Issued by Daniela Ellerbeck & Ismail Joosub on behalf of the FW de Klerk Foundation on 26/06/2024

The FW de Klerk Foundation Constitutional Programmes team is pleased to be in attendance at the CRL Rights Commission’s 5^th National Consultative Conference.

“The Foundation welcomes the raising of the issue of neglect of indigenous languages, especially in education, across the board, including by the COGTA Department’s Director-General, Mashwahle Diphofa,” says Ismail Joosub, Legal Officer of Constitutional Programmes at the Foundation.

“Language rights are strongly entrenched throughout the Constitution, which requires the Government to actively promote and elevate the use of indigenous languages. It must ensure that all official languages enjoy parity of esteem and are treated equitably,” says Daniela Ellerbeck, Manager of Constitutional Programmes at the Foundation.

“However, parity of languages remains unrealised: South Africa has 12 official languages, yet indigenous language speakers are struggling to access education in the official language of their choice. (This includes Afrikaans speakers, as Afrikaans-medium university-level education has been dramatically scaled down). This perpetuates language elitism and marginalises and disempowers those not proficient in English,” continues Ellerbeck.

The Foundation calls upon the CRL to make recommendations to the State to actively promote the use of indigenous languages, especially in education.