Children end the silence

AMONGthe nearly 15 000 service delivery protests in the country over the past year, were a number of major outcries against inequalities in Soweto. And among the hundreds of protesters were many school-going children.

If it felt like there was a period in which South African children were becoming depoliticised, this is certainly no longer the case, and the world’s most famous township could well be the incubator for their radicalisation again.

As in 1976, their issues would probably centre on the education system – although, unlike then, this time it wouldn’t be about language, but about poor conditions at school, hampering their potential.

To this end, we have to admire the civil society organisation Equal Education (EE) for its commitment to giving pupils a voice in its efforts to compel the government to change the lives of this generation. And that was certainly in action over the past few months as EE prepared to challenge Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi around his promise of upgrades, particularly in terms of sanitation, for at least half a million children.

Its social audit, which involved scholars, teachers, parents, other civil society and community organisations and churches, examined the reality of school life for children in Soweto, and many problems were highlighted.

A sanitation crisis prevails in terms of basic conditions such as working toilets, toilet paper and soap. Not all schools have them.

Adding to these woes, there are not enough maintenance staff at some schools to keep sufficiently high levels of cleanliness. This is all exacerbated in certain schools by over-stuffed classrooms, with insufficient furniture.

We urge Lesufi to stay on the right track, as EE has also praised him where he’s achieved. But our children are unlikely to keep quiet any longer.