discussion, Dr Matthew Wingfield posed many thought-provoking questions to Professor Vishwas Satgar, co-founder of the Climate Justice Charter Movement, Kayleigh Murray, a Master’s student studying the impact of climate change on quiver tree populations, and Aphiwe Sithole, SRC Sustainability and Social Impact at SU.

Professor Guy Midgely, director of the SU School for Climate Studies, opened the event with a speech and commented that the book is “challenging and confrontational,” adding,

Futures for South Africa

“What’s amazing is [the Climate Justice Charter] really reflects the needs of younger generations versus the vested interests of elders.”

The situation of the climate crisis has evolved rapidly within a short period of time, explains Professor Midgely. As “the tragic impacts of climate change are now finally being felt in the Northern hemisphere. Surprise, surprise, we’re finally starting to see some action.”

Professor Satgar, co-editor of the book, sounds a call to “accelerate the deep just transition,” saying that it is time for South Africans to “own and lead this problem.”

He explained that the Climate Justice Charter was born out of the longest and worst drought period in South Africa’s history, written by a multitude of grassroots communities, labour, the media, climate scientists and activists, and is in many ways a document and movement worth supporting.

The book that was launched, People’s and Workers’ Climate Justice Charter: Futures for South Africa, is a collaboration with Daily Maverick’s ‘Our Burning

Planet,’ as most of the individual chapters were originally published as articles. The book has three themes titled ‘Perspectives’, ‘Struggles’ and ‘Systemic Alternatives’. Professor Satgar has done great work for students during his time at The University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), including creating food gardens that feed over 2000 students every day. In his advice to SU students, he advocates for the Climate Justice Charter Movement to be

used as a platform for students to “aggregate your power and organise”.

Most of humanity may sometimes feel as though the idea of climate change has become a looming, inevitable threat, and that we have no real power to stop it. According to the panellists, it is of cardinal importance that we implement interdisciplinary, more widely accessible courses that educate students on the realtime impacts of climate change and global warming.

“We are all in the dark about what we are supposed to do. What’s the plan? What are we looking at? Because when you say ‘climate change’ it’s this massive blanket statement that casts a shadow over our futures,” says Murray.

Sithole espouses that a dissonance exists between SU students regarding the level of education about climate change. While student-based societies such as UNASA and EcoMaties are involved in a great deal of climate activism and conservational efforts, many SU students remain insufficiently educated on the

current state of environmental affairs.

“How can I apply what I am learning and what I am training in to address climate change across all of the different disciplines that it is going to impact?” is the question Murray posed during the session.

The book launch held an opportunity for staff, students and academics to convene in an informal setting as wine and snacks were served after the panel discussion. The launch buzzed with conversation tackling the issues faced by students who are experiencing the grim reality of a future nearly damned by climate change.

Student representatives from UNASA and EcoMaties were also present, as the current platforms for environmental action for students.

“Stellenbosch is sort of heading in the right direction with the help of student societies such as EcoMaties and UNASA, but as a whole there is a lot of work to do, even within our space of the SRC,” says Sithole.

The book launch was well attended and engaged many students showing an interest in what is happening and where to look for those fighting for a future worth living in. More events and discussions are said to take place with the various stakeholders within the coming months, and climate justice is assured to become as conversational as climate change.

SU shines in M&G ’s 200 Young South Africans list

FLAVIA DAVIDS

Stellenbosch University (SU) became the subject of national spotlight upon the newspaper publication Mail and Guardian’s installation of its choices for the Top 200 Young South Africans. A total of 13 Maties were recognised by the annual initiative, which has been a regular feature of the publication since 2005. The appointment of the 200 Top Young South Africans is aimed at recognising indelible contributions to business and innovation, health, and education, among other categories, made by the youth of South Africa. The newspaper publication received 3000 public nominations, and potential finalists were shortlisted and interviewed. Die Matie was able to get into conversation with two of its awardees, namely SU alum Maambele Khosa and SU lecturer of law Rukshana Parker.

Khosa was honoured by the Mail and Guardian as founder and director of SheCab, a transportation hailing service provided by women for women. SheCab was Khosa’s innovative solution to the challenges that women face in their commute.

Since its establishment in 2021, the SheCab employs 13 members, each of whom are dedicated to ensuring the safety and empowerment of women in the transportation industry.

Khosa’s installation by the Mail and Guardian in its list of 200 achievers has left her with a lot of excitement. “I am incredibly honoured and thrilled to be recognized as one of the 200 Young South Africans by the Mail and Guardian,” said Khosa. “It’s truly a humbling experience to be among so many talented and passionate individuals who are making a positive impact in our country,” she explained. Khosa hopes that her achievement will draw attention to the critical insecurity faced by women in South Africa on a daily basis, particularly concerning their safety during transportation.

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“By showcasing the efforts and success of SheCab, I aim to inspire

others to address this problem and advocate for safer and more inclusive transportation options, ultimately promoting greater empowerment and security for women across the country,” she explained.

The achievements of SU lecturer Rukshana Parker were also honoured by the Mail and Guardian Parker has lectured civil procedure, law of succession and law of trusts at SU since 2022. Her ability to create a positive, engaging and collaborative working environment was celebrated by the Mail and Guardian Parker conveyed her gratitude at her achievement. “It is an incredible feeling to know that my efforts have been recognized as something worthy of recognition,” explained Parker.

Parker has conducted extensive research on organised crime in South Africa, with focal points including assassinations, drugs and gangs. Parker is hopeful that her research will encourage others to empower individuals and communities, and direct attention

to the urgent need for investment in social programs, mentorship, and support networks in gangridden areas. “I hope that it will raise awareness about the importance of rehabilitation and education within the criminal justice system and that it also draws attention to the power of community-based initiatives and interventions,” explained Parker. “By shedding light on these issues, I believe we can foster a more compassionate and understanding society that embraces the transformative power of education and community-driven solutions to address societal challenges.”

Khosa and Parker continue in their roles at SU as marketing and communications coordinator of the School for Data Science and Computational Thinking and as lecturer in the Private Law department. Khosa is pursuing a master’s degree at SU that investigates the evolution of social entrepreneurship studies in South Africa. Parker is pursuing a doctorate in law at the University of Cape Town (UCT) that explores the reformation of intestate succession in South Africa for a better distribution of wealth.

PHOTO: CHARLOTTE MOSS

SKYLA THORNTON & LIENKE NORVAL

Student Life

Celebrating women at Stellenbosch University

Phenyo Lewanika & Lené Vorster

DrLydia van Niekerk, in 1922, became the first woman to be a professor in Dutch at SU. In 1992 Matie athlete Elana Meyer received a silver medal for the 10 000m at the Olympic Games in Barcelona. Prof. Elize Botha became the first woman Chancellor in 1998. Throughout the history of Stellenbosch University, many wonderful women have walked the same hallways and sat in the same lecture halls as we do today. They too, shared coffees under the oaks in Victoria and experienced rainy-day gloom in the Bosch. Not only did these women see change happen, but they also made change happen.

