‘Leave our language alone’: Steve Hofmeyr protests against the Bela Bill

Controversial Afrikaans singer Steve Hofmeyr joined thousands of South Africans, along with ministers John Steenhuisen and Pieter Groenewald, in a march opposing South Africa’s new school legislation, the Bela Bill.

Like the singer, many believe that the education legislation recently signed by President Cyril Ramaphosa will “erode” their mother tongue in schools.

Sections four and five of the law proposes to give the Department of Basic Education the authority to override decisions based on school language policies and admissions.

STEVE HOFMEYR MARCHES AGAINST BELA BILL

On Tuesday, 5 November, a group of mainly Afrikaans South Africans marched against the implementation of the Bela Bill Act, specifically the language policies.

The protestors walked from the Voortrekker Monument to Freedom Park in Pretoria.

According to John Steenhuisen, the protestors were against “sections 4 and 5,” which he believes will deny Afrikaans learners the “constitutional right to learn in their mother tongue.”

Afrikaans singer Steve Hofmeyer also joined in and even performed entertainment for the crowd.

He posted on Facebook, “Leave our language alone and leave our children alone. It’s in your hands, Cyril. Remove Bela Bill and remove it now.”

He added: “We are taking back control of our children and should not test us on this.”

Ek ry sopas weg by Freedom Park nadat duisende van ons mense daar was. Betoog kom nie natuurlik vir Afrikaners nie maar…Posted by Steve Hofmeyr on Tuesday 5 November 2024

WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR AFRIKAANS SOUTH AFRICANS?

In September, President Ramaphosa signed off on the Basic Education Laws Amendment, commonly known as the Bela Bill.

However, he suspended the implementation of two controversial clauses –  sections four and five – for further consultations among the opposition.

According to SADTU, section four gives the Department of Basic Education greater control over admissions policy.

Section five will force the school governing body to submit the school’s language policy to the provincial head of department for approval. This means that the department could essentially select the official languages of each school in relation to the community it serves.

Many Afrikaans South Africans fear that this would “eradicate” their home language being taught in local schools. Others claim that the Bela Bill would serve parents and children who had been excluded from Afrikaans schools based on their inability to speak the language.