South Africa is commemorating Human Rights Month under the theme: “Consolidating and Sustaining Human Rights Culture into the Future,” by leaving no one behind. Government uses the month of March to promote respect for fundamental human rights for all and restore human dignity in line with the Bill of Rights. The creation of safer school environments is essential for the well-being and academic success of learners. A safe and supportive school environment promotes inclusivity, diversity and mental health, whilst ensuring learner empowerment. It is the responsibility of teachers, staff, administrators and learners to work together to create and maintain safe schools conducive to learning and teaching where everyone can thrive.

To kick-start the month, the DBE is embarking on The Prevention of Violence in Schools Campaign to raise awareness on the impact of bullying and violence in schools. Government departments, local municipalities and school communities have joined forces as a multi-sectoral, inter-departmental intervention to continue to tackle the ongoing challenge of violence in schools to ensure the right to learning and teaching. The Care and Support Services Branch, through the collaboration of the Directorates: Health Promotion, Safety in Education, Social Cohesion and Equity in Education, and supported by UNICEF, are collaborating on the DBE’s values and human rights education drive in schools, through the Care and Support for Teaching and Learning Framework.

Mr Likho Bottoman, Director for Social Cohesion and Equity in Education, explained that, “many learners still do not have proper access to information on Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE), sexual and reproductive health and support services due to sexuality still being viewed as a sensitive topic, leading to early unintended pregnancies. The National Policy on the Prevention and Management of Learner Pregnancy was launched in 2022, to prevent the discrimination and stigmatisation of pregnant learners. It also plays a crucial role in preventing learner pregnancy through access to comprehensive pregnancy prevention information and School Reproductive Health Services (SRHS). Adolescent girls have the right to a safe, educated and healthy life. The Education Plus Initiative (EPI) was therefore launched during March 2022, advocating the rights, dignity and realisation of Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW), for a productive life free of gender discrimination, violence and HIV and AIDS. We also have a mammoth task of ensuring a sector-wide implementation of the Protocol for the Management and Reporting of Sexual Abuse and Harassment in Schools, given the escalating reports of sexual abuse and noticeable underage pregnancies amongst girls aged 10 – 14, indicative of statutory rape. The DBE uses the inter-departmental intervention to advocate for this protocol”.

The National Schools Moot Court Competition (NSMCC), established in 2011, as a joint project of the DBE in partnership with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) and the Centre for Human Rights at the University of Pretoria (CHR), promotes the Bill of Rights and fosters constitutional values, covering sections of the Bill of Rights such as Access and Rights to Education; Equality; Freedom of Expression; and Human Dignity. It also offers a dialogic and experiential platform for young people to experiment with the actual application of the country’s supreme law.

In addition, corporal punishment violates children’s rights to respect, human dignity and physical integrity. Human Rights Month will be utilised to send a strong message to end violence against children and to end corporal punishment. The DBE will, throughout Human Rights Month, continue to ensure that school environments are safe to ensure the right to safe and conducive learning and teaching.