August is Women’s month, with 9 August being national Women’s Day. It is a day in which you give your mother an extra big hug, tell your friends how much you appreciate them and remember the courageous women who fought for equality in South Africa. But it also creates the opportunity

to celebrate the incredible women you meet everyday at SU, whether on campus or in town. It’s the girl who always compliments your outfits or the lovely ladies at Vida e Café who make your 08:00 class just slightly more bearable. No one gives life advice like the girl waiting behind you in the queue at De Lapa and you’ll always be grateful for that one class representative for sending you her notes. We asked a few of these women around campus what makes them feel like a woman:

Dr Tanya de VilliersBotha: “I am aware of the fact I am a woman when society tells me I am a woman and that I am doing something I should or should be doing [as a woman] according to society. And other than that, I am not actually sure that I think of myself as a woman specifically.”

Jada van Nieuwenhuizen: “What makes me feel like a woman is when I am able to take care of other people. I think it is quite like the normal, maybe, old fashioned way of thinking

about it. But, I really feel as though when I am able to take care of people is to make sure people are okay. It is not to mother them but it can be in a leadership setting–making sure everyone knows where to be and making sure people are able to find their place. That makes me feel most like a woman.”

Benita Pool: “To be a woman is [to be] very confident. I feel confident in myself. I like to be dependable. And I want to be happy”

Lameez Hendricks: “My other female friends. Honestly, I feel like there’s nothing as important as female –or like women friendships.”

Suzanne van Coller: “This is actually pretty hard, because there are so many things that make me feel like a woman. […] My thing that makes me feel like a woman is basically just what I wear everyday. That’s my biggest thing, because that’s how I express myself as a woman”

Happy women’s month to the wonderful women on campus. What makes you feel like a woman? Or what makes you appreciate the women in your life?

“If the sunshine isn’t sunshining tomorrow, I will retreat back to my cave”

- Student on the cold weather

“I haven’t worked on my thesis all week!”

“You’ve started with your thesis?”

- Every conversation between current honours students

“Yeah they’re seperating genders.”

“Seperating genders?”

“Yeah, they’re putting us at opposite ends of the table like it’s the 1920’s bruv.”

-students in a mixed res

Man to Man: How to make woman feel more safe on campus

of just a few things we can do to make women feel safer on campus.

Women's Month, a time to remember all the great women in history who have stood up against oppression and fought for equal rights and fairness. A time for women to feel empowered and come together to support one another in an often unfair society. But, it’s also a time for men to reflect on their role in that society. This article hopes to shed light on the role that men including myself can choose to play on campus and in our respective all communities in general. I’ve collected a small list

Stellenbosch isn’t necessarily the safest of places, especially at night, and the risks are increased with an open campus like SU. As a guy we often take for granted just how easy it is to walk from Catwalk back to residence or our flats. It’s never fun walking alone at night, and it’s even less fun if you’re scared, so it could be a good idea to offer to escort your female friends.

As a guy I can easily say that men aren’t always the most astute at picking up whether or not the girl you’re interested in feels the same way about you. And that's putting it mildly. If a woman isn’t

showing any immediate signs of being interested in you, don’t keep flirting with her, please. It’s just creepy, awkward and makes her feel very uncomfortable. Your persistence comes off the wrong way and makes her feel unsafe.

Most male friend groups are restricted to just that. While it’s all fun and good to spend time with “the boys”, maybe it’s time to make friends with the women around you. Often all-guy friend groups can become an echo chambers of ignorance and misogyny without even realizing. And when I say try to make friends I mean it platonically.

It’s high time we stop letting our friends objectify and make crude

comments about women. You might think that since you’re not making the comment yourself that you’re not contributing, but by letting friends and family continue to say awful things about women you become part of the problem. Don’t propagate, instead challenge the social norms of objectifying women. Ask your female friends what you can do to help contribute to a feeling of safety. As men we only know so much and we only see things from our perspective. It’s time for us to try and find that new perspective. Try to educate yourself where you are uncertain, and educate others who don’t know. Education can save lives.

<3

<3

Liam Jean-Pierre

WD Muller

It is said that the eyes are the gateway to the soul. Art must therefore be the soul in physical form. Yet, what happens when you combine these two universalities? The answer: an intricate, though intimate, exhibition of selfportraits- dare this extend to each artist’s view of their soul… This is exactly what two fourth year Fine Arts students set out to achieve: a perfect balance of the student, the lecturer and the alumni, through a concatenation of works that portray the artists as their purest selves. Concatenation was exhibited from 01 July to 22 July 2023 at the Gallery of the University Stellenbosch (GUS), situated on the corner of Bird and Dorp Street in Stellenbosch

‘Concatenation’

Central. Lynette Geldenhuys and Minka Schoonwinkel, in association with GUS, curated this thought provoking exhibition for the 2023 Student Takeoverdisplay. The goal was to bring together as many stakeholders in the Visual Art Department as possible. The call to exhibit was extended to Undergraduate and postgraduate students, alumni and lecturers. Of the displayed pieces, most were sold on the opening night, with others sold later on. The central theme of the exhibition was evident in the intermingled portrayal of the various artist’s self-portraits. No distinction was made between student, alumni or lecturer.

“Each artwork is the artist’s representation of themselves, an individual within the collection of the exhibition.”

When asked about what inspired the various works portrayed, Geldenhuys explains,” People were sort of open to interpret it in any way they wanted, whether that be like classic representational, or more conceptual.”

Out of this stemmed a collection full of diversity. Various mediums and disciplines could be seen throughout the exhibition.

The co-curator of the project, Minka Schoonwinkel, elaborated, “Some of it is work that people had previously made and then submitted and other people made self-portraits specifically for this exhibition.” Even at just a quick glance around one could sense the interwoven liberties of artistic freedom. “We wanted people to give us self-portraits that really reflected their art and what they wanted to put

out there, which not always just an illustrative self-portrait…” says Lynette Geldenhuys, Visual Arts Hons student.

There is a definite connection to the theme of time throughout the exhibition.

Andrew Sutherland, the curator of GUS and a lecturer at the Department of Visual Arts comments,“…it’s nice to see the connection between past, present and almost the connection to the future as well. Because it’s not just undergraduate students, but it’s also lecturers and alumni; some lecturers that studied here at Stellenbosch… most that didn’t and alumni as well, like Melissa Wrench did the little projection piece... and even in that piece you can see three generations that are layered with each other… so it’s nice to connect the undergraduate

Hi Maats! Die Matie here, and we have the biggest news EVER. This is a new colomn we’ve dubbed “Die Matie Says”. Here we will spill the hottest tea and say what’s on everyones minds.

