───   KEKELETSO MOSEBETSI 09:28 Tue Concerns have been raised about the slow pace of police action in arresting the alleged rapists of a seven-year-old from Schweizer-Reneke but arrests were only made after months of inaction prompting public outrage and intervention from local government officials The alleged crime took place in the township of Ipelegeng Despite charges being laid at Ipelegeng police station prompting Community Safety and Transport MEC Wessels Morweng to step in and demand swift action Morweng expressed shock and concern over the delay in making arrests He described the situation as “a reflection of the moral decay in society” particularly in communities where such “heinous acts” are committed without prompt legal action North West Community Safety and Transport MEC Wessels Morweng addressing the angry community of Mamusa “It’s shocking that no one was arrested until Friday I’m here in the area of Mamusa following the incident involving a minor who was allegedly raped in December I called the acting provincial commissioner he confirmed that two men had been arrested.” The two men (56 and 58) were arrested and appeared in the Schweizer-Reneke Magistrate’s Court on Friday They were remanded in custody and will appear again on Thursday Morweng expressed his dismay over the delay stating that it was incomprehensible why police had not acted sooner He emphasised it was his responsibility to oversee police operations in the province and vowed to ensure that such delays would not occur again “It’s a worrying factor that people have committed this horrific thing in December and only arrests were made on Friday,” he said “My biggest worry remains what the police have done from that moment until now “It meant that women and children in the streets of Schweizer-Reneke were not safe because those two demonic individuals were roaming free.” Morweng applauded police for acting swiftly once the matter was escalated ensuring that arrests were made and legal proceedings were set in motion He also appealed to the community to remain patient and allow the police to continue with their investigations “I am confident that the law will take its course and that no bail will be granted to the alleged perpetrators This must send a strong message to all perpetrators of gender-based violence,” he said Morweng also acknowledged the public’s frustrations over other unresolved rape cases in the area and committed to ensuring that these cases would be followed up and resolved swift action has been called for against those responsible for the alleged rape of a seven-year-old in the Eastern Cape.  Concern has also been raised after the High Court in Gqeberha acquitted Timothy Omotoso and Zukiswa Sitho of all charges related to heinous crimes OFM News/Kekeletso Mosebetsi cg North West scholar transport operators will finally receive payments Vrystaatse ouerpaar in hof ná kinders doodbrand Besoekers sprakeloos oor skouspelagtige Augrabies UV ontken aantygings oor buitelandse werknemers Ondersoek duur voort ná skietery op Lichtenburg Oekraïne vra Suid-Afrika om ontvoerde kinders te help terugbring Wyle pous Franciskus het begrafnisrituele vooraf vereenvoudig Mianmar-aardbewing: Hulp stroom in ná meer as 1 700 sterftes Suid-Afrikaners wen gesogte blommeskou-trofee in China The days of sexual predators roaming the streets should be a thing of the past Kenny Morolong.The Deputy Minister said this during his visit to the family of a seven-year-old girl who was allegedly raped in Ipelegeng Township Schweizer Reneke in the North West.“We are encouraged that despite the matter being reported in December 2024 Tshepo Khoza and Mogomotsi Mosheshe respectively.The Deputy Minister and SANCO leadership also visited the local Ipelegeng police station General Enquiries newsfiles@gcis.gov.za Tel: 012 473 0213Editor Roze Britz roze@gcis.gov.za News Editor Janine Arcangeli janine@gcis.gov.zaEditor-in-Chief Zanele Mngadizanelemngadi@gcis.gov.za  JOHANNESBURG - The Water and Sanitation Department is warning communities living along the Vaal and Harts rivers to be cautious of the cholera bacteria in the water. This follows routine raw water sampling last month, indicating the presence of cholera along Schweizer-Reneke and the Barkley West caravan park sites - among others. The department has instructed municipalities to caution residents to boil their water for drinking purposes as an extra safety precaution. "Communities are advised not to drink or come into contact with the raw water from these rivers. Follow-up sampling on the rivers is in process, and will indicate the extent in the area of caution." Sections Home | South Africa The Department of Water and Sanitation says it has detected the presence of cholera in the Vaal and Harts Rivers in North West and Northern Cape The Department has advised communities and water users along the Harts and Vaal Rivers from Christiana downstream to be careful when using untreated water The tests were taken last month during routine raw water sampling from five sites Department spokesperson Wisani Mabasa says “During the routine raw water sampling in September Barkley West Caravan Park and Douglas Weir indicated the presence of cholera Communities are advised not to drink or come into contact with the raw water from the rivers Follow up sampling on the river is in process and will indicate extent and area of caution.” “The communities under the Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati Francis Baard and Pixley ka Seme District Municipalities and the water services authorities in the area have been requested to take extra care in the water treatment process disinfection and chlorination of the water The chlorination of water is effective to