Efforts to further marginalize the Afrikaans language at Stellenbosch University (SU) reached new heights this week, according to AfriForum Youth, following a controversy involving a group of Afrikaans student council candidates. AfriForum Youth has since instructed its legal team to act on behalf of the group, who now face possible disqualification from the student council race after being promoted as pro-Afrikaans candidates on social media platforms.

Christiaan Hoon of the Vryheidsfront Plus provincial youth branch for the Western Cape, issued a statement of support on behalf of the party:

"It is a disgrace that Stellenbosch University (SU) appears unwilling to have students on the student council simply because they are perceived as "pro-Afrikaans." The Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus) thus welcomes the actions of AfriForum Youth, which is rightfully taking legal steps to compel SU to abandon its efforts to disqualify pro-Afrikaans students from participating in the university's student council elections."‍

These candidates—Arno van Wyk, Luca Kithsoff, Henko Claassen, Jack Kroukamp, and Jolene le Roux—now face several more days of uncertainty. The election, which concluded on Tuesday, August 27th, was expected to yield results shortly thereafter, but these have been postponed due to the investigation. Initially scheduled for release on Monday, September 2nd, the results have been deferred again, this time until Wednesday.

The Facebook groups platforms Stellenbosch staan op! and Studenteplein independently urged their followers to participate in this year's student council elections and to vote specifically for this group of Afrikaans students.

In response, SU's Electoral Commission (led by a Dr Choice Makheta) charged the group before the Student Court, seeking their disqualification from the election. The commission argued that the campaign violated the Student Constitution and the university's election rules. The students were summoned to the Student Court without prior notice, with the commission demanding their disqualification. The student court comprises final-year law students appointed by the university's faculty council.

Wian Spies, an attorney at Hurter Spies and a member of AfriForum Youth's legal team, insists that the burden of proof should not rest on the students to prove their innocence. "It is the responsibility of the Electoral Commission to prove that the group was involved with the platforms promoting them as candidates solely to advance their campaign," Spies stated. In his letter to the commission, he pointed out that the students had not violated the Student Constitution or the university's election rules and that the process followed thus far has been irregular and unlawful.

"This is not the first time SU has attempted to suppress Afrikaans-speaking students," explained Yvonne Gerber, Youth Officer for Development at AfriForum Youth. "The process followed by the Electoral Commission is indicative of the university's bias, unfairness, and discriminatory approach toward Afrikaans and Afrikaans-speaking students."

The court pointed out a critical flaw in the commission's case: election rules regulate the conduct of candidates, not third parties. Unless the commission could establish a connection between the candidates and the accounts in question, no misconduct could be attributed to the candidates, the court concluded.

Due to a lack of evidence, the Student Court ruled against the commission. Despite this ruling, the commission took matters into its own hands, notifying the students on 28 August that they had 24 hours to provide evidence as to why they should not be disqualified. This notice was the first communication the students had received regarding the controversy. The deadline for their response passed yesterday at around 11:30.

The results of the student council election will only be announced once the investigation into the matter has been concluded. "The election commission sincerely apologizes for any inconvenience caused by our processes thus far," read the message to the candidates.

Yesterday however, a second charge was filed against one of the students, Jolene le Roux, who happens to be the only candidate affiliated with AfriForum Youth. According to reliable sources, Jolene also happens to have been elected by the students. According to reliable sources, the charges against the other students have been withdrawn.

This morning, Wian Spies submitted her representations to the commission. "They must now make a decision, but if they choose wrongly, we will immediately proceed to court," said Spies.