Please make a written submission/oral submission when invited to do so by the NCOP! 

About this petition: For a petition to "count" a person needs to be able to prove that you have done everything in your power to prevent something from happening, and have no other option but to petition those in positions of authority (in this case the NCOP).

My name is Stacey van der Walt, and I have done everything in my power, as an independent citizen of South Africa, to keep the BELA Bill from passing as is:

• I have attended two hearings, and spoke at one of these two.
• I have sent the Minister of Basic Education, Mrs. Angie Motshekga an email regarding my BELA Bill related concerns. 
• I have had a telephonic conversation with DBE Director and drafter of the BELA Bill, Mr. James Ndlebe, in which I expressed my concerns regarding the Bill/the fact that our submissions were not taken into account during the PCBE clause-by-clause deliberation process. 
• I started a BELA Bill Awareness Campaign, and I have supported others who have done the same.

I have explored and exhausted all possible avenues, and I feel like I have no other option but to petition the NCOP. Please consider backing my plea! 

On behalf of parents and concerned citizens I am asking for the following:

1. That each clause and section of the BELA Bill which may be unconstitutional be removed from the current version of the BELA Bill.
2. That the Honorable Chair, Nchabeleng and the NCOP-committee members will consider the time frame in which the public was invited to make submissions and the fact that the latest version of the BELA Bill (not the Memorandum) has still not been fully translated into any languages besides English. These two factors may have prevented numerous individuals from participating in the public participation process. 
3. That the NCOP-committee will consider the fact that adequate research has NOT been conducted on home education. For this reason we ask that Clause 35 (previously Clause 37) be sent back to the drawing board. Regulations are too stringent and not reflective of what we, the people who made written and oral submissions, have asked for. According to SEIAS Guidelines: In any democracy, the government does not just mediate between stakeholders, but is responsible for representing the long-term interests of the majority of the population and the country as a whole.

Here is a list of clauses which may do more harm than good:

Clause 2: The Principal Act already includes a possible six-month prison sentence for parents who do not comply with regulations. This period should not be extended (to 12 months).

Under Clause 2, listed prohibited actions do not need to be violent in nature to be considered unlawful. No one may "interrupt" or "hinder" school proceedings.  According to our Bill of Rights citizens are allowed to peacefully protest or picket. In 2022 parents gathered in front of a school in Mamelodi. They were appalled by the unsanitary conditions of toilets, overcrowded classrooms and the fact that their children were expected to sit on the floor/crates instead of at tables and on chairs. If the BELA Bill gets pushed through these type of gatherings could be labeled as disruptive and concerned parents could be criminalised. 

Clause 4 and 5: SGBs consist of parents who have their childrens'/schools' best interests at heart. They understand matters that the HoD would not be able to (as the HoD is not physically involved in the communities in which these schools and children are located). SGBs should have the final say regarding all serious matters relating to schools. 

Clause 25 (previously Clause 27): The closure of Primary Schools with less than 135 learners in and secondary schools with less than 200 learners in should be reconsidered. It is in the best interest of every child to receive an education in his or her mother tongue. This will be a given if small schools (with potential) are allowed to remain open within the communities learners are already located in. The government will need to make additional funding available to transport learners to newly merged schools. (As matters stand money had to be made available by our government to keep the Learner Transport Fund from being cut this August. How will our government cope with additional learners needing to be transported to and from merger schools?) Disputes regarding the land these schools are located on/infrastructure/location/ accessibility should also not be used as excuses to shut small schools down! 

Clause 33 (previously Clause 35): All independent schools should be allowed to register. Owners and Directors of these schools should also not be criminalised. 

Clause 35 (previously Clause 37): 

During the PCBE deliberation process which took place in Parliament on 17 August 2023, Mr. James Ndlebe acknowledged, on record, that research had NOT been conducted on home education. In response to the concern around the DBE’s lack of research into homeschooling, Mr Ndlebe believed that the department did not need to conduct research into homeschooling, given that it has left the responsibility of teaching the children and the management of the entire process to parents. Regardless of the reasoning behind not conducting adequate research, adequate research needed to be concluded (according to the SEIAS Guidelines of 2015) before the BELA-Bill was introduced to Parliament. 

During the same meeting, Ms. Ngema (Parliament's legal advisor) explained that the role SEIAS played:" The Socio Economic Impact Assessment System (SEIAS) was established by the Cabinet as a tool to ensure that all executive departments review the current legislation before deciding to make any amendments." She never mentions whether she believes adequate research had been done on home education or not. She only refers to a discussion report and the consultation process which had been concluded. While the SEIAS process does involve consultations with stakeholders, consultations (do not equal research.