safeguard water from the risk of cholera Siyacuma and Phokwane Municipalities treat water from the rivers to ensure it is safe for consumption Water is tested to ensure safe drinking water Water not meeting the required standard would not be supplied for drinking and domestic use.” Triotrade takes peanut production one LEAP further The farmer plants and harvests peanuts with great effort and care but peanut production still needs more to make its destination in the market This is where the peanut processing experts Triotrade has peanut processing plants in Schweizer-Reneke (North West province) and recent new addition in Hoopstad (Free State province) along with a warehouse in Pretoria and production areas in the Northern Cape and Namibia Established in 1996 following the dissolution of the National Oil Seeds Board Triotrade boasts an astounding 28 years of experience in the industry The main peanut processing plant is located on the outskirts of Schweizer-Reneke in South Africa’s North-West Province This facility plays a crucial role in delivering higher-quality peanuts to both local and international customers which are particularly popular in markets such as Japan and Europe Triotrade Schweizer-Reneke has a processing capacity of +/- 15 000 tonnes of peanuts The peanuts are processed for the export market and also for local peanut butter and confectionery manufacturers such as RCL Foods State-of-the-art processing equipment and sorting machines imported from America are used to ensure superior product quality and efficient processing This plant features a modern drying facility that reduces aflatoxin risks associated with peanuts explained the process of the peanut processing plant The foundation of this business is the farmer who produces peanuts (without the farmer Triotrade is very particular with the type of peanut they process They supply their seed cultivars to the farmer with a sale and repurchase agreement for when the peanuts are harvested which entails the purchase of the whole harvest This encourages the farmer to take special care of the crop to achieve high yields and ensure good profitability The agreement has a minimum guaranteed price which gives the farmer a financial guideline to work from prior planting they are delivered to the different facilities so that the processing can begin Wessel says that there are seasons where there is a shortage of peanuts due to environmental and unforeseen circumstances Triotrade will import peanuts from Brazil or Argentina High temperatures stall the peanut growth process which restricts the yield of the farmer and also the quality of peanuts delivered to the factory The goal is to always have enough product for the customers that buys from Triotrade Triotrade is expanding its facilities and recently bought an existing peanut processing plant at Hoopstad in the Free State Wessel says there is always a drive to grow in the business The plant in Hoopstad is similar to the plant in Schweizer-Reneke and operating to full capacity for approximately six weeks during harvest time where a minimum of six thousand tonnes of peanuts are received This business expansion opens the opportunity to process more peanuts and thereby increase the supply for national and international clients the heart of the business is long-term client relations with peanut farmers and clients (local and international) It is important to understand clients’ needs to know exactly what they are looking for with regard to the peanut shape size and taste so that their needs can be met Triotrade’s vision will continue growing new cultivars to expand their business as needed and website in this browser for the next time I comment Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Teken in vir ons nuusbrief om op hoogte te bly van die nuutste in die landboubedryf The School Governing Body (SGB) at the Matloding Primary School has accused the provincial Education Department of failure to renovate the school It says this has exposed learners to imminent danger The SGB’s remarks follow the collapse of a ceiling in a classroom last week The department had previously committed to repairing the school that caters to both primary and secondary learners ” I appeal to the department to act quickly to respond to this situation With the coming heavy rains who knows what will happen There is a possibility that the roof may collapse and injure the children.”  Parents demand answers after school ceiling collapse in Mahikeng Please check your email and enter your one time pin below:   Open in Gmail Gabriel Crouse is a Fellow at the Institute of Race Relations When the North West town of Schweizer-Reneke hit the headlines it was with the hammer print of sure-thing racism Then it turned out that the first teacher who was suspended merely took “that photograph” – of a class of five-year-olds four black children at one table and 12 white at another Barkhuizen’s suspension was demonstrably premature extra procedural and has since been reversed Some parents living a block from Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke tell me flatly that Barkhuizen is “a hero” to them They say Barkhuizen deliberately took the photograph “to expose” her colleague for seating the students “in a racist way” They say “that kind of thing takes bravery and perhaps the mistake was made out of stupidity And then the conspiratorial offering: “You know maybe someone was trying to punish her for exposing the racist one – that’s how it is here with the powerful white racists I speak to these parents several days after Barkhuizen’s testimony goes public she explained that her action was nothing like whistle–blowing She was trying to help her colleague reassure parents with a few pictures