<3 GriepGriep: why is everyone always getting ill as soon as campus reopens? Y’all be safe out there :0

<3 Wingerdgriep: We hear all the Maties had a very golden week and hope that the gees will spill over to the upcoming studies of this semester.

<3 Don’t even get me started on the Sunlearn redesign! The university promised it would be the best thing since sliced bread but all they did was drop a lot of dough for nothing. The university try to fix something that wasn’t broken?

students and their pieces into the greater artistic community through past students and lecturers as well, all in the same space, all on the same wall, with nothing special to really differentiate between who’s a student and who’s an established artist.” The idea of Concatenation was to connect, whether that be the connection of artists, the connection of art, the connection of a department or the connection of the past, the present and the future is a subjective choice of the viewer. Through the vision of Geldenhuys and Schoonwinkel, a space was created where artistic freedom could roam about and entice the viewer. A space was created where the viewer could truly connect to the artists and leave with the question: how do I then see my own self?

<3 The Neelsie was particularly stinky this week... some of our readers took a wild guess at what it might be. Some said it smelled like, and we quote, “feet”, “baby diapers” or “ham croissants at Vida”. While all of these are valid guesses there is unfortunately only one cause for the smell and that was a burst sewage pipe. #ewww

Photo : Cheyenne Britten

Music Meets Abstract Mathematics

Magic often occurs when two worlds collide. A union of the arts and the sciences can be described as just that. On July 27 the mathematician, Prof Zurab Janelidze, joined with the musician, Prof Hans Roosenschoon, in an intriguing presentation called Music Meets Abstract Mathematics in the Jannasch Hall, Stellenbosch. Prof Janelidze is a Prof in the department of Mathematical Sciences at Stellenbosch University (SU) and the president of the South African Mathematical Society while Professor Roosenschoon is a well known South African composer and a retired Professor of Music at SU. This dynamic duo have developed a theory based on Gestalt principles — the subconscious grouping of different elements to create a whole. Prof Janelidze used mathematical proof to explain

how the Gestalt hierarchy can be used in mathematics and then continued to demonstrate this grouping in music. In mathematical proofs one makes an assumption and continues to follow one line of argument until there is a contradiction and a new idea needs to be introduced. This can be seen in music as its atmosphere or overall feeling shifts. These shifts are not necessarily based on specific elements such as key, dynamics, bars or phrasing but rather on the feeling of the music as a whole, hence the Gestalt principles’ influence. Professor Janelidze said that there is “a commonality between music and mathematics that [we] are trying to uncover with this project”. “Music has structure, but mathematical arguments also have structure. In some sense that structure is more the music than the individual sounds and words themselves.” The audience was highly

interactive and challenged the thinking behind this theory. Prof Janelidze encouraged the audience to clap when they felt a shift in the music or a change into a new ‘Gestalt Block’ which integrated the audience with the concept. This theory was explored through The Beatles, Kriek from Goggaboek by Prof Hans himself and a SU choir performance of Sizongena. The ideas sparked a debate between SU students, Milano Reyneke who is an Applied Mathematics student and passionate musician and Carlyle Stewart who is also a Mathematics student. Milano displayed criticism as he said that ‘I actually [think that the way music is traditionally scored captures every element of the structure that there is in music.” Carlyle said coming from a mathematical background, a fan of abstracting and looking through a lens to see the bigger shape” and “there might be

subtle themes that stretch over too great intervals that we can’t comprehend all of the fine structure at the same time so if we take something away it might be that there is a subtle theme that shows itself that we wouldn’t have seen if we consider the finest structure.” They agreed that the theory might lead to new facets of the structure of music, even if it is not immediately clear now.

Prof Janelidze and Prof Roosenschoon conducted their under a research programme called Mathematics Modelling at the National Institute for Theoretical and Computational sciences (NITheCS) who are “moving science to make a greater impact in Africa”. They present many talks in Stellenbosch similar to this one for which the information is available on their webpage nithecs.ac.za.

Jani Roux

Nothing, whether it be natural resources, health or fashion, can obtain longevity without sustainability. Therefore, promoting sustainable fashion was the main aim of the fashion game at the first, sustainable fashion soiree on Wednesday, 26 July at the Toco headquarters on Ryneveld street.

Tegan Gibaud, climate change scientist, combined her passion for fashion and the environment into an event that benefits both.

Gibaud brought this concept to life in collaboration with TOCO, used2beyours, stellies styles, drip markets, and other vendors selling second-hand clothing.

While fashion is fun, it can also be fatal, environmentally wise. That H&M dress might look a lot less cute when we

start to realize that the fashion industry is the second biggest polluter after oil. So if you are someone that struggles with climate doom, like Gibaud once did, opt for shopping secondhand, one of the answers to the sustainability question.

“I think it has the capacity to make the biggest difference. At the moment there [are] still big corporations like Shein and H&M that are pumping out so much clothing every day at an unsustainable rate.

But in the past 5 to 10 years there has been a shift towards more sustainable fashion. It starts with the individuals and it starts with us, so I’m very hopeful,” says Gibaud.

If you are a fan of fashion and bubble tea then you will love the venue of the next soiree.

Yes, you guessed it, the 4tea bubble tea shop in Tibet Center will host the next sustainable fashion soiree at the end of

August. But if you can’t make it, Gibaud has other tips on how to practice sustainability; “rethink your purchases and maybe look at second hand first.” The following handles are filled with pre-loved clothes just ready to be worn again:

Emma Giles

Photo : Abigail Baard

Photo:AbigailBaard

“Now I am become Barbie, destroyer of worlds”: A Barbenheimer review

Ciara Shaye Seaman

21 July was met with waves of conflict — cinemas flooded with pink, suits, and pink suits. This was all the result of months’ worth of the ultimate marketing game: Barbenheimer. Spurred on by humanity’s love of a paradox, when Barbie, directed by rising female director Greta Gerwig, and Oppenheimer, blockbuster sensation Christopher Nolan’s latest tryst, were revealed to share a release date, the two films gained notoriety simply based on the coincidental juxtaposition.

Instead of Barbie vs Oppenheimer, the world welcomed the irony with an unmatched fervour, and we watched as #Barbenheimer flourished. Eventually, the idea formed that it was required to watch both films on the same day, a notion loudly supported by the two casts. As such, this review will follow the recommended route (those who did the opposite doomed themselves).

Oppenheimer follows the story of J. Robert Oppenheimer, affectionately called ‘Oppie’, the leading physicist in the Manhattan Project. Which is responsible for the development of World War II’s atomic bomb. Spanning his journey prewar to the 1950s, Nolan captures Oppenheimer’s fluctuating battle with his identity, genius, and political beliefs in an intense display of existentialism and consequentialism.

