A protest was staged at the end of The Colleges of Medicine of South Africa (CMSA) Admission Ceremony which was held on the 23 May 2019.

The lone protest was conducted during the singing of the National Anthem with a poster that read: “Congratulations to all the successful candidates. This CMSA is full of discrimination against Blacks. This CMSA must be disbanded. We demand a commission of enquiry. The people of SA demand a new College.”

The CMSA certainly upholds the right to freedom of expression and takes the issues, which have previously been raised, very seriously. Admission ceremonies are extremely special occasions in our country and especially so for the graduates and their families.

Accordingly, we believe raising pertinent issues that will build and contribute to the betterment of our fraternity, is best conducted through dialogue. The CMSA remains committed to the constitutional right to equality and eradication of discrimination, racism and sexism.

To this end the CMSA has already on 28 August 2018, after a meeting with the relevant stakeholders, taken steps and approached the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) to have a commission of enquiry established to investigate the allegations of racism and discrimination.