of their children getting on with their first day of school the children were seated in patterns that mixed races but they tell me that I must have misunderstood “She [Barkhuizen] was exposing the racists let alone “that teacher” who was actually in charge of the class Hearsay evidence like this from anonymous parents in Schweizer-Reneke is the thread out of which my fellow journalists have woven their stories of righteous damnation I am much the same – dependent on witnesses in trying circumstances with mutually annihilating stories hurtling on to the record We share the duty to exercise doubt; to test the witness we share the duty to test our own preconceptions One parent who is happy to have his name on the record He has sent several children to Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke and his youngest started in “that teacher’s” class this year Doctor says he was late on the first day of school and so saw all the other children already seated The picture before him was just like “that photograph” He asked why the children were seated like so The teacher explained that she put the children together that way thinking it would comfort them during the pre-play introduction The teacher made assumptions about familiarity and language to support her guess at what would make the five-year–olds most comfortable “There was no racist intention in that thing,” Doctor says to me People have been far too quick to jump on Schweizer as a racist town and the school as a racist school and has had white visitors play with his children and to put me in touch with other black parents who are happy with the school He has positive stories to tell of good neighbourliness He wants me and the country to be wary of “opportunists” who get ahead by stoking racial resentment four days after Doctor made his case public on eNCA journalist Don Makatile delivered absolute judgements on the Schweizer-Reneke case such as this: “White residents see the world through a set of eyes different from the black perception.” Makatile is not the only one who believes in “the black perception” even if that means discarding individual black people who contradict that orthodoxy Makatile enjoys something approaching consensus among the ruling class replete with its academics and name-brand pundits that such a thing as “the black perception” exists I ask Doctor if he is afraid about this, afraid to go against the protesters’ unmovable conclusion that the class arrangement was racist and that authentic black people must all agree. He stops fidgeting with his hat and looks me dead on. advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads And those others…” – he repeats the word with bite – “above.” By his own account Doctor’s engagement with this teacher is limited At least he has had some direct interaction with her and knows her name I must doubt his expertise as a character witness given the short period of engagement whose child was in Olivier’s class all of 2018 She is afraid to meet so we put it off at first to talk about her child’s year in Grade R under Ms Olivier I ask sceptical questions and keep asking them M has the patience to repeat herself – “the seating plan was changed many times in the year” “I saw things myself when I made the drop-off” “everyone was friends in the class” – but after a time she sees her point is not getting through M has maybe a hundred photos that were WhatsApped to her from Ms Olivier’s class I see a kind of AfrikaBurn–inspired day-party the children sprayed purple with glitter dancing in the dust I see the dress-up day class portrait in which they all strike bravura attitudes and boast gap-toothed grins If there is any salient segregation it is of boys sometimes being separated from girls but for the most part the children are mixed cheerily along all axes Then I see M’s child on a raised stool surrounded by classmates looking up Shrieks of delight almost ripple from the picture “That was [his/her] birthday.” There is a sudden choke in M’s voice and a shimmer in her eye She has pride and warmth sharing this moment but I think on some level she is upset with me Upset that I might not see the individual in front of me being celebrated by the class birthday under Olivier’s arrangement one six-year–old child might become another pawn in a game infinitely far from innocence and grace I think: “What the hell am I doing here?” Then again maybe M is upset that her child could not go to school today because of the protests Maybe M is upset that her child has been near danger of late who cared for her child and gave supererogatory warmth for a year is being vilified across the country in absentia “Is it the right thing to show these pictures to me clapping her decolletage under a mother-knows-best easy smile The truth is the right thing.” I don’t think to ask M where exactly that fits in with “the” essentialist “black perception” instead of taking it for granted that whoever “separated” or “segregated” the class is guilty of racism an even more powerful writer than Matikane describing “that picture” like so: “A picture depicted them showing black pupils sitting far away behind the door from white pupils…(sic).” Except that there are no children “behind” the door; you can tell by looking at the picture right next to the text Seleka’s prose is so potent that it defies any ocular contradiction and two parents in Schweizer tell me they knew “that teacher” “must be racist because the black children were put outside the door” Some of the parents being cited in hit pieces might be just as informed as those who told me that Barkhuizen was a “hero” for deliberately stabbing Olivier in the back. In other words, uninformed but highly impassioned. That would be one