Story highlights Police fire tear gas, rubber bullets to disperse crowds outside government buildings

Planned 2016 tuition increase won't happen, President Jacob Zuma says

Pretoria, South Africa (CNN) South African universities will not increase fees in 2016 as planned, President Jacob Zuma announced Friday after days of student protests over the issue.

Students celebrated, but many posting on social media said fees remained too high and worried about what will happen after 2016.

Zuma's move came after protests outside government offices in Pretoria escalated, with a small group throwing rocks and police responding with stun grenades and water cannons.

The announcement was followed by police firing tear gas and sustained volleys of rubber bullets in an effort to clear the grounds of the Union Buildings housing government offices.

The protests capped a week of demonstrations over the contentious issue, which saw protesters barricade universities and storm the South African Parliament to press their message that university education in the country is too expensive, among other issues.

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