Nolan remains one of the forerunners of IMAX technology in films and makes expert use of it in the exhibition of his projects’ detailed magnitude. As his second historical war film following the mass success of Dunkirk in 2017, anticipation was high for this biopic, especially as he would be working once more with Hoyte van Hoytema as his cinematographer. Controversially, the score for Oppenheimer was composed by Ludwig Göransson despite a longstanding work relationship with composer Hans Zimmer.

Nolan’s carefully cultivated teams on his films are of

notoriety, with the success of their collaboration being proven in each of his projects’ acclaim. Oppenheimer is no exception, especially in the focal portrayal of Oppenheimer’s perspective and the inner-workings of his character. The immersive score exposes the pressing weight of his ideas and responsibilities to such an acute degree that the intensity in the shots of his troubled façade reveal a further emotional complexity.

This layered exposition on the psyche of such a challenging character is enhanced by the brilliance with which Cillian Murphy fulfils his role. The actor himself deserves tomes of odes but this film is an Oscarworthy display of his talents and the fruits of his intensive labours. Promotion of this film has revealed the extensive preparation that went into the mastery of this biopic, much of which seems to be attributed to Murphy (if his fan club of cast members have any say in it). Between learning 30 000 words of Dutch in a weekend for a lecture on Quantum Physics and immersing himself in the character so intensely throughout filming that the cast joked they saw him eat for the first time only once filming had wrapped, it is true that Murphy’s dedication to accurately portraying the complexity of his character is admirable and fascinating.

The writing allowed for a fantastically astute representation of morallygrey characters, done artfully so that sympathy is created despite the blatant revelation of all of their flaws — aided by the juxtaposing relationship dynamics that further represent the fluctuating inner-workings of both plot and character.

With members like Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Florence Pugh, and Robert Downey Jr. collaborating to present a sequence of events shielded by much controversy, their skills shone in the conglomeration of an educational plot and engaging portrayal of a massively influential aspect of history.

One of the many beauties of Barbenheimer is the symmetry in the two films’ greatness. Barbie is similarly supported by a renown cast eager to

answer the existentialist call — albeit rather differently. The announcement of Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken, under the guidance of prolific feminist director Greta Gerwig, was met with barely restrained enthusiasm.

Upon discovering the army of a cast donning their armour of pink, social media went up in flames. Real World characters played by Will Ferrel and America Ferrera; Barbies played by Robbie’s twin, Emma Mackey, and Kate McKinnon; and Kens by Simu Liu and Ncuti Gatwa; and Michael Cera’s glorious Alan — it was a guest list destined for a Barbie Dreamhouse Party and they delivered. Excellent performances on all fronts with individual characterisations that created an artwork in their similarity, only to be further developed by the clever incorporation of Barbie marketing slogans as dialogue and witty lyrics worth paying attention to.

The hot pink, wide grins, and disco soundtrack initially promotes Barbie as a fun film for all ages, ready to delve you into the life-size memorabilia of your childhood. Incredibly quickly, however, the audience realises that if you were expecting a light-hearted trip through nostalgia, you have a glittering surprise awaiting you under the guidance of Dame Helen Mirren’s narration.

With the perfect Barbieland set (including Robbie’s dream slide into the pool) made from all the neon colours society grew out of decades ago and the iconic Barbie closet selection, Gerwig took the opportunity to fully commit to her intention. Anyone who has listened to the soundtrack has heard an inkling of how well she answered the call. The clever pairing together of slapstick sets, costumes, music, and dialogue allows for a level of flamboyancy that makes Barbie one of the best examples of what a satire should be.

The very real message about female-empowerment and the truth behind society’s systematic suppression of it under the guise of faux upliftment is complimented by hilarious quips between characters and visual humour perfect for the basis of the film. Gerwig’s union of slapstick

and wit allows enjoyment for everyone in a way that welcomes an audience filled with people there for various reasons — and then follows through to educate the masses in such a palpable way you are left wondering whether she should have been more subtle.

However, very importantly, the intentionality with which the feminist message of the film is shared is so fitting for the overall idea of the film. Barbie is meant to be obvious, loud, and noticeable — which means the colour palette was neon and the discovery of patriarchy was Ken’s character arc. We are even gifted with a dance sequence of the ultimate Kenergy, leaving us humming along and appreciating the power of the bros.

The overall exploration of themes spanning existentialism, extremism, capitalism, and misconstrued understanding of advancements made in gender equality were done in such a contrast to the morbid introspection of Oppenheimer. Both films addressed very real issues in their own right, using completely contrasting characters, settings, and ideas; yet we are met with very real results from both.

Ryan Gosling and Cillian Murphy were tasked with opposing characters and yet played pivotal roles in the

unfurling of these ethical debates. Ken’s discovery of patriarchy, while hilarious, is an impactful display as to why movies like Barbie are important — sometimes the truth behind our reality needs to be made abundantly clear to us.

Graphic by: Nicole Salgueiro

Met ’n weerbarstig, weergalmdeur-die-studio klank vat

Splinter hul rol as new kids on the Aandklas block aan met passie en erns. Frontman Milano

Reyneke en Dawid Botes, op kitaar, gesels met Die Matie oor somber taxi ritte op ’n reënerige dag, wil vry wees en nuwe musiek wat later die jaar uitkom.

Oor die naam Splinter, sê Reyneke: “Die een kriteria was dat die naam ietsie moet wees wat dieselfde gespel word en iets beteken in Afrikaans en in Engels. Op die ou einde toe kies ons ‘Splinter’ want die idee agter dit was, soos met die boodskap en lirieke en die styl van die musiek, net so bietjie ’n splinter in die vlees van die samelewing wees. Net so bietjie ietsie anders wat mense bietjie ontstel. Ietsie wat jou laat dink.”

Reyneke en Botes, die hart agter Splinter, vertel dat die band eintlik maar ’n open-door policy het, en gereeld met ander plaaslike musikante Kerwin

Albertus, Stuart Martin, Ethan Lawson, James Hund en Dillon

Cornelius en ander werk.

Hul eerste enkelsnit, “Papiere”, dien as teaser vir hul opkomende album, Woes in Wonderland. Die donker-denke en eksistensiële lirieke lees soos ’n gedig teen ’n Koos Kombuis-tipe nostalgiese rock ’n roll klankbaan.

“[Hoe] die liedjie begin het was maar hoe ek gevoel het… [oor] die manier waarop ouer mense met jou praat oor [jou] rigting in die lewe. Dis asof hulle ’n baie rigiede boksie het van hoe jy veronderstel is om te lewe en hoe suskses gedefinieër is en wat jy veronderstel is om te hê om jou gelukkig te maak. Die hele kruks van dit is in die chorus: dis als net papiere. Al daai goed is net sertifikate, en briewe en reëls wat arbitrêr is,” sê Reyneke.

