N Pandor: Handing over of the torch of peace

20 April 2007

Thank you for such a warm welcome, and thanks especially to the drum
majorettes.

Let me first of all express my sadness at the life that was lost at this
school. My condolences go to the Tlou family. My thoughts and prayers are with
you. I also feel for the Rabotho family, because I am sure you are also trying
to understand what happened. I feel humbled by the presence of both
families.

I am grateful to all of you who have supported the families in their
pain.

It is appropriate that I hand over the torch of peace to the Minister of
Justice and Constitutional Development at Makhosini Combined.

I received the torch of peace from the Minister of Transport in January. It
has since rotated through all nine provinces, moving from school to school.

In each province the Education MEC called upon parents and communities to
reclaim our schools from those determined to sew the seeds of violence and
despair.

Today I light this torch as a symbol of the triumph of light over the
darkness of violence in schools.

I light this torch also as a symbol of hope.

I light this torch as a call to action. I call on all communities to act to
ensure the safety of learners and educators in all schools.

All of us - learners, parents, community leaders, teachers, police - have a
responsibility to make our schools safe places. I especially call on parents to
inculcate positive values of respect, honesty, and responsibility in their
children. We as parents need to instil these values in our children so that
they have respect for themselves and for others.

We all need to put our heads together to strengthen the relations between
schools, communities and our local South African Police Services. All schools
should have safety committees. All schools should have simple and clear codes
of conducts.

I encourage all schools to participate in programmes like the Girls and Boys
Education Movement. I call on the Girl Education Movements (GEM) and the Boys
Education Movements (BEM) to be clubs of achievers in all aspects of their
lives. Belonging to GEM and BEM should be a privilege, because members do well
in school, set good examples, and know the meaning of respect and dignity.

Let every learner say with pride, "I am my sister's or brother's
keeper".

Principal, teachers and parents of Makhosini Combined Secondary School, you
will continue to receive support to overcome this tragedy. That support will
specifically be in the form of programmes that will teach your learners how to
handle conflict with assurance and understanding.

Minister Mabandla, I have done justice to the Torch when it was in my
custody. I encourage your department to hold the torch with intent and to
ensure that perpetrators of violence in schools receive the punishment they
deserve.

I also encourage you to collaborate with my department in designing better
safety programmes for our schools.

Issued by: Department of Education
20 April 2007