College Students in South Africa Cook a Cat to Death in a Microwave Oven

A tortoiseshell cat named Tango was cooked to death in a microwave oven by students on the campus of the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) near Durban, South Africa, back in May of this year.

Tango, who belonged to campus security chief Nareen Rambharren, was discovered fried to a crisp in a microwave oven by a custodian at the men's dormitory at UKZN's Pinewood campus. Four of the resident Education majors have been questioned in the case and the local prosecutor is expected to decide soon whether there is enough evidence to bring formal charges against the quartet. Even if found guilty, the maximum sentence that they could receive would be a fine of R20,000 and two years in jail.

Students at the university have so far been uncooperative with the investigation; in fact, they have even gone so far as to chase from campus an SPCA official looking into the incident. Even more disturbing is the petit fait that when residents of the dorm were first questioned about the incident some of them reportedly laughed openly about what they had done to poor Tango. A reward of R31,500 has been offered in the case.

For college-educated, would-be teachers to be behaving in such a cruel and barbaric manner does not speak well for either KwaZula-Natal or South African society in general.