Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za
3-minute read | 08 October 2025 | 15:58 CAT

A joint legal action by Section27 and the Teddy Bear Foundation against the Department of Basic Education (DBE) and other state entities has highlighted the government’s failure to uphold the National Child Protection Register (NCPR) – a vital tool meant to keep known abusers away from children.

Filed in the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria, the case seeks to compel several departments, including Social Development, Justice, and Provincial Education Departments, to fulfil their constitutional and legislative duties in maintaining and implementing the register.

Speaking to Radio Islam International, Zeenat Sujee, Head of Education Rights at Section27, said the case stems from a 2022 incident involving a 12-year-old learner who a school caretaker in the North West province raped. “The education authorities failed to comply with their obligations in holding the caretaker to account. Only after we went to court did the school finally dismiss him,” Sujee explained.

This case exposed wider systemic failures. “The Department of Education had an obligation to report the caretaker to the Department of Social Development so he could be placed on the National Child Protection Register but they failed to do so,” said Sujee.

Section27’s investigation revealed alarming negligence: “If we take Mpumalanga as an example, only 82 educators have been vetted. Nationally, just over 10% of educators have gone through the process and that’s shocking,” she added.

The court application seeks a declaratory order declaring these failures unlawful, and a structural order compelling departments to complete vetting and reporting processes under judicial oversight.

Highlighting the urgency, Sujee pointed to the scale of abuse: “In SACE’s 2023/24 report, out of 606 complaints against educators, 148 involved sexual violence. These are only the reported cases, the real numbers are likely far higher.”

She concluded, “If the National Child Protection Register is properly implemented, it can become a powerful tool to remove sexual predators from our schools and make learning spaces safer for children.”

Listen to the full interview on The Daily Round-Up with Annisa Essack and Zeenat Sujee.