By Johnathan Paoli
The SA Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) has rejected a proposal by Solidarity to navigate the impasse on the Basic Education Laws Amendment (Bela) Act.
Sadtu spokesperson Nomusa Cembi has reiterated the union’s threat of legal action if the legislation is not implemented, including the contentious sections 5 and 6 that deal with school admissions and language policy, despite the proposed negotiation by Solidarity.
“We call on the president to promulgate these two clauses in full, otherwise we will take him to court,” Cembi told Inside Education on Wednesday.
This follows Solidarity’s proposal to Sadtu for a “win-win solution”.
Solidarity CEO Dirk Herman maintained that there was no legal route for the immediate implementation of Bela in its entirety, and that there was a greater chance of resolving the dispute if ordinary workers engaged in dialogue rather than political parties fighting with each other.
Herman proposed a shift from divisive public discourse to constructive dialogue aimed at finding common ground acceptable to a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including the African National Congress, the Democratic Alliance, Sadtu and AfriForum.
He suggested that unresolved issues related to the legislation should form part of an upcoming national dialogue on education and development.
Solidarity has extended an invitation to the country’s largest teacher union to engage in discussions focusing on mother-tongue education for African language speakers.
Hermann highlighted that promoting multilingualism and improving access to quality education for the majority of learners must be central to these discussions.
He said that while the president was responsible for assenting to and proclaiming the commencement of the Act, Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube must ensure the necessary norms, standards, regulations and policies were in place for its implementation.
Solidarity’s proposal includes recognising the work already done by Parliament and other stakeholders, as well as affirming the distinct responsibilities in implementing Bela.
The proposal further urges Gwarube to expedite the creation of regulation and policies, and says that any necessary legislative amendments, particularly those supporting mother-tongue education, follow standard legislative procedures.
This is based on an agreement reached between Solidarity and Gwarube at the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac).
Hermann reiterated the urgency of resolving the matter, saying he believed that a unified approach could have far-reaching benefits for the nation’s education system and societal development.
However, Cembi criticised what she claimed as an incorrect perspective regarding the law.
“It is wrong for Solidarity to say the president can announce that the Act will be implemented in full once the norms and standards are in place and policies have been developed. The correct route is that the Act is declared or promulgated and then the regulations follow,” Cembi said.
The union previously threatened both legal and protest action on the first day of school next year if the Presidency decided against the full implementation of the legislation as well as the exclusion of the tripartite alliance partners from the discussions.
The three-month discussion period for parties in the Government of National Unity on the clauses ended last Friday, after Ramaphosa put a hold on implementation of the law to allow for the discussions in September.
Sadtu general secretary Mugwena Maluleke said the Congress of SA Trade Unions was excluded from the discussions, despite being the convener of the labour constituency at Nedlac.
The SA Communist Party has also backed the union.
Earlier in the month, Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said the Nedlac agreement has no power to influence Ramaphosa’s final decision on the matter.
Magwenya said Solidarity was just one among many interested parties in the matter and that the deal had no bearing, in law or practical effect, on the GNU discussions.
He said the next step was for the president to determine the date of commencement of the law and for the necessary regulations to be finalised.
INSIDE EDUCATION
