Pupils' eardrums were ruptured, a pupil was blinded, and one pupil died due to corporal punishment, says the SA Human Rights Commission.
|||Cape Town - The South African Human Rights Commission says it has dealt with cases in which pupils’ eardrums were ruptured, a pupil was blinded, and one in which a pupil was beaten and died from his injuries.
Isaac Mangena, the commission’s spokesman, said these were recent corporal punishment cases, many of which were ongoing investigations.
Lindiwe Mokate, the commissioner responsible for basic education, said the commission was aware of corporal punishment cases in the Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga and Limpopo, although there could be cases in other provinces.
“In many of the cases the parents come back to us and say they don’t want to proceed with the case,” Mokate said.
The commission’s children and basic education portfolio recently held a meeting on corporal punishment in schools, which was attended by the SA Principals’ Association, the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union, the Department of Basic Education and others.
Western Cape Education Department spokesman Paddy Attwell said 125 allegations of corporal punishment had been received by the department during the 2012/13 financial year.
A total of 117 cases were reported during the previous financial year.
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Cape Argus