Tensions over migrant students rise in South African schools — Daily Maverick
In schools in Cape Town and Durban, South Africa, students from migrant families reported bullying and feeling unsafe amid increased activity by the anti-immigration movement March and March. In late June, the administrations of several Cape Town schools also asked the parents of such children to provide valid migration documents, Daily Maverick reports.
Schools’ requests for documents
On June 24, Excelsior High School sent parents of students from migrant families a letter asking them to urgently submit the child’s study permit or proof that an application for one had been filed. The letter also mentioned an alleged upcoming inspection by South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs. That same week, Buren High School asked foreign students in a WhatsApp message to provide updated copies of valid migration documents by the following day.
Buren High School deputy principal Shamini Govender said that a valid document is needed, among other things, to verify information before final examinations. According to her, the school does not take punitive measures and helps undocumented students engage with the relevant authorities so that they can take the exams.
Zinath Soji, head of the education rights programme at SECTION27, noted that South Africa’s Schools Act provides for a child’s right to attend school even without documents and prohibits discrimination against students. According to her, the 2019 Phakamisa court ruling established that the absence of identity documents cannot prevent access to basic education. Subsequent circulars by the Department of Basic Education also clarified that final-year students may take examinations regardless of whether they have documents.
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Bullying complaints
The Western Cape Education Department said it was unaware of an inspection by the Department of Home Affairs. The department described requests for documents as standard practice for administering final examinations and said they apply to all students.
In January, supporters of March and March protested for three days outside Addington Primary School in Durban following an action by migrant parents demanding places for their children. Refugee Social Services representative Consolie Kanamugire said the school asked parents to take their children home for safety reasons, and several students and parents needed psychological support after the protest.
Students from migrant families also reported insults after the expiry of a deadline announced by the March and March movement for undocumented migrants to leave the country. The head of a religious educational centre in Nyanga said that two students reported being bullied over the Shona language, their accent, and demands that they leave the school. In July, South Africa’s Department of Basic Education issued Circular No. S7, which prohibits vigilante action and violence near schools.
