Migrant children’s battle for a decent basic education in South Africa

Jemi Luzinga is a 15-year old Joburg schoolboy raised by a migrant single mother. He remembers the start of his primary school days as “suffering — walking, because there wasn’t money for transport, going from place to place to get documents so that I could be accepted for primary school”. 

Jemi was one of the speakers at the fourth webinar in the “Building Solidarity in Time of Covid-19” series, focused on access to basic education.

“My mom went through it all; she is my hero. She knew that I had to get an education because it is the key to success. We were lucky because we eventually found the Three2six project,” he said. Three2Six is an education project hosted by partner schools between 3pm and 6pm (hence the project’s name). The focus is on helping migrant children with bridging classes in English, maths and life skills. The project had its start at Sacred Heart College in Observatory in 2007, where Jemi is now a pupil.

Another Sacred Heart College pupil, Tanya Kaseke, also spoke on the webinar panel. She said even when migrant children are able to access education in South African schools they face labelling and stigma. 

“When you are labelled ‘other’ or as a foreign national, that status stays with you forever. Even though we know education is the gateway for success, we know that education is not just about access, it’s also about your social experience in that climate.

“You hear these xenophobic slurs and offensive jokes, like being called a ‘border jumper’. It is undermining and belittling; it makes it harder for someone to want to succeed in that toxic, hostile environment,” she said. 

Tanya also called out the contradictions in South African laws and the lack of communication between government departments that still leave children falling through the cracks. 

In December 2019, the Makhanda High Court ruled in favour of the Phakamisa High School and 37 learners. The full bench’s ruling in their case against the Department of Education has forced the government to uphold the Constitution and grant all children access to basic education in spite of their being unable to produce birth certificates or identity documents. 

Tanya said, however, that despite this victory, Section 39 of the Immigration Act still prohibits “learning institutions to knowingly provide training and instruction to an illegal foreigner”.

“Because of this, immigrant children are always under threat of being reported, which means they can’t entirely enjoy their school experience,” she said. 

Attorney Alexandra Klonarides, from the Centre for Child Law, reiterated this precarious position for children even as “migrant children and undocumented children don’t choose to be such”.

Equal Education’s general secretary Noncedo Madubedube pointed out the impact of Covid-19 has again laid bare inequalities and structural failings. It means black children – documented, undocumented and those in poorer schools — are falling further behind even as more of the school year slips away.