Racism, victimisation at Pretoria school, says MEC

GAUTENG MEC for Education Panyaza Lesufi apologised to black pupils at the Pretoria High School for Girls after racism and victimisation was confirmed in a probe he instituted.

“The department extends its apology to particularly the affected black learners for going through such a traumatic and humiliating experience of racial abuse and victimisation,” Lesufi said at a media briefing at the school on Friday.

“Despite how they may feel, the department calls on the SGB (school governing body) and the executive management to extend an apology to all the learners, especially the affected learners.”

It was revealed that a probe carried out by a law firm has confirmed that incidents of racial abuse and victimisation did take place at the school.

“The incidents of black learners being told to stand up in groups to demonstrate ethnic/ settlement origins during apartheid while white learners were never asked to do the same, was insensitive, immature, demeaning and denigrating to the black learners to say the least.”

Lesufi said the school was unresponsive to black pupils’ complaints of racial abuse by educators and white pupils.

“A number of incidents were noted wherein either learners or parents notified the school about alleged racial abuse, but no actions were taken or updates were not provided to the complainants. Furthermore, the school did not take firm action against the implicated educators.”

In August, tempers flared as black pupils were up in arms over what they called racist incidents relating to the institution’s policies regarding hair.

At the time, some girls told Lesufi they were made to straighten their hair and avoid African styles like the Afro. Others alleged they had been called “monkeys”. – ANA