Under the South African Constitution, every child, without exception, has the right to an equal and inclusive education. Sadly, this is not the case for most children with disabilities who are discriminated against by not having: transport to school, structural accessibility to classrooms or toilets, nor access to adequate personnel support at school.

Johannesburg, 15 October 2018: Over the last few years, South Africans have been (rightfully) outraged by the fact that many of the country’s schoolchildren are not able to learn at school because they do not have textbooks. Or toilets. And yet, for many disabled children, even going to school or learning to read is impossible

Danie Marais, our Senior Manager in Programmes and Governance at the NCPD was interviewed on Cape Talk’s Weekend Breakfast show, discussing the wheelchair access issue in South Africa, as a result of the Department of Health’s dismal failure when it comes to providing assistive devices for persons with disabilities.

IOL (Cape Times) published an article about how most learners with disabilities face a harsh reality in terms of being blatantly excluded from receiving an education – even though the Constitution states that every single child has the right to an equal and inclusive education.

Bizcommunity published an article about how most children with disabilities are unlawfully denied access to a proper Early Childhood Development (ECD) education, despite that fact that all South African children are legally entitled to an inclusive education, from ECD to high-school.

Danie Marais, our Senior Manager in Programmes and Governance at the NCPD was interviewed on eNCA’s Morning News Today, discussing how children with disabilities are ‘falling through the cracks’ in the Children’s Act, South Africa’s only legislation that serves for the protection of children.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghxp7bZp9us

Dignity is a basic human right. A violation thereof cuts us at our human core. This should motivate us to protect the right to dignity of not only ourselves, but of every person. Yet, according to the National Council of and for Persons with Disabilities in South Africa (NCPD), protecting the dignity of South Africa’s children with disabilities is not currently very high on the national agenda.

André Kalis – Specialist in Advocacy, Policy and Children’s Matters for the National Council of and for Persons with Disabilities.