Activists Protest Against Teaching Of Shona Language At A School In South Africa
A South African opposition political party, the Patriotic Alliance (PA), on Monday staged a protest at Esikhisini Primary School in Pretoria, Atteridgeville for teaching the Shona language, reported NewZimbabwe.com.
The Esikhisini Primary School Governing Board chairperson is a Zimbabwean national, while Zimbabweans reportedly constitute 20% of the school’s enrolment.
PA’s deputy president Kenny Kunene, demanded that South Africans be prioritised first and called for the expulsion of Zimbabwean learners. Said Kunene:
The school has applied to the Department of Education to introduce Shona language instruction.
We spoke with the principal, Mr Nkabinde, who claims he hasn’t applied for Shona instruction, but our information suggests that the SGB chairperson, who is Zimbabwean, is working with the department to introduce Shona.
This is a public school. Shona is not part of the curriculum. We understand that the department is considering this proposal.
We’re here to express our anger and dissatisfaction with what they’re trying to impose on our communities.
There are South African parents with young children who are unable to enrol in our schools because children of foreign nationals have been admitted.
Our members will conduct door-to-door visits here to determine if any parent has been rejected from the school so that we can admit their child here.
The principal should replace a Zimbabwean with a South African.
In November 2023, South Africa’s statistician-general Risenga Maluleke said Limpopo Province had a new language that was not captured in the census of 2011.
Presenting the 2022 census report to Premier Stanley Mathabatha in Polokwane, Risenga noted that the province had Shona as a language.
He said Shona was spoken in 28 000 households, in a province with 6.6 million.
South Africa holds general elections later this year and fringe far-right political parties have targetted their ire on foreigners in a bid to woo voters.
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