Who and what is AfriForum?

AfriForum is an Afrikaans civil rights organisation that protects the rights of minority groups at national as well as provincial level, and anyone who can identify with AfriForum’s principles and objectives may join the organisation. AfriForum’s community plan focuses on mobilising communities to thus take control of their own streets and neighbourhoods again. AfriForum ensures that your constitutional and civil rights are recognised and protected at national level.

Wie en wat is AfriForum?

AfriForum is ’n Afrikaanse burgerregteorganisasie wat die regte van minderheidsgroepe op sowel nasionale as provinsiale vlak beskerm, en enigiemand wat met AfriForum se beginsels en doelstellings kan identifiseer, mag by die organisasie aansluit. AfriForum se gemeenskapsplan fokus daarop om gemeenskappe te mobiliseer om só weer beheer terug te neem oor hul eie strate en woonbuurtes. AfriForum verseker dat jou grondwetlike én burgerregte op nasionale vlak erken en beskerm word.

Education and leadership projects Media statements | Media statements

AfriForum ready for legal action if BELA Bill is passed; monitors parliamentary process

ByAfriForum 17/08/202317/08/2023

AfriForum emphasises that the Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill (also known as the BELA Bill) will be extremely harmful to education in the country if it were to be passed in its current format. The civil rights organisation therefore is ready to oppose it with litigation if required. These comments follow in response to the current controversial discussion of the bill by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee for Basic Education.

Alana Bailey, AfriForum’s head of Cultural Affairs, states that it causes grave concerns to note that members of the committee were prepared to deal with the bill without considering all public input. “It also raises questions about how seriously the public’s input are being taken and how thoroughly the rest of the submissions have been studied,” she says.

“Apart from the public’s opinions, the committee should note that several provisions in the proposed legislation contravenes stipulations in the Constitution, as well as judgments of the Constitutional Court. By trying to steamroll the bill through parliament before the national election of 2024, the door is being left open for many legal actions for which the stakeholders – including AfriForum – already are prepared,” Bailey adds.

Bailey explains that opposition to the legislation is essential, as it has the potential to destroy aspects such as the right of access to mother-language education, the privacy of members of school governing bodies, limited class sizes for the sake of quality education, and the active involvement of school communities via democratically elected school governing bodies.

“Education is already in a precarious state in the country. We cannot allow legislation to be passed that will worsen the situation even further,” concludes Bailey.