Is the South African government failing students?

Karabo Mary, another student, said that the ruling African National Congress party (ANC) promised South Africans free education and housing when they assumed office in 1994.

In a statement on Friday, Mr Zuma acknowledged the “financial difficulties faced by students from poor households”, while reiterating that “university fees are determined by universities independently of government”.

Reuters reports that a few students pushed through a cordon before being pushed back by anti-riot police who also tried to douse the fires with water cannons.

A student protest outside the parliament in Cape Town on Wednesday turned violent, with 30 demonstrators arrested.

“On the matter at hand, there will be a zero increase of fees in 2016”, he said after meeting with students at the Union Buildings following ten days of protests.

Further, the president said that government would look into the state of tertiary education, to find address institutional autonomy, student accommodation, racism, “black debt”, broader transformation issues.

Students have succeeded in forcing the government and universities to agree to a moratorium on fee increases for the next year after shutting down universities and protesting for more than a week.

Protesters push a portable toilet before burning it during a protest over planned increases in tuition fees outside the Union building in Pretoria, South Africa October. 23, 2015.

Additional demands made by organizers on Thursday and submitted to officials included free quality education and changes to both staffing and curriculums.

Responding to widespread protests, South African President Jacob Zuma has frozen tuition fees for next year.

For Zuma, announcing the end of fee increases for this year in a terse five minute speech was enough.

Most of the students were not involved in the violence.

The protests had gained the support of Church leaders in South Africa including the Anglican Primate of Southern Africa, Most Rev Thabo Makgoba, who joined other faith leaders at the University of the Witwatersrand yesterday in a protest.

Universities have defended the increases, blaming a decline in government subsidies and increases in the cost of infrastructure, as well as the dramatic depreciation of the South African rand.

It was unclear whether he would still address the protesters.

“Some were saying, yes, this is fine, this is what we came there for and so the problem is resolved.

Otherwise we are happy our efforts have brought results”, a Wits University student said.

Students have complained that higher fees may exclude poorer black students.