Cape Town - When two Cape Winelands parents asked the principal of Paul Roos Gymnasium in Stellenbosch why their son was denied placement, they were allegedly told he belonged at a school in Kayamandi - a predominantly black area.
Mzimasi and Pamela Dyani, who live in Kayamandi, took principal Jannie van der Westhuizen - who denied accusations that Somila was rejected because he was black - to the Equality Court on Tuesday over the alleged remark.
Pamela Dyani said they were not given any reason as to why Somila was not accepted as he was an above-average pupil academically and a star rugby player.
In January, the Dyanis wrote to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), requesting that it probe the school and the alleged remark Van der Westhuizen had made.
In an affidavit to the court filed in July, Dyani wrote that she had been notified by the SAHRC that it was awaiting a report from the Western Cape Education Department (WCED).
She said that she had requested the WCED to probe, but it had instead only reverted with the criteria pupils needed to fit to get into the school. She said taking Van der Westhuizen to court was the “last resort”.
Van der Westhuizen previously told the Cape Times that the school always received too many applications and it simply had no space for Somila. Referring him to alternative schools in Kayamandi was not something new, he had said.
“Depending on where you live, I will refer you to the nearest school. The parents should not have taken offence at that,” Van der Westhuizen said.
Dyani and Van der Westhuizen’s legal representatives met in court on Tuesday, where the case was postponed.
Van der Westhuizen’s attorney, Lorinda van Niekerk, said the case was supposed to sit for a directions hearing, but was postponed to November 3.
Dyani said her son now has to catch a train from Stellenbosch to Kraaifontein to take a taxi to a private school in Durbanville.
Paul Roos Gymnasium was about 4km from where they lived.
Outside court, people gathered in support of Dyani. They held posters which said: “Paul Roos Stop Racism” and “Stellenbosch pupils first”.
@FrancescaJaneV
Cape Times