ECDoE peace education specialist joined hands with Umtapo project coordinator Khumbulani Yekani and trained about sixty learners and twenty teachers from various schools in the Eastern Cape. The two day training themed ‘’free the mind, free the world’’ took place in Queenstown from the 24 to 25 November 2012. Core to this initiative was to train learners and educators on how to gain inner peace and the form of peace clubs in their respective schools.
Provincial peace education specialist Felix Mbethe highlighted that his vision is to empower and create a conscience to people about human rights and anti-racism. He further described peace clubs as ‘’a vehicle for good governance at schools which have a potential for grooming students to become members of RCLs and debating societies. “These will surely improve academic results of these learners,” said Mbethe.
According to Mbethe, the peace clubs help to :
- Facilitate unity
- Create hope to people
- Promote hard working and discipline
- Guide and encourage learners, and
- Create conducive environment for learning and teaching
Peace Africa Youth Centre coordinator Zukiswa Mpayipheli further stated that her King William's Town based centre also contributes in the formation of peace clubs. ”Our objective is to change learners' mindsets and show them that crime free learning environments are possible with dedicated people.’’ said Mpayipheli.
Trainees got capacitated with skills of treating people with respect, dignity and being responsible and accountable of which Akhona Dondashe has been honoured as a living example.
Akhona has joined the peace clubs while he was a learner at Hector Peterson in King William's Town and now has been to many countries in the world as a peace activist.
“I joined the peace club at Grade eight and have been preaching tranquillity since then. They improved my leadership skills, communication skills and exposed me in many aspects of life”, concluded Dondashe.
