‘Schools cannot promote one religion to the exclusion of others’
A ruling was made in the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg earlier today that public schools may not favour any one religion over others.
POLOKWANE – In a ruling in the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg earlier today, Judge Willem van der Linde ruled that no public school should promote one single religion to the exclusion of another.
While religion may be practiced in schools, no learner may be excluded as per regulations of the school or its School Governing Body, Van der Linde ruled.
Last month, an application by the Organisation for Religious Education and Democracy (OGOD) was brought to the high court requesting it to rule against having one dominant religion observed at public schools.
The six schools that the application was brought against were Laerskool Baanbreker, Laerskool Garsfontein, Laerskool Randhart Hoërskool Linden, Hoërskool Oudtshoorn and Oudtshoorn Gimnasium, but the ruling affected all public schools.
Both parties in the court matter were supported by the Constitution, in that everyone had the right to religion which they could practice in public and that attendance was free and voluntary, Van der Linde said.
Van der Linde said that the court was concerned by the issue of a public school endorsing one religion and emphasised the need to celebrate diversity in his judgement. He encourage public dialogue in this regard and said there was a need to celebrate diversity.
OGOD had argued that constitutional rights which would be infringed included the right to equality, belief, as well as the freedom of religion.
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