Court order concerns for education activist after incident involving son at Stellenbosch University
Vanessa le Roux says she is seeking clarity after being told of a possible court move against her following a Stellenbosch residence clash.
Image: Stellenbosch University
Education activist Vanessa le Roux says she is seeking clarity after being told a court-related process may have been initiated against her, following a recent confrontation involving her son at Stellenbosch University.
Speaking to Cape Argus on Sunday afternoon, Le Roux said she was contacted on Friday morning by a detective who indicated there was what she understood to be a court-related matter involving her, but that further information was still required.
She said the detective told her there was a court order against her, but needed more information.
The detective, she said, only had her name and cellphone number and asked her to come to the station.
At the time, Le Roux said she did not recognise the name of the complainant.
“Not for once did the name ring a bell. My son was in class, so I had to wait for him,” she said.
She later established that the complaint may be linked to a student who was present during the incident. Le Roux alleges, without providing evidence, that the residence’s vice primarius may be linked to the complaint and to claims that she defamed the student on social media, although this could not be independently verified.
Le Roux maintains she had no prior interaction with the complainant and denies any wrongdoing.
“The only thing I did was step in between them to stop the fight. I never had any interactions,” she said.
“Apparently I’m smearing his name on social media, but I deny that.”
According to Le Roux, the detective returned the docket to court to provide additional context to the prosecutor. She said she is awaiting feedback on whether the matter will proceed.
“We’re still waiting for the docket to come back,” she said.
Le Roux claims the incident at the centre of the dispute involved a student attempting to confront or assault her son, prompting her to intervene.
“That’s when he came around me and tried to go for my son. That’s when I got in the middle,” she said.
Her son has since opened an intimidation case against the student, she added, and the family intends seeking a protection order.
SAPS spokesperson Captain FC van Wyk confirmed that an intimidation case was reported in Stellenbosch over the weekend, linked to an earlier residence incident.
“This is a late report as the incident happened on March 4 at a men’s university hostel,” Van Wyk said.
“There is also another case already reported where the complainant claimed that students entered his room and removed his bed and belongings. The bed and belongings were found outside.
“After the incident, a meeting was called between students to resolve the problems. During that meeting the complainant claimed that he was intimidated by a fellow student as the student walked towards him and the impression he got is that the person wanted to assault him.
“There is no mention of a protection order in the case,” he added.
Van Wyk said the separate case relating to the removal of items from the room has been finalised and referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions for a decision.
Le Roux said she had no direct dealings with the complainant before or after the incident.
“I didn’t even know what his name was,” she said.
In a social media post later on Sunday, Le Roux said she remains frustrated over the handling of her son’s earlier case, disputing a decision by a senior public prosecutor not to prosecute and raising concerns about delays and a lack of communication on the docket.
She said she has escalated the matter to multiple authorities, including the Minister, the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Presidency, and is pursuing further legal avenues.
It remains unclear whether any application for a protection order has formally been filed or granted. Police said there is no mention of a protection order in the case.