The public is yet to comment on the planned introduction of unisex toilets at South Africa’s schools, the Department of Education has said, following a leaked document.
Elijah Mhlanga, spokesperson for the department, said the draft guidelines were developed this year for measures to be put in place for a safe environment for learners of different sexual orientation.
“[This is] so that they don’t drop out of school or commit suicide because they feel unwanted … that’s one of the challenges that we are facing as a sector,” said Mhlanga.
“We are far from finalising this, we still need to consult stakeholders. The draft guidelines will be published for consultation in 2023, so that the public can engage on this matter.”
The draft guidelines recommend that:
1, Schools will soon be required to provide ‘genderless/unisex toilets and changing rooms, as well as individual stalls.
2, Gendered bathroom signs and more cubicles are touted as a solution.
3, The concept guidelines include the abolishment of gender-specific pronouns. Teachers are to be told they must avoid gender segregation by splitting classes, lines or groups into boys or girls.
4, The provision of gender-neutral uniforms must also be made available to all pupils who require them.
5, Dead naming will also be outlawed. That means a student identifying with a different gender cannot be called by their previous name.
Lorraine Botha, spokesperson for DA in Western Cape, said if passed, the draft guidelines “will allow for the department to train school leaners, management, teachers and governing bodies on the principles of gender and sexual diversity”.
Basil Manuel, executive director of the National Professional Teachers Organisation of South Africa, said while the organisation welcomes and supports the guidelines, it cautions against implementing them without first engaging with parents and learners.
A petition started by Rudayba Rasool, one of the concerned parents, has already garnered more than 41 000 signatures by Tuesday afternoon.
The petition states: “Toilets are private and suggesting that girls and boys share toilets will bring about many social ills. As a responsible parent, I cannot condone or approve this. Schools are supposed to be a safe haven for all.”
Another parent from Eldorado Park in Johannesburg, Esther Arendse, who has two daughters in primary school, said she is against the proposed unisex toilets.
“Girls are not safe already. To invite boys to what should be a safe space like a toilet is out of order. And if it should happen, I will be sending my girls to a school with diapers,” said Arendse.
Sandy Springfield, a foundation phase teacher at Eldocrest Primary School, also in Eldorado Park, said: “I think that a child as young as they are, knows the difference between the two genders, and as much as government wants to accommodate [the] LGBTQ+ community, this will confuse our kids and rape statistics will rise.
“The department isn’t responsible for dictating our gender, parents need to deal with gender issues.”
Meanwhile, social media users have called out the government for not being able to completely flush out the bucket system that is still being used in many schools, especially in the rural areas.
Over 3,000 schools in South Africa have unisex toilets already.
How progressive???
Except they are called Pit Latrines with no running water. Ja, just a few holes in the ground for the whole school to share.
South Africa has bigger problem than a “anti-woke-woke” narrative. https://t.co/0aID0qBjhE
— Brent Lindeque (@BrentLindeque) November 13, 2022
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa. To Subscribe to Sunday World, click here.