Wegbreek uit die status quo, en vry wees, op jou eie terme, is duidelik ’n groot inspirasie en dryfveer vir Splinter. Reyneke vertel dat die lirieke vir sy gunsteling snit op die album, “Vryheid”, gaan oor die soeke na vryheid, al vat dit jou na donker plekke toe; “Ek gee nie rerig om hoe donker die plek is waar jy moet gaan om daai vryheid te soek nie, ek kan net nie meer hier bly nie.”

SPLINTER IN DIE VLEES VIR VRY WEES

AURELIA MOUTON

SPLINTER

“Vryheid” (‘Freedom’) was written at a time, for me, when I was really struggling with the culture I grew up in. I felt like there were so many things, so many rules about what you should be and how you should live your life; they were forcing this idea of how you should be happy, and if you don’t agree with that then you’re wrong,” says Reyneke.

Botes does most of the production, but the writing process is a collaborative effort with contributions from friends and family. “Taxi”, his favourite track on Woes in Wonderland, their upcoming album, began as a chorus borrowed from a poem Reyneke’ sister, Cherise Reyneke,

wrote. They added the verses from an old song Reyneke had written a few years back, and workshopped the song until it felt right: like staring out through a taxi window on a rainy day, with no idea exactly where you’re headed.

“Production is always about problem solving and I believe that an important attitude comes from embracing problems. Every good mix was once a bad one that just got the attention it deserved. Furthermore, problem solving could at times require the addition of imperfections to reach a state of being pleasing,” says Botes.

He explains, “I would label my approach as striving to always find the middle between

pragmatism and aesthetics. I do not accept the traditional view of an “authentic” recording, in fact I always infuse my recordings with elements that enhance the personality of the performer.” Splinter credits fellow bands The Stone Cherries and Cape Riot with supporting them and helping them find their feet in the local live music scene. Splinter will be performing at Trenchtown on 4 August at 20:00, along with The Stone Cherries and ThreeOhFive. Woes in Wonderland is dropping on 10 September, and the music video for “Papiere” will be out soon. Check out Splinter on Spotify or wherever you get your music.

Instagram: splinter_die_band

Photos: Aurelia Mouton

ADDAMS FAMILY: MUSICAL PROMISES HILARIOUS FUN IN SU-PAUL ROOS COLLAB

ANKE MARITZ & EMMA OLIVIER

The beloved, well-known, and eerie Addams family is coming alive on stage at the Adam Small theatre. This production, a collaboration between the Stellenbosch University (SU) Drama Department and Paul Roos Gymnasium, invites audiences to a quality experience filled with laughter and spooky fun. This musical brings the familiar characters from the 20th century back, but this time the story follows a grown-up Wednesday Addams and this time she is in love. However, when it is time for her strange family to meet her Beau’s parents, secrets are kept and chaos ensues. “Long story short, there’s a lot of lies told; a lot of hiding information that shouldn’t be hidden — especially from the mother [Morticia Addams],” says Mateo Komlosy, first-year in BA (Drama and Theatre Studies), playing the role of the zombie butler, Lurch. All the participating members of this production have put in sweat, tears, and many hours of hard work for more than two months. Since Komlosy only joined the Addams Family crew

recently, he mentions that he had to face some challenges during rehearsals, but that there were many highlights that formed part of his journey. Komlosy explained

that he had to get used to the intensive dancing (choreographed by Wiaan Laing) that the musical demands, but that he soon grew to enjoy it, as well as learning

THE SOUTH AFRICAN UNDERGROUND IS IN GOOD HANDS

When I first heard the music of 22-year-old Shoka Sunflower, I remember getting really excited. The first project I heard from the Johannesburgbased artist was his threetrack experimental rap EP ECOSYSTEM_01. With a runtime of barely five minutes, the project still manages to showcase intricate production and Shoka’s versatile abilities as both a writer and vocalist.

“I wanted to make something that challenged me and wanted to prove I can do more than jazz beats and pretty Tyler type stuff. I can transcend that. Boxes are weird. This is the generation of the genreless artists,” he explains about the EP that was released in April. ECOSYSTEM_01 presents like a love letter to the internet. From online relationships to the dread that being chronically online brings, the internet acts like a self-contained ecosystem

that Shoka tends to escape to.

“I like to say I was raised on the internet because a lot of my brain was wired by my interactions with the online world. Real life too definitely but I live a lot of life online just digging and referencing sound. Also, my older brother — when I was like 6, he played me Graduation by Kanye and that changed my life — He also put me onto Daft Punk and Tyler, The Creator who made me want to be a lot more curious. Now I’m obsessed with finding music,” he said. When asked what is to be expected next from Shoka Sunflower, he answered, “Expect more colouring outside the lines. Hopefully some more non-music stuff cause I just wanna release ideas in many forms.”

Follow Shoka Sunflower on Instagram @shokasunflower and stream ECOSYSTEM_01 on all platforms.

sword-fighting choreography for the show. Komlosy’s eyes lit up when he talked about the play; he mentioned good dances, catchy songs, and an interesting plot. “It’s

just a really cool story.” He further encourages readers to watch. “The play is hilariously funny. The jokes in there — some of them are just so well-written. Besides that, the cast is exceptionally good at what they do.” He gives praise to his fellow cast members. “Their singing voices, their acting [...] It’s just amazing.”

The principal characters are played by Merwe van Gent as Gomez, Nelandi Boshoff as Morticia, Mia van der Merwe as Wednesday, and Aiden GarthLewis as Wednesday’s love interest, Lucas. The musical, originally written by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, and directed by Schalk van der Merwe, will feature impressive lighting and décor, with music by Andrew Lippa, musically directed by Stephan Bezuidenhout and Cezarre Strydom.

A press release from Paul Roos Gymnasium’s media management guarantees a “wild-wonderful” theatrical event. Tickets are now available at Quicket and cost R155. The show runs from 22 August to 2 September. This utterly funny and incredibly adventurous play promises to have everyone – young and old – on the edge of their seat.

KOBUS ERASMUS

photo: Nathan Nadler-Nir

Photo: supplied

INTIMATE AND CONVERSATIONAL: THE STELLENBOSCH INTERNATIONAL CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL

To make things a bit more interesting for these professionals, all pieces that are performed are rehearsed only twice or occasionally; three times. One of the more intricate pieces performed this year was Taneyev’s Piano Quartet. Usually Taneyev’s Piano Quartet would need more time to be perfected, but considering one of the aims of the SICMF is not only to showcase the participants talent but also to develop their skills, this way of doing things is a great way to keep both the performers and audience entertained.

a faculty consisting of 17, and 100 student participants, today the SICMF can boast a faculty of 35, and 250 student participants.

