Centre for Child Law squares off with SACE over two corporal punishment cases
At the heart of the case are two separate incidents that took place at two different schools. SACE fined the teachers R10,000 each and ruled that their names be removed from the roll of educators. However, the latter was suspended for 10 years
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JOHANNESBURG - The Centre for Child Law is squaring off with the South African Council of Educators (SACE) in the Supreme Court of Appeal on Monday in a corporal punishment case against two primary school teachers.
At the heart of the case are two separate incidents that took place at two different schools - in the first, a seven-year-old boy was hospitalised after he was hit in the head with a PVC pipe by his teacher in 2015.
In the second incident a 10-year-old girl was left bleeding from her ears and with ongoing complications after she was slapped and beaten by her teacher in 2019.
SACE fined the teachers R10,000 each and ruled that their names be removed from the roll of educators.
However, the latter was suspended for 10 years - allowing them to continue working for as long as they were not found guilty of another misconduct.
While the High Court did order the council to revise its sanctions policy, it stopped short of sending the teachers in question back for a new hearing as the Centre for Child Law – represented by Section27 had asked it to, finding there had been an unreasonable delay in the launching of the case.
And the centre is now hoping to have that decision overturned.
Meanwhile, the council has launched a cross-appeal against the order that was handed down against it.