During the first home education roundtable discussion (28 February 2020) the Minister of Basic Education stated that due to non compliance regarding the registration process the DBE knows very little about home education numbers. Home educating families are in a predicament! Many home educating families do not register for home education because families who apply to register don't always get approved, so in other words, success is not given! Many home educating families’ have been denied the opportunity to register. Applying to register to home educate should be as easy as applying for an ID, and success needs to be a given. This is how the registration process in "homeschool friendly” provinces and states in countries (like Australia, USA and Canada) work.

Giving the DBE the right to de-register families for home education is also problematic. What may look, to them, like "educational neglect" may form part of a certain homeschooling philosophy which is meticulously and purposefully followed by parents (because it is beneficial to a learner). 

The DBE cannot provide the citizens of this country with safe, viable alternatives to home education and therefore the DBE should NOT be granted the power to say whether families may or may not home educate their children. Between January and March of this year 8 murders, 14 attempted murders and 84 rapes occurred on the premises of educational facilities, including daycare centers and universities. And on the 29th of September 2023 IOL published an article stating that more than 36 teachers have been fired since the beginning of this year for raping, impregnating and sexually abusing learners. During BELA Bill Hearings numerous teachers also asked that security officers be sent to the schools they worked at! 

Clause 35 of the BELA Bill was drafted to regulate public school at home. That is NOT what home-schooling is. CAPS content was created with qualified teachers (and not home educators) in mind. Most home educating parents are not qualified teachers; therefore, they may prefer to make use of curricula that was developed by content creators who have taken this fact into consideration.

Clause 39 (previously Clause 41) seeks to give the Minister the power to make regulations regarding the management of learner pregnancies. Mr. James Ndlebe, who introduced the audience to the Bill at hearings, gave the impression that this section of the clause pertained to the admission policies of pregnant learners. (Is that not a Clause 4 issue? Clause 4 deals with admissions policies. ) Due to the ambiguous nature of this clause many have turned to the DBE Policy Document on the Management of Learner Pregnancy. CSE content (which goes against many families' religious beliefs) is mentioned in it, as well as the word abortion. In addition, a learner of 12 does not need her parents' permission to opt for medical procedures. In a country where there are so many reports of educators impregnating girls, this is shocking! Allowing a teacher to get involved in the medical care of learners will only benefit child predators, not our children. If a learner, who has opted for an abortion, has an  adverse reaction her parents may not understand the severity of presenting symptoms. This is not in the learner’s best interests.

There are so many ideas contained in this Bill which are not going to benefit South African children, tear communities apart, undermine the value of culture and remove the authority parents have over their children. Allowing this Bill to pass (as is) will be a crime against humanity! Those who are in positions of power should do what is right by us, the people, and not allow the Bill to pass. Let it stop at the NCOP-level!

The financial impact that the implementation of this Bill will have should also be considered:

The rollout of a nationwide Gr.R program will cost our government R17 Billion rand, 12 Billion of which we do not have. Should a country in which students are still sitting on the floors, on crates in overcrowded container-style-classrooms or under trees not be utilising these funds to provide for current learners' most basic needs? 

Each child that is home educated saves the government R16 000 per year. Currently, Homeschooling is an affordable alternative to private schooling ,however, assessments will cost families money that households with one breadwinner simply don't have. The government can not make assessments compulsory, but then not fund this initiative. PARENTS should be allowed to assess learners themselves. Most homeschool curricula have user-friendly assessments built in, and most home educating parents are competent enough to assess their own children. If this will not be allowed then Homeschooling families will be compelled to place their children in public schools and place an increased burden on our already buckling education system.

We also want to bring the following to the NCOP's attention. Certain clauses were not mentioned under the "Financial Implications for the State". Here they are: 

Clause 6 will allow for the Minister to obtain inputs from a broader spectrum of people. What will the financial implications for the State be? 

Clause 13 seeks to amend section 12A of the SASA to provide that, in instances where two or more schools are merged, a new public school will be established. Learners will need to reach these schools. Recently, R263 837 873 was made available by our government to keep the Learner Transport Fund running in KZN. Nowhere is the additional funding that will be required to transport the additional influx of learners mentioned under the Financial Implications for the State section in the BELA Bill (see page 48).

Please note: I have attempted to contact the Clerk of Papers to get a copy of a petition form. I have not been successful (and not for a lack of trying). I am therefore making use of this platform to collect signatures. Thank you for taking the time to back this campaign.