This year marks the SICMF’s 20th festival which the festival’s director, Dr Peter Martans, describes as, “Somehow more relaxed than ever before. It was profoundly moving for participants, faculty and students alike.”

There’s nothing quite like the sound of music to bring people together. Whether your jam is Beethoven or Beyonce, we can all agree that we low-key love music.

The Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival (SICMF) which took place from 30 June to 9

July at the Endler hall, is one such celebration of music, especially chamber music. Chamber music is characterised by its small sized ensemble which allows for a high degree of collaboration and communication between the musicians. This results in a more expressive and personal

performance. The participants (consisting of representative student groups between the ages of 12 and 28) of the SICMF are divided into chamber music groups and assigned repertoire, receiving coaching from respected international and South African artists.

A LEKKER LOCAL PLAYLIST

Another way of giving these talented musicians a space to learn, collaborate and perform is by hosting public master classes and an interview/lecture series called, “In Conversation with,” where not just the performers but the public get to learn from experts in their field. One such, “In Conversation with” session from this year was with the SICMF’s first woman conductor, Rebecca Tong.

Since the SICMF’s founding in 2004 by pianist Luis Magalhaes, the initially small event grew significantly to the harmonious celebration of music it is today. Starting with

Some, of the many highlights from the 10-day festival include the third Faculty Concert that Martans labelled “a gem from beginning to end,” with Weber’s clarinet quintet, led by gifted clarinettist, Yoa Guang Zhai in the first half, and Schubert’s string quintet in the second. The fourth Faculty Concert, showcasing a collaboration between Tina Schouw and Mikhaila Alyssa Smith along with a whole orchestra made up of SICMF faculty and students, spoke volumes about the commitment the SICMF has to diversity and transformation. Lastly, there was the awarding of a R50 000 job scholarship to Cape Philharmonic’s principal French hornist, Shannon Thebus which ended the last night on a sweet note. To hear more on this years’ SICMF, recordings of all the performances are available on their website, www.sicmf.co.za.

BUITEWYKE

Suné Mostert

dis altyd lente in Stellenbosch behalwe vir die geeks, gays & girls

dis altyd lente vir die k-way baadjie seuns met die plakkies-in-die winter selfvertroue

dis altyd lente vir die bevoorregte, arrogante seun op die toppunt van die univoedselketting met sy bleach-blonde hare & skewe glimlaggie en sy vermetelheid, pappa se bankkaarte & gemak

dis altyd in Stellenbosch

vir die privileged seuntjiestudente wat

wat

nie by die protests hoef te wees nie & hulself vererg vir diegene van ons

hulle call op hulle bullshit

Photo: Carmen Reynolds

Are you tired of bad news and doom scrolling? Here are some duckies.

@diematie

editorial

Die geniepsige koue van ’n Kaapse winter maak weer sy opwagting. Sommige (meeste) studente strompel dronk en deurmekaar uit semi-donker kuierplekke wat dreun van musiek (en natuurlik, die tipe musiek hang af van wat jou watergat se adres is). Ander het al hul les geleer en hou maar die blink kant bo deur golden week te verruil vir ’n fliek onder die komberse, of ’n stil trip na die GUS of enige iets wat nie ‘n drink special en ’n trop eerstejaars insluit nie. Ons is nie spesiaal of iets nuut nie. As jy blaai deur die 82 jaar van

Die Matie sal jy swart en wit foto’s sien van meisies in three quarter rokke wat sokkie met ouens wat (koshuis) dasse dra. As jy verder blaai sal jy sien hoe die rokkies korter raak en die kerksale verruil word vir die houtvloere van Akker. Na dit kry jy cool film foto’s van jool (oor doop is daar net stilswye) en aan die ander kant van Y2K is daar die moody digital foto’s van ons voorgangers in Bohemia en/of Aandklas. De Lapa en sy soort (drink tot jy dood) is eintlik ’n nuwe verskynsel. Deesdae is glitter die in-ding en die kinders kry nie koud nie (kan iemand asb

Journalist of the Week

I love having conversations with people, it energises me. I enjoy walks (especially early morning).

I enjoy sit-down dinners, picnics or coffee with friends over clubbing.

I am passionate about social justice issues. I like taking up new hobbies. My current hobby is knitting.

Phenyo Lewanika

vir daai arme siel ’n baadjie gee?!).Die mode en musiek (en social mores ) is dalk anders, maar eintlik het min verander. Gooi ’n klomp vars, onsekeroor-hulself “grootmense” in ’n vertrek met cool ligte, ’n doef-doef klankbaan, ander mooi, onseker-oor-hulself “grootmense” en sê dat die bottels in Bohos nie opraak nie en dat hierdie dorp eintlik geen reëls het nie... dis nou vir jou ’n partytjie. Ons worrie môre oor môre. Die’s van ons wat al uitgekuier en bietjie jaded is oor die tesis en die liefde loer elke nou en dan uit en dink met heimwee “jissou, dit lyk darem

lekker...ek wonder hoe gaan dit met [redacted]”. Dan onthou jy vak-sak en oog kontak vermy op die Rooiplein. Maar ons is ook nie uniek nie. Die mallemeule van studentelewe is ’n oncein-a-lifetime tipe ervaring, so better to have loved and lost then to not have loved at all , of hoe? En as jy al verloor het of verlore voel, is ’n aand in die Bos dalk presies wat jy nodig het. Al drink jy nie. Al onthou jy net die aand van iemand se foto’s af en vergeet van jou opstel wat oormôre moet in, jy gaan rerig net eenkeer so jonk en dom wees. Al jou vriende is nog op dieselfde dorp en jy

skuld niemand niks (behalwe daai studielening!)Wat ek eintlik wil sê is dat iemand al was waar jy nou sit en iewers in die argiewe van tyd (en Die Matie ) was daar iemand wat net so oud (jonk) soos jy was, en eintlik moet jy net jou foon afsit en jou maatjies bymekaar maak en onthou dat ons nie spesiaal is nie en dat ons niks nuut is nie. Ons is soos almal wat voor ons hier was. So ons gaan kuier soos wat ons al vir 82 jaar lank het. Of dit jool, of ‘n kerksokkie, of daai jive by Dorp (rus in vrede Brazens/Happy Oak) is...

