Court gives blessing to religion in schools
High Court in Joburg rules Public schools can observe religious practices, but sends school governing bodies back to the drawing board
The High Court in Johannesburg has ruled that religious practices can still be observed in public schools, but that school governing bodies need to go back to the drawing board to define parameters.This comes after the Organisasie vir Godsdienste-Onderrig en Demokrasie (Ogod), represented by Section 27, sought a court order declaring six public schools in Gauteng and the Western Cape to be in violation of the Constitution and the national policy on religion and education.The complainants claimed the Christian ethos of the identified schools was unconstitutional.The founder and chairperson of Ogod, Hans Pietersen, has said the case is intended to protect the rights of minorities and to advocate for children to undergo thoughtful religious education rather than religious indoctrination.The schools implicated in the matter included Randhart Primary School in Alberton, Baanbreker Primary School in Boksburg, Garsfontein Primary School in Pretoria, Linden High School in Johannesburg, and...
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