Note to Editors: Please note Sakhile Mngadi MPL soundbites in English and IsiZulu
The DA in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) is appalled by a video clip – which has gone viral on social media – showing an educator at Dr Joseph Tshabalala Secondary School assaulting three learners.
Such conduct is an outright violation of the law, the Constitution, and every principle of child protection and dignity. The South African Schools Act and the Children’s Act make it clear that corporal punishment in schools is illegal.
Educators are entrusted with the duty of care – not violence – towards the young people placed in their charge.
The DA calls on KZN Education MEC, Sipho Hlomuka and his department to take immediate and decisive action. The educator must be suspended, pending a full investigation, and disciplinary as well as criminal processes must follow. Anything less would signal tolerance for the abuse of children.
Equally important is the wellbeing of the learners who were subjected to this traumatic ordeal. We urge the department to provide urgent psychosocial support and counselling for all affected learners. Our classrooms must remain a safe space where children can learn with confidence and dignity.
The DA also appeals to the public to refrain from sharing this video any further. While outrage is justified, the circulation of such material risks re-victimising the children. Instead, the video should be handed to the relevant authorities as evidence in the investigation.
As a partner within KZN’s Government of Provincial Unity (GPU), the DA will closely monitor this matter to ensure accountability and the protection of learners. Violence has no place in our schools.