ARGIEF / ARCHIVE

All editions of Die Matie from 1941 to 2011 are available online in PDF format as part of SUNDigital Collections on the SU Library’s website. Other editions of Die Matie are available on Issuu. Please visit https://issuu.com/diematie

Other editions of Die Matie are available on Issuu. Please visit https:// issuu.com/diematie

KLAGTEPROSEDURE EN FOUTRAPPORTERING / COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE AND REPORTING ERRORS

Die Matie is onderhewig aan ’n gedragskode wat by Studenteregering by die Afdeling Studentesake beskikbaar is. Klagtes oor Die Matie se inhoud moet volgens die uiteengesette prosedure binne veertien dae ná publikasie aanhangig gemaak word.

Die Matie subscribes to the Press Code of Ethics and Conduct for South African Print and Online Media.

If we do not adhere to this code, please contact the Press Council of South Africa at https://www. presscouncil.org.za/

If we do not adhere to this code, please contact the Press Council of South Africa at https://www. presscouncil.org.za/

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Editorial staff

Editor-in-Chief Aurelia Mouton

Layout Editor Jaime Watkins

Photo Editor Emma Jane Metcalf

News Amber April

Student Life Jani Roux

Dag & Nag Kobus Erasmus

Sport Kezia Daniels

Sub-editor (Eng) Alison Hermanus

Sub-editor (Afr) Aldo Horn

Social Media Emma Hamman

Online Jani Roux

Managing Editor Tiaan Booyens

Financial Manager Emma Cochrane

LAYOUT: Helena Reid

PROOFREADERS:

Abigail de Klerk Simone Christain Theodora Njati

USSA 2023 RUNdown 20

23

The University Sport South Africa (USSA) is South Africa’s national governing body for higher education sports. Every year universities across the country, including Stellenbosch University (SU) participate in a series of games across all sporting codes, which then results in the selection of students (in their respective sport) to represent the country in various international competitions. SU competed in various tournaments throughout the USSAs such as rugby, hockey, netball, badminton and basketball.

1

maties vs uj 32 - 19

The Maties men's rugby team came out on top, becoming back-to-back USSA champions after beating the University of

2

maties(m) vs tuks

58 - 64

Maties men's basketball team secured 6th place overall in USSA basketball 2023

uj

32 19 maties

4

maties(w) vs nwu

2 - 1

Maties women's hockey team recevived gold

6

maties (m) vs tuks

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Maties badminton collected bronze after defeating hosts of the tournament, University of Pretoria (Tuks) 3

maties(w) vs wsu

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Two players from maties basketball were selected as All Stars in their section and were chosen for the USSA national team. Those two players being Lutho Skweyiya – Men's A Section and Dineo Fanampe – Women's B Section

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Maties runners up – men's hockey (A section) and maties women’s basketball (B section)

Maties women’s Hockey player Ongeziwe Mali received a hattrick of trophies and men’s Hockey player, Brendan du Toit received the goalkeeper of the tournament award.

KEZIA DANIELS

Photo: Kimara Singh

Photo: Ignus Dreyer

Photo: Kimara Singh

Captain De Villiers leads Baby Boks to Bronze

EMMA HAMMAN

Paul de Villiers, old Dagbreek resident, captained the Junior Springboks as they represented South Africa in the U20 World Rugby Cup, . He explains that he is grateful for the leadership position he was in, even though there were difficult times.

“It’s difficult to determine if it was an easier or a more challenging experience entering the tournament in a leadership position. It was a good place to be, but it [came] with more pressure and responsibility –which I eventually enjoyed,” de Villiers explained.

The tournament took place in the Western Cape. “Our team is from all over South Africa. We had to get to know each other as individuals and then learn how to work together as a unit. We walked into the tournament not knowing what to expect but we worked hard. The way we got together and bettered ourselves every day and after every match was the pinnacle of the tour for me.”

De Villiers goes further by describing how the individual growth of his teammates, which led to their growth as a team, was another highlight of the tournament for him.

“With a bit more preparation leading up to the tour I believe the result could have been a lot different,” de Villiers explains. However, he remains extremely proud of the team and goes on to say that “it remains a huge privilege representing South Africa as a junior Bok.”

South Africa finished in third place overall — taking home the bronze medal.

“No team goes into a tournament to end third, I am

however very proud and happy about how we finished. The bronze medal is [a] part of our journey as a team. There were a lot of difficulties we had to overcome.”

De Villiers explains that as captain, the media was something he had to get used to.

“Experiencing such high influence from the media at only 20-yearsold was not something I was used

to. Comments from the public [were] inevitable. People say good things in the good times, but [they] can be harsh in bad times and I had to learn how to overcome this,” de Villiers explained.

“It wasn’t easy but we finished on a high note — showcasing all the fight we had in us. And therefore, I am very proud and thankful for our third place.”

'n Tree nader aan die groen en goud

ANE HAVENGA

Ná die historiese Varsitybekertitel vroeër die jaar, verskuif die dames die grense al hoe vêrder. Vyf spelers wat deel was van hierdie span, is onlangs beloon vir hulle puik spel. Hulle is gedurende die laaste twee maande gekies om deel te neem aan die nasionale oefenkampe vir onderskeidelik die Springbok-vrouespan se 15’s- en 7’s-span.

Ankia Viljoen, was onlangs by die 7’s-ontwikkelingskamp, alhoewel sy skaars sewe maande lank al rugby speel.

Vir Viljoen was dit veral die vriendelikheid van die spelers en afrigters wat haar bygeval het. Dit was spesiaal dat die huidge Springbokspan hulle elkeen elke oggend kom groet om seker te maak dat hulle welkom voel.

Die fokus op Maties is meer op die strukture van die spel, terwyl hulle by die oefenkamp meer gefokus het op basiese tegnieke om al die spelers op dieselfde bladsy te kry. Sy loof ook vir Johann Zeier, hulle afrigter by Maties en sy span wat so ’n wonderlike werk doen by Maties.

Daar was ’n paar onvergeetlike oomblikke vir Viljoen: “Ek sal sê dit was ’n groot oomblik om in dieselfde vertrek te eet as spelers soos Eben Etzebeth en

onlangs by die 15’s-oefenkamp.

“Die passie wat die dames by die kamp gehad het was ongelooflik vir my. Ek was verbaas oor die intensiteit en die

dit ’n baie rustige kamp vir hulle was.” Alhoewel sy opgeroep is vir die 15’s-oefenkamp, hoop sy om eerder haar merk in die 7’s te maak.

In die algemeen is Maties se oefeninge baie dieselfde, maar tog was die oefeninge vir Hassolanidis meer prakties en sodoende meer ingestel op wedstrydscenario’s.

Gedurende die kamp het die hele groep ook haar alma mater, Parktown Girls, besoek. Dit was verskriklik spesiaal om die jong vrouens te bemoedig en aan te moedig om rugby te speel.

Bianca Augustyn, Maties se kaptein, was ook by die 7’s-oefenkamp en moes ongelukkig die 15’s-oefenkamp weens

kamp was net drie dae lank, maar hulle het behoorlik iets van alles in daardie dae getoets.