explanation for Olivier’s name not coming up: those who accuse her of running a racist classroom do not know who she is. Alternatively, and bearing in mind that each report is distinct, some anonymous parents might have provided Olivier’s name and character portrait specifically, in which case the journalists are at fault for naming and shaming but then forgetting to actually do the naming bit. Olivier’s representatives tell me they have been given to expect that she and the headmaster will be fired as soon as the paperwork is in order. The anger is still there – in fact, on the national scale, it is rising. The hammer must fall. Only this time it will be procedural. The most difficult thing at this stage will be to find anyone whose child was actually in Olivier’s class who is willing to testify against her. I tell him that it might be out of his hands, that Olivier is expected to be fired. I think the line has gone dead, but then Modise speaks again: “It’s heartbreaking.” DM ' + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.webview_notification_text + ' " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_title + " " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_text + " the Democratic Alliance (DA) in North West paid a visit to Schweizer-Reneke to engage members of this rural community During our engagements with members of the community it became apparent that the failing ANC has managed to govern the Mamusa Municipality into the ground Only the DA has the experience in government to successfully improve on the ANC’s failures is forced to live under the failures of the ANC in government basic service delivery like refuse removal and the maintenance of roads are non-existent The Mamusa Local Municipality only has three service vehicles available one cherry picker and a tractor with a trailer The municipality owes service providers money and therefore they cannot release vehicles that are in for repairs The Sherriff has already attached municipal property in a bid to recover some of the debt owed which further undermines the ability of the administration to ensure effective service delivery Mamusa is burdened by an Eskom debt of R70 million and there is no proper arrangement in place to prevent the termination of electricity to the area Electrical infrastructure is simply not repaired or maintained The area is plagued by electricity supply problems and faulty/broken transformers cannot be repaired To top these serious service delivery issues etc are not paid over to relevant institutions either This flagship of ANC failure has also received disclaimers on their annual audit reports since the 2012/2013 financial year The residents of Mamusa are tired of empty promises of service delivery by the failing ANC on 8 May they will have the opportunity to remove the ANC through the ballot paper and vote for the DA the only party that can deliver services and govern in the interests of the people deliver quality basic services to all and keep rural communities safe through improved policing and root out corruption registered non profit organisation in South AfricaReg No: 011-895 NPO Home | Politics The Mamusa Local Municipality offices in Schweizer Reneke have been shut down by disgruntled community members Following a directive from the African National Congress (ANC) some councillors elected former mayor Doctor  Batsi as council Speaker Their contention is that Batsi does not qualify for the position as he allegedly does not have a matric certificate The move has divided both the council and the community Scores of disgruntled residents are outside the Mamusa local municipal offices where they are preventing anyone from entering the premises They say they will keep the municipal offices closed until the ANC deals with their grievance by acting against the councillors who defied the party mandate Coordinator of the ANC Interim Provincial Interim Committee in the North West allegedly met the disgruntled group sometime this week He made calls for the defiant councillors to be dealt with saying that the municipality will remain closed in the matter is not resolved The municipality has since appealed to residents to refrain from occupying the local offices as this is illegal tensions ran high in the municipality after Lesego Motlapele was voted in as Speaker:  Elana Barkhuizen found herself at the centre of a racial twitter storm recently after a photograph taken on the first day of school showcased a group of black Grade R children sitting at a separate table from a group of white students Barkhuizen said at a press conference on Tuesday that she had taken many pictures and sent it to at the parent-teacher chat group but also followed up that she would not take this “lying down” “People that know me say that I am a good teacher People who know me fight to have their children in my classroom People who know me know that I put my whole heart into my work for my learners I do not know what the people who tried to ruin my life wanted to achieve I just know that I had to stand and watch powerlessly how I was being judged from a stage I had to endure insults and I was told that I may never teach again but don’t be sorry for me – I will not surrender my colleagues and every child in South Africa who needs good teachers I will not be told what my worth is by people who do not know me I will embark on the journey and I will clear my name Barkhuizen then explained in an affidavit that she had done this for practical reasons and that the all children were moved around the classroom during the day to interact with each other but she was accused of being a racist and was suspended soon after the incident by the MEC of Education in North West Sello Lehari More pictures