Issue 23, Vol 7: 7 October 2010 *In this issue:*
- In celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the formation of SADTU and World Teachers Day<http://www.ycl.org.za/main.php?include=pubs/bot/2010/issue23.html#one> In celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the formation of SADTU and World Teachers Day The National Congress of the South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU) is in session as we write this edition of the Bottomline. This is an important session as it also coincides with the 20th Anniversary of SADTU, which was launched amidst serious opposition from the Apartheid regime and serious persistence from the "working class" within a profession that was regarded as immune from trade unionism and the ultimate tradition of the working class. We bow in respect before those who championed the launch of the biggest teacher's trade union in the country and amongst the largest in the world. This Congress also comes a week after the celebrations of the World Teachers Day on the 5th October, a United Nations recognised day in furthering the right to decent work for teachers and the improvement of the learning environment for the child. In the last few months, teachers, nurses and the entire public service where on fire. Hundreds of thousands went out on strike to demand better wages. This was no ordinary strike as those regarded as professional and essential labour power went out to show the whole country that even those who are responsible for the education of the child or the life of the population has equal and similar demands of a better life. Teachers where the most vilified coming out of the strike, and they were the most bitter and angry given government's refusal to accede to the 8,5% and the R1000 demands for wage and housing increase respectively. The vilification of the teacher came mainly out of parent's frustration not only with the non-education of their children, but also that teachers are regarded in many of our communities as parent figures who takes responsibility of the child when the parents are at work. Many of the social and political commentators accused teachers of taking their children to private and model C schools where there was uninterrupted learning and teaching, and inevitably, unavoidable total success in these schools at the compromise of working class and poor families who cannot afford the exorbitance in fees required by some of these schools. We must emphasise three things from this onset. The constitutional right to strike by workers should never be compromised whatever the cost as this remain the only weapon in the hands of the workers, including teachers and nurses. Secondly, the right to quality, public education for every young person in this country should never be forsaken, whatever the conditions that anybody who is supposed to participate in the provision of such a tight should. This also extends to the right to life and quality healthcare, but this debate we should keep for another day when we engage with the roll-out of the National Health Insurance. Thirdly, it remains the responsibility of government to ensure that teachers are paid better so that they are in class, on time teaching. This was one of the key clauses in the ANC Elections Manifesto, and the improvement of the working conditions of teachers in particular and of the public sector in extra particular should never be remove from the agenda. I am raising these issues provoked by the President of SADTU, Thobile Ntola, in his presidential address to the National Congress. The emphasis of the president of SADTU on the need for teachers to take their profession seriously, and that they should not be masters of strikes and wage demands only, and his appeal for teachers to respond to their revolutionary duty of ensuring that there is learning and teaching cannot be overemphasised. This goes to the heart of what we mean by cadre development, deployment and revolutionary trade unionism. This obviously speaks to the contradiction of the solidarity required by society towards trade unionism, a significant majority of whom depend on services provided by the public sector for their survival; and the need for them to support a legitimate, legal and necessary strike. Many of the parents who watched the longest public sector strike may have silently supported it, but raised questions around what it means for their children not to be educated or their loved ones not receiving proper health care. This speaks to the revolutionary role of the strike to mobilise society in understanding why there may be no teaching, nursing and all other services that are dependent on the public service. All of these are fundamental rights covered in the constitution, which limits the right of the child to education and the right of every citizen to quality health care. However, we should emphasise that the answers to these questions where unfairly required from teachers, when government should have been on the spot as the custodian of service delivery to the entire society. When teachers or nurses go on strike, the entire community should be on strike in understanding of and support that the education of their children or the health of the country cannot be subjected to demoralised teachers and nurses. When the President of SADTU said that the role of teachers cannot be associated merely with action of strike, he struck the cord where it mattered the most as many of the teachers are compromised by the few whose role has been that of freeloaders hiding behind the hard work and dedication; priding themselves to have produced engineers, more teachers, doctors, nurses and other professionals. Equally, it was very disappointing that members of SADTU booed the Minister of Basic Education. Being one of the recipients of this barbaric act (which seems to be reserved for leaders of the Leagues, with the President of the Women's League joining me and the President of the ANC Youth League) I do not think that this is the best way to express political differences. This also happened in a platform where the teachers who are delegates to the congress would have had an opportunity to listen to and engage the Minister. This act of booing leaders because we do not agree with them should be an act of the past, and can never be condoned. I applaud the leadership of SADTU for having stood out against the minority that sought to mirror this august, 20thAnniversary Congress with negative reporting and unnecessary attention as having been the congress that degenerated to booing. It is time that the leadership of the alliance reign in on such a behaviour and build a new and better platform to facilitate helpful engagements within alliance structures. We cannot have a situation wherein people, everywhere and in every structure, arrange booing for people they do not agree with solely to achieve a distraction of their Conferences and loose a platform to express issues that affects their sector. By way of conclusion, parents (of whom some are teachers) and learners to restore confidence in the culture of