For years, non-Christian students and members of staff at the University of Cape Town have been forced to forgo religious obligations and celebrations in order to write or invigilate exams, meet deadlines and be present for compulsory classes, workshops and more. While there have been extensive provisions made throughout the years for the latter issues, many Muslim students still face the reality of having to write exams and tests both during the 17:00 exam period, as well as on Eid day. And for as long as I have been at UCT, students have been fighting for concessions to observe their religious obligations and celebrations.
Every year during the Islamic calendar month of Ramadan, the Muslim community globally observe the holy month of fasting as it is one of their five pillared obligations. Meaning, Ramadan is a month in which Muslims observe fasting because it is mandatory. The Islamic calendar is centred around the lunar calendar, thus, each month is closed off after the moon is physically sighted for a second time in a 28-day cycle and a new Islamic month is born. Therefore, we find that Ramadan takes place every year a little bit sooner than the year before.
Because of this, it is difficult to place the day of Eid as a specific day in our Gregorian calendar, however, the day is easily predictable +/- a day or two. In fact, on UCT’s academic calendar, both Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Adha are diarized. More than that, UCT exists in a geographical sphere where the Muslim community are plentiful and their religious traditions and celebrations occur publicly throughout the city. This then begs the question: Why does the University still schedule exams during times when Muslim students have to break their fasts and especially on an Eid day?
According to the University, the only concession they can grant is allowing for students to defer exams on religious grounds. More than that, the University is unwilling to reschedule the exam date (during June’s exam season) for those who intend to observe Eid. In an email to departments scheduled to write on Friday, June 15th, the University notes that it is a secular institution and therefore will act as such in its structures and planning.
Further, the University also requires that students who would like to defer on religious grounds provide a “proof of Islamic identity” letter from a Muslim clerk or clergy. The University does not accept letters from the existing Muslim Students Association on campus. In addition, in Islam, it is not necessary for a person to subscribe to a particular mosque or community leader. For many, personal relationships with Sheikhs or Imams are not realities. One must imagine the encounter a student will have to go through to walk into a stranger’s office and ask that they officially declare them Muslim.
In 2017, students in the History department battled over a 72-hour take-home exam whereby the department scheduled the online exam over Eid weekend. The only solution offered to students who wanted to observe Eid was to defer. However, the department did not take into consideration the host of issues students raised. Of those issues, was the fact that for Eid to fall over a weekend meant that many of them were to see to last-minute bits and bobs for the big day. This meant that students would not have access to campus resources over the weekend to fulfil the exam or otherwise would have to miss Eid celebrations because other alternative travel arrangements (like carpooling) could not be made on the Sunday. For others, writing the exam meant a mark on the transcript in order to re-apply for bursaries or otherwise renew international student visas. The issue was ultimately taken to the SRC who dealt with the issue in higher administration.
While the University says that it has made provisions for students breaking their fasts during the 17:00 exam periods, students say that it is not enough. Students who leave their venues to break their fasts and perform prayer during the exam time will forfeit the time lapsed in which they went out to pray. These things force students to compromise on prayer and writing an exam for the full duration of the time granted. How do students prioritize?
For many Muslim students, the University conveniently neglects the fact that South Africa’s calendar quite literally falls in favour of Christian holidays and celebrations. To say that the University acts secularly, while the very framework of our weekly-to-yearly-structures is all based on Christian needs, is fundamentally non-secular. In a time and place where decolonization is taking place, where actively the academy should be seeking to be more cohesive and accommodating (as other institutions like the University of the Western Cape have been and shown), UCT, unsurprisingly, does not want to transform. The University is failing in its move to being a more inclusive, transformed, African institution and it shows in their lack of consideration or care for minorities on campus.