Charges against four University of the Free State students over a videotaped racist incident have not been withdrawn, UFS rector Jonathan Jansen said.

"This needs to be clarified," he said in a statement.

"There are three processes underway, and they must not be confused."

He said the criminal charges by the Directorate of Special Prosecutions in the province, and the human rights charges by the Human Rights Commission were still underway.

"The university simply withdrew its own complaint against the students, insofar as university processes are concerned, and on that basis decided to invite the students back to continue their studies and to re-open Reitz as a model of social justice and racial reconciliation as an exemplary university residence."

Jansen said the decision, which fell within the university's authority, was based on two things.

"The institution's own accountability for what happened, and creating the conditions under which racism and racist attacks were even possible on the campus... the institution's desire to create the conditions for racial reconciliation on a deeply divided campus, and in doing so to accelerate the chances of transformation at the UFS."

There were "broad consultations" about the need to resolve the issue, he said.

The Reitz hostel was the centre of a racial storm in February 2008, caused by a video of a mock initiation of five black staff members into hostel activities. In the video black university employees are seen on their hands and knees eating food which had apparently been urinated into by a white student.

Two of the four students dropped their studies at the university after the incident. The other two had graduated at the end of the previous year.

The accused — RC Malherbe, Johnny Roberts, Schalk van der Merwe and Danie Grobler — face charges of crimen injuria in the Bloemfontein Regional Court. The case is expected to start on October 26.

Jansen said the university had offered reparations for harm to the dignity and esteem of the five workers.

Read Vice-Chancellor Jansen's full inaugural speech here

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