[lg policy] Protesters force #HoërskoolOvervaal to close

Fri Jan 26 17:54:19 UTC 2018

 Protesters force #HoërskoolOvervaal to close

Education <https://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/education> / 26 January
2018, 06:08am / *Nokuthula Zwane*

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Picture: Nokuthula Zwane

Johannesburg - Overvaal Hoërskool’s language policy has fast degenerated
into a political hot potato that forced the Afrikaans school to shut down
on Thursday.

A ring of steel met thousands of teachers, ANC, EFF, Black First Land First
members and pupils when they marched to the school.

Heavily-armed private security personnel and police kept a close eye on
protesters that were seeking to force the school to change its policy and
admit non-Afrikaans-speaking pupils.

SA Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) and Congress of SA Students (Cosas)
members in the Midvaal handed over a memorandum of demands to education
officials at the school and gave them seven days to respond.

The memorandum demanded that the school adhere to transformation by
accepting other pupils and that there was equality on the school premises,
according to Sadtu member George Mollo.

*Read: LOOK: Hundreds of Sadtu members march to #HoërskoolOvervaal
<https://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/education/look-hundreds-of-sadtu-members-march-to-hoerskoolovervaal-12924660>*

“There are kids that live right next door to this school but you find that
they have to get on to a bus and pay over R800 just for transport to attend
other schools when there is one right here,” Mollo said.

The presence of pupils in the march forced Department of Education
representatives to accept the memorandum of demands drawn up by members of
Sadtu, Cosas and the Overvaal Transformation Committee.

A teacher, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Star that the presence
of the schoolchildren reduced the chances of violent clashes with law
enforcement agents.

Hundreds of pupils from different schools came in buses from as far as
Soweto and Ekurhuleni to support the Sadtu and Cosas-led march.

“We are pleased that the pupils are also part of the protest because what
we are fighting for is for their own benefit in future.

“We are very comfortable and happy that they're here. As you have seen,
they are very disciplined and as Sadtu we have been working very closely
with Cosas,” said the teacher.

Sadtu Sebokeng leader Khehla Matale said they wanted Gauteng Education MEC
Panyaza Lesufi and Education Minister Angie Motshekga to suspend the school
governing body (SGB) indefinitely.

“Something must be done in terms of this act to force this SGB to amend the
language policy.

If you check, most of the pupils here, the white Afrikaans kids, are not
from Vereeniging. Some are from Sasolburg, Parys and different plots around
Vereeniging,” added Matale.

Motshekga and Lesufi visited the school earlier this week to address issues
around admissions. However, Sadtu maintained there was still no change.

Matale said: “The MEC has the power to shut down this school.

“The MEC can redeploy the principal to report to the district every day.

“Why can’t the MEC do that? “He has got the powers to shut down this
school.”

The school is expected to reopen its doors today.

Gauteng Education Department spokesperson Steve Mabona said they were not
happy with the continued disruption of classes.

“The safety of our pupils is a priority. There is no area where we want to
compromise security,” Mabona said.

Last week, aggrieved parents who protested against the school's admission
policy that turned away 55 non-Afrikaans speaking pupils ran running
battles with the police which resulted in several arrests and injuries.

Mabona said the issue of transformation was emotive and the department
would continue to engage stakeholders at the school.

“We don’t want a situation where we have to force people to do things.Their
fear is that we want to abolish Afrikaans. We cannot abolish Afrikaans but
what we are saying is that there is no language that must be paramount,” he
said.

He told The Star that teachers who were involved in the march on Thursday
must remember that they would not be paid.

“The teachers who were here know that there is no work, no pay,” he said.

Overvaal parent Mofokeng Tlhoriso said they were pleased the march was
peaceful but demanded that the school change its policy.

“As the founding committee of what you see today, we have an open policy
with the department. We are currently happy that the chairperson of the SGB
came and received the memorandum of demands,” said Tlhoriso.

Meanwhile, the DA laid charges against a Facebook user, Aubery Thamasanqa
Mabele, for the incitement of violence following his controversial post.

*Read more: #HoërskoolOvervaal: DA lays charges of incitement
<https://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/gauteng/hoerskoolovervaal-da-lays-charges-of-incitement-12934448>*

Mabele called on President Jacob Zuma to give him "a gun to defend our
democracy” “one bullet, een boere kind" while checking in at Hoërskool
Overvaal, the post read.

Isabel Lotz, DA chairperson of the south constituency, told The Star the
region had not been in contact with Mabele but said many people were upset
by the social media post.

Lotz said: ”It's easy on social media to give your opinion, but you don't
think about what is going to happen afterwards.

"If the ANC, the government and other institutions can lay charges against
someone who made comments about the (black) people on Durban beaches, then
I think it's time for us to also take a stand on people who are attacking
DA members.”

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 Harold F. Schiffman

Professor Emeritus of
 Dravidian Linguistics and Culture
Dept. of South Asia Studies
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305

Phone:  (215) 898-7475
Fax:  (215) 573-2138

Email:  haroldfs at gmail.com
http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/

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