“By die nasionale kamp is die intensiteit aansienlik hoër en die hoeveelheid sessies meer. By Maties is daar nog meisies wat in die beginfase van rugby is en nog moet leer hoe dinge werk, waar by die nasionale kamp die meeste van die spelers al vir ’n rukkie rugby speel so dinge vloei baie vinniger.”

Augustyn wil volgende jaar meer op haar rugby fokus, maar vir nou balanseer sy die Maties-span en haar studies. Haar fokus is veral nou op die 7’s-seisoen wat om die draai is vir Maties. “Ons oefen nou 7’s saam met die 15’s, om almal weer op dieselfde bladsy te kry en die details in te oefen. Die plan is net om almal 7’s fiks te kry en dan die details en strukture onder die knieg te kry en dan daarop voort te bou vir USSA’s in September.”

Siya Kolisi. Dit bly ’n groot droom om eendag in die groen en goud uit te draf vir die 7’s. Tot dan werk ek hard en maak seker ek benut elke kans wat ek kry!”

Georgia Hassolanidis, was

fisikaliteit van die dames. Dit was interessant om te sien met hoeveel ywer hulle als aanpak. Ons het klomp verskillende uitdagende oefeninge gedoen en van die gesoute spelers het genoem dat

’n beserig misloop. Augustyn het al effens meer ervaring in die nasionale span. Sy beaam dat almal by die kamp baie passievol oor rugby is en dat dit juis dié feit is wat mense bymekaar bring. Die

Persoonlik sien Augustyn vreeslik uit na die 7’s-seisoen wat voorlê. Dis nooit maklik nie, maar dié span weet hoe om hard te werk, hulle kant te bring, en dit het gemaak dat hulle die laaste ruk besondere resultate gelewer het.

OH CAPTAIN MY CAPTAIN! Baby Boks captain Paul Photo: Cole Cruickshank

GET IN! Maties vrouespan Foto: SCPS Photos

GO TEAM! Baby boks on field Photo: Cole Cruikshank

TEAM EFFORT Team mates Photo: Cole Cruikshank

BABY BOKS De Villiers in play Photo: Cole Cruikshank

Hoop Dreams with the Maroon Machines!

KEZIA DANIELS

University Sports South Africa (USSA) saw the Maties basketball team for the seventh year in July at the USSA 2023 tournament. The Maties men’s squad placed sixth overall, identical to their debut in 2016, and the Maties women’s team placed second.

Die Matie asked a few of the basketball players a couple of questions regarding their 2023 USSA participation and overall Maties basketball involvement.

Troy Williams, second-year BA (Humanities) student who plays Guard (Point and Shooting Guard), played in his second USSA tournament this year. When asked to describe his experience, he said, “I would describe the USSA experience as an experience filled with hard work, effort, setbacks but most importantly determination.”

Williams then went on to say he’s “excited to play some home games and display our talents as a High Performance (HP) squad to the students at Stellenbosch University (SU).”

Dineo Fanampe, final-year BCom (Management Sciences) student who plays Point Guard for the women’s team played in her second USSA tournament this year as well. When asked what she was looking forward to for the next year and season, she said, “Next year will be interesting because Maties will be in the A Section competing against the top institutions. So, going forward there will need to be lots of preparation

going into the next season.”

Fanampe concluded by talking about improvement saying, “Our coaches have done a really great job with the program, so individually I’d want to improve on my decision-making as a Point Guard to help my team.”

Nicholas Gleeson, final-year BA (Humanities) student who plays Power Forward for the men’s team is another player who participated in their second USSA tournament this year. He said, “USSA is intense, it’s demanding on your body, it’s physical, but it’s also a great time with your teammates.”

When Die Matie had asked what he would like to improve going forward with Maties basketball, as well as within himself and the team, Gleeson responded by saying, “With the club, we haven’t been able to have many home games due to COVID during 2020 [to] 2021 and due to construction taking place during 2022 [...] So, I’d love to see us play a home game on Friday nights with a packedout crowd [...] That’s what I think would just grow the sport within Stellenbosch and should be the goal of the program and we are definitely on an upward trajectory to finish top three next year in the country.”

Like in any other tournament, these maroons worked extremely hard despite setbacks and are looking forward to great performance improvement.

See more at @matiesbasketball

Maties-mansrugby: Wenners weer en weer

HAVENGA

Vir twee jaar in ’n ry kry Maties se mansrugbyspan dit reg dat hulle name op die University Sport of South Africa (USSA) se trofee pronk. ’n Ongelooflike prestasie vir die span wat vroeër die jaar net-net in die semi-finaal van die Varsity-beker vasgeval het. Maties klop vir UJ in die finaal 32 – 19. Dít nadat die halftyd telling slegs 12 – 7 in Maties se guns was, maar die manne het geweet wat op die spel is en het ná halftyd met nuwe intensiteit gespeel. Op pad na die finaal het Maties vir Pukke (24 – 12) en Tuks (25 – 10) oorwin.

Jean-Marc Trichard, agterspeler, sonder die oomblik toe hulle die trofee wen uit as die mees spesiale oomblik van die toernooi vir hom, veral nadat die span so hard daarvoor gewerk het. Op die ou

soveel meer as net ’n trofee: “Die wen beteken so baie vir die spelers, aangesien dit ook nodig is vir die toekoms van Maties-rugby. Dis

nodig vir die span om verder te ontwikkel sodat ons volgende jaar in al hoe meer selfvertroue kan hê.”

DeWet Marais, voorspeler, stem

saam dat dit ongelooflik spesiaal was om die toernooi te wen, maar lig ook uit dat dit ’n eer is om die week saam as ’n span aan te pak, veral omdat elke ou lief is vir die sport. Hy verduidelik dat die doel van dié toernooi natuurlik was om dit te wen - om ’n punt te bewysmaar ook om geleenthede te skep vir die spelers sodat daar meer diepte in die span kan ontwikkel met die oog op volgende jaar se Varistybeker. “Ons het regtig goed gevoel toe ons in die finaal ingaan veral omdat ons so goed gespeel het in ons eerste twee westryde en ons het dit oortuigend gewen.”

Vir die res van die jaar fokus die span op die WP-liga waarin hulle tans speel. Dit begin weer oor twee weke ná ’n kort breek. Sovêr gaan dit baie goed in die liga, maar die kompetisie is moeilik.

ANE

GAME ON BOYS Maties men's team in action Photo: Kimara Singh

WATCH ME AS I FLY Maties women's team going for it Photo: Kimara Singh

einde gaan dit

daaroor om jou stres te beheer, positief te bly, en dan om net op die span en die sisteem te vertrou. Hierdie wen is

HUDDLE UP! Maties manspan Foto: Kimara Singh