By Danelle Jacobs and Itumeleng Motsamai
What happens when a war, thousands of kilometers away, finds its way within our borders? The conflict involving Iran, Israel and the USA is affecting economies and the overall safety of families in West Asia . Yet it remains true that global conflicts rarely stay confined to their borders. Within the student community at Stellenbosch University (SU), this same conflict is anything but distant. For some, it is a constant presence which disrupts their thoughts, family life and financial stability.
Dr Riaan Oppelt, second-year English Studies course co-ordinator and lecturer, says “South Africans have many friends and relatives in the Middle East regions. Many people are teaching English there.” Oppelt explains how these educators went for “work and livelihood” and how the impact of the war has caused “disruption” forcing them to return home. Oppelt hopes that the majority of individuals at SU are “naturally against war” and would seize the opportunity to respond to the conflict in a humanitarian manner. “[The war] affects [Stellenbosch] because the world is hurting,” Oppelt goes on to say.
“Will I actually be able to go home at the end of the year? Will it be safe enough for me to go home? Will I still have a home to go to?” These are only some of the questions Layal Prins, third-year BA (Humanities) student from Bahrain, has been grappling with. Prins was born and raised in Bahrain, but her family is from South Africa. Every June-July holiday her family would come to visit South Africa, but this time their flights were pushed back for a few weeks. This year would especially have been a proud moment for the family because Prins’s brother is set to graduate from SU in March, but it is now confirmed that their parents and elder brother will not be able to visit at all. Prins says her father, Fuad Prins, is the Head of School at Naseem International School in Bahrain and her brother, Imraan Prins, is a teacher at said school. They had to transition to online teaching and Prins describes this process as “difficult and horrible” and compares it to the teaching method during the COVID-19 pandemic. She expresses how difficult it was to navigate through that as a student and she has compassion for her father and brother as educators. At home, Prins says her mother has been finding it difficult to sleep. “She says that she’ll wake up to the sounds of alarms blaring […], alerts on her phone blaring as well because they are dropping another bomb”. For Prins and her brother who live in Stellenbosch, this war is just a phone call or text message away. It has made it difficult for them to focus on school, and they worry about their parents’ and brother’s safety.
Aaliyah Wood, second-year BEng (Mechanical Engineering) student, is one of the ambassadors for Jägermeister and she expressed her concern regarding the war and how it is affecting her salary. “[All ambassadors] actually received an email around last week and [Jägermeister] was informing us […], because of the foreign exchange rates and how they are shifting due to the war, the budget for the global brand has obviously changed and, therefore, that will impact how much the South African Jägermeister brand gets.” The ambassadors were due to get a promotion to get into a higher role and ultimately receive a higher salary, but, due to current affairs, that will not be happening. Wood is also an international, fully self-funded student from Zimbabwe and she fears that, due to the war having financial impacts on the rate, her parents might face difficulties to sustain her financially. She goes on to say that she battles with the question of whether she will be able to stay and complete her studies.
There are also common misconceptions about the attacks that can be seen in public domains. Oppelt answers this question of uncertainty regarding the facts of how the war occurred by urging students to understand their responsibility for “knowledge production”. According to Oppelt, students have the weight of academics and personal wellbeing on their shoulders, so blocking out global affairs almost becomes mandatory to ensure your sanity, but we exist in relation to others. Oppelt refers to “Ubuntu” as the main reason why we should keep up with current affairs “because we are impacted by others”. Both Wood and Prins also stressed the importance of spreading awareness by using one’s platforms and practicing inclusivity by caring for those affected.
Student Perspectives
As news of the war continues to circulate globally, students at SU hold many different perspectives on what is currently taking place and how much attention it should be receiving. When asked by Die Matie reporters what they have heard about the conflict, students revealed different levels of awareness. Carla Grovers, a second-year BA (Human Resource Management) student, states, “I’ve heard that the conflict has progressed […]. It could impact the lives of everyone on the globe directly or indirectly.” Others, however, admitted that their understanding is more limited. Naledi Motaung, a third-year BSc (Molecular Biology and Biotechnology) student, says, “I’ve heard a little bit about the war involving Iran […]. What I understand is that Israel is involved.” Motaung also noted that she is aware of the first stages of the conflict, describing this phase as “backlash” with “tensions rising”.
This highlights that, while there may be a common knowledge of the conflict, how deeply students understand the war and its inevitable implications varies greatly. This limitation could be a result, not of the unwillingness to learn more, but of the uncertainty of where South Africa stands in this war that takes place thousands of kilometres away.
While the levels of awareness may differ, many students share similar emotional reactions to the current events. Grovers described feeling fearful of the conflict, knowing “that war is a serious issue”. She explains that the infringement on people’s human rights and the suffering that those in West Asia are being subjected to are an “uncomfortable and painful thing to think [about]”.
With the conflict escalating in nature by the day, there is a significant importance for students to remain informed about what is happening around them. Grovers emphasises this need to stay aware by providing the point that “these conflicts impact the economy, and the economies of different countries are linked via international trade”.
Grovers further brought up that “this could possibly be the beginning of World War Three”. Motaung shares this same concern, saying that when she first heard these rumours it was “pretty scary to think about.”
Feelings of fear and helplessness can feel inevitable in a situation that goes far beyond the control of the students. However, there are many ways to remain informed on current events without this knowledge eliciting fear. This includes relying on a few trusted sources to receive updates. Subscribing to one or two newsletters that include information on both national and international news will allow students to stay informed without becoming overwhelmed.
When asked more about students staying informed of what is taking place, Motaung states that “it’s important for university students to be in the loop of what’s going on in the world, politically and socially”. However, Motaung suggests that staying informed “should be done in moderation because we’re already overwhelmed so much” and overloading the mind with an overflow of information is “not the best”.
In the interviews that Die Matie conducted, it appears that students gain their knowledge from various sources, but social media, such as Instagram and TikTok, is notably seen as the primary tool. Keathen Du Plessis, a third-year BSc (Molecular Biology and Biotechnology) student, who stepped away from social media a few weeks ago, admits that he has become less aware of global events since being socially offline. Du Plessis further states that “there are other sources out there, but it’s very difficult not to rely on social media and to actively seek out those alternatives”.
“As students we’re constantly told to balance everything […], but realistically that balance is often very difficult to achieve. Your academics can become the priority, and staying informed about global events can fall away,” Du Plessis comments about the struggle he finds with staying aware of global news as a student. Du Plessis also says that “social media makes information very easy to access, which is why so many people rely on it, even though it also comes with distractions and problems”. Understanding this can make sense of why there is a great difference in awareness among students, as some feel there is a sacrifice that needs to be made between focusing on their role as a student and staying completely up to date, and therefore taking the risk of more time spent on their phones. The student awareness of the war in West Asia varies widely. Yet the war still has a direct impact on some students’ wellbeing, even those in South Africa.
