Students protested at the University of Cape Town (UCT) on Monday night after mediation efforts between the university and the student representative council (SRC) broke down last week.

Police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Malcolm Pojie, said "disgruntled students who were served with eviction notices" toppled tables and bins.

But the campus was quiet on Tuesday morning, he said.

"[The] Public Order Police [unit] has been deployed in the area outside the university to monitor the situation and to be on standby should the need arise to respond rapidly," he added.

UCT spokesperson Elijah Moholola said that university management has "taken the necessary measures to respond to the unlawful protest action".

He said three lectures were disrupted on Monday afternoon, and in the evening, a group of protesters "blocked Baxter Road and started small fires on lower and upper campuses".

"Management hopes to resolve the situation speedily and to work collaboratively with the SRC in the best interest of the UCT community," he said.

SRC president Hlengiwe Gugulethu Lisa Dube said she was not aware of the protest action, but claimed students had been left "confused and disappointed" after a "mediation agreement was breached by the university".

Dube said the agreement had provided for students affected by the fee block to either be allowed to register, or have a payment plan developed to eliminate historical debt.

"Last week, some students started getting emails saying they would not be able to register. This sparked confusion and disappointment around campus. Some students have been left shattered. It's April. They've been studying this whole year only to be told to go back home. This has set us back by eight weeks," Dube added.

In a statement on Friday, the SRC said the university's management had issued letters of financial exclusion to a number of students.

The student body said the university management was "not negotiating in good faith".

The agreement between the SRC and UCT was that both parties would be "committed to taking reasonable measures to ensure the academic success of each student", the SRC said, as well as to "provide full access to the educational resources and academic activities" for the year.

Moholola said: "It should be stated in no uncertain terms that, contrary to claims made, there has been no breach of the mediation agreement on fee blocks reached with the SRC in March 2023. In line with the mediation agreement, the management has implemented additional measures to address issues related to fee blocks and enable more students to register for the 2023 academic year."

He added that UCT had conducted a survey on a cohort of students with fee blocks who were registered in 2022 and are academically eligible to continue this year.

"Through this survey, students who wished to register for the 2023 academic year were able to indicate their wish to do so. Once the students who wished to be considered for registration in 2023 had responded to the survey, management conducted individual academic and financial assessments as per the mediated agreement," he said.

This process was guided by the feasibility of academic progression and the outcome of a financial assessment of each student. 

A proposal was then approved that requested council to lift the fee block for students identified through the combined academic and financial assessments. After council’s approval, the outcome was communicated by management individually to students.

"UCT management has taken the necessary steps to implement the outcomes of the mediated agreement, following approval by council as the custodian of all decisions relating to the UCT policy on student fees," said Moholola.

"Management remains committed to further engagement with the SRC, both on the agreement around fee blocks and on the outstanding issues as reflected in the mediation agreement."

Dube said that the SRC and UCT were before the Western Cape High Court over an interdict against protesting students. The SRC is seeking intervention from the court in terms of the financial exclusion and stalled mediation.

Dube expected it to be finalised on Tuesday.