quickly started surfacing online showing how the kids in the classroom had actually been moved around and were all interacting with each other but whoever distributed the original photo had conveniently left these out Barkhuizen decided to then file court papers alleging that her suspension was factually flawed she argued that she should not have been suspended because she was not the teacher who separated the pupils adding that she was never given an opportunity to correct the misinformation Judge Connie Prinsloo said in her Judgment that it was illegal for the MEC to suspend the teacher as she is not employed by the Department of Education the court also ordered that Barkhuizen return to work immediately for every day for every part of this journey… I don’t know how to thank everyone And to everyone at Solidarity thank you very much ” Elana Barkhuizen said after the judgment Solidarity says it will be meeting with the school governing body to discuss Barkhuizen’s return to school Brent Lindeque is the founder and editor in charge at Good Things Guy Recognised as one of the Mail and Guardian’s Top 200 Young South African’s as well as a Primedia LeadSA Hero Comment * document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id" "a8a718b1078f9d2e9ab9da54b2339575" );document.getElementById("d2d9e305b5").setAttribute( "id" Would you like to receive truly phenomenal inspirational and good thing stories right to your inbox Then subscribe to our weekly GoodThingsGuy newsletter today I accept GTG’s Privacy Policy GoodThingsGuy is the home of everything good and those are the things that really matter We believe that there is good news all around us and over 1 million readers a month agree with us GoodThingsGuy was officially launched on the 1 August 2015 in order to only promote good news inspirational stories and promote only positive multi-platform media company that distills unique content across multiple media platforms We consider individual and corporate contributions through the website or mail us directly here. Be sure you have your GPS enabled and try again The school governing body of Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke  has denied that there is racism at the school This follows an image depicting Grade R learners divided according to race Different political formations picketed outside the school on Thursday Ellen Barkhuisen has been suspended pending an investigation into the matter Police were called in to monitor the situation as the picketers forcefully entered the school premises that he doesn’t accept the school’s explanation that the learners were separated because others don’t understand nor speak English and Afrikaans we highly condemn what happened in this school she is suspended with immediate effect.” Aaron Motswana says there’s no need to jump the gun “We are also shocked to learn about this particular barbaric incident On behalf of the ANC and the municipality that we lead “There’s a history of this particular area especially where Schweizer Reneke Hoerskool is affected.” Joe Mcgluwa is hopeful the investigation will be fair The School Governing Body has welcomed the decision to suspend the teacher it’s his prerogative to make that decision I can also say there’s definitely no racism in this school But we respect the MEC’s decision.” Parents fetched their children earlier as they were reportedly panicking when the picket gained momentum Racism in South Africa always has an excuse or explanation. Worse when it’s blatant racism acts. #LaerskoolSchweizerReneke — Madam Speaker ZA (@MadamSpeakerZA) January 10, 2019 North West Education MEC, Sello Lehari, says there’s a possibility that other teachers might be suspended at Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke who took the photograph of black and white Grade R learners sitting separately action should also be taken against the teacher who separated the learners in the classroom Lehari says action should also be taken against the principal for misleading the department about who actually took the picture “You cannot have a case of this magnitude and there’s no action against somebody If the first one who is suspended by the SGB and her role was just to take the pictures Racial tension remains high in the small farming town of Schweizer-Reneke in the North West Many black and white people remain divided after an image went viral on Wednesday depicting black Grade R pupils seated apart from their white peers at Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke You have selected an article from the AllAfrica archive, which requires a subscription. You can subscribe by visiting our subscription page. Or for more information about becoming a subscriber, you can read our subscription and contribution overview You can also freely access - without a subscription - hundreds of today's top Africa stories and thousands of recent news articles from our home page » AllAfrica publishes around 500 reports a day from more than 110 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals representing a diversity of positions on every topic We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you There was a problem processing your submission With tears welling in her eyes, Elana Barkhuizen addressed a room full of journalists on Tuesday This is the first time that she has spoken out since her suspension after a controversial photo she took went viral on social media on Wednesday The photograph shows black Grade R pupils at Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke in the North West sitting separately to their white classmates The Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke teacher fought back the tears as she told the media about her love for her learners purely because they are children,” she had said during the media briefing with Solidarity Union Solidarity will represent her and is set to file an urgent court application to lift her suspension They fight to have their children in my class “People know they can leave their children with me and I give my whole heart to these children.” which I had taken of a happy class of children on their first day at school I tried to calm them while I looked on as my life was destroyed.” Barkhuizen says she is ready to fight to clear her name I am going to take on these powerful people and win Solidarity’s Dirk Hermann says they want the Human Rights Commission to probe the actions of the MEC of education in the North West, Sello Lehari.  “The teacher – who is known for her kind heart and for the sandwiches she brings from home for hungry children at the school black and white alike – has been suspended by an MEC standing on a pedestal acting in a manner that is unlawful the bundu court found her guilty in public and she received a phone call to inform her of her suspension insisted on her suspension and no correct procedures were followed,” he explains During an interview on POWER 98.7 on Monday the MEC’s spokesperson Terry Sepeng left listeners scratching their heads He had been unable to provide clarity on the suspension of the Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke teacher POWER Drive host Thabiso Tema had pushed Sepeng for clarity on which teacher had been suspended to which he had responded: “The department suspended the right person Tema had quizzed Sepeng about whether it was the class teacher the teacher who had taken the photograph or the teacher who had separated the learners “We are not sure if it’s the class teacher the MEC met with the principal and the SGB and they gave us that name themselves We asked for the name of the teacher who separated the learners and who took the picture “Very soon we will be solving the problem” Sepeng had said during the POWER Drive interview on Monday Listen to that full interview podcast here Herman says Barkhuizen was not informed of the reasons for her suspension He says the school principal had called Barkhuizen saying she  was suspended with full pay and that he did not want her to hear it from the media Trade Union Solidarity says the case of the suspension of a Schweizer Reneke teacher will be heard in court before the end of this week It says Elana Barkhuizen’s suspension is unlawful. Barkhuizen was suspended last Thursday after taking a photo of white Grade R learners seated separately from their black classmates which is now representing Barkhuizen – says they will get their top legal team to take the matter to court to have her suspension lifted Solidarity has also provided other photos of a class from last year showing black and white children sitting alongside one another CEO Dirk Hermann says they have also requested DA leader Mmusi Maimane to reprimand his youth leader Leholo Mpheti for defaming the teacher “Solidarity will also request the leader of the DA Mmusi Miamane to take disciplinary action against his youth leader Solidarity is also considering civil action following investigations which may include defamation among others.” Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Mmusi Maimane says the controversial picture of Grade R learners at Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke reminds the country of its past Maimane says the picture which went viral on social media showing the learners segregated by their skin colour in class He was speaking during the DA’s public lecture about racism Scores of DA members around Potchefstroom in the North West attended the lecture conducted by Maimane The DA leader was accompanied by the provincial leadership a few weeks after the incident at Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke Maimane condemned the incident and says what the grade R learners experienced is utterly unacceptable in a democratic South Africa “We should have sought to protect our kids first before we can transfer any pains towards it because the last thing we need is another generation of South Africans who are re-rationalised We should have never [taken] actions that will inflame the situation This action came at the great cost and others might think it is for short term political games but in many instances they cause more damage,” adds Maimane Although Maimane says his party supports the investigation instituted in the school, he believes the suspended teacher Elana Barkhuizen is being victimised “Clearly the first and the biggest victims where children in that school we do not want our kids to be re-racialized in any form We want to build schools that are diverse and that are inclusive for all South Africans I thought the teacher Mrs Elana Barkhuizen who suffered a kind of swift mob justice so often comes with a story the school itself suffered tremendously and the children were traumatised,” he explains Maimane has urged all South Africans to take responsibility in condemning and ending racism “There are more of us who believe in equality of our society and we believe that actually the divide between the insiders and outsiders can be broken There are more of us who believe in towns and cities where the inequality is still displayed we can work together to build towns that are diverse.” “There are more of [us] who believe that things were tough in the last quarter of the century We will do better to work together to access opportunities because we do  not need to open wounds but rather we could build the generation of kids who will grow in South Africa for all.” The DA leader says those who are promoting racism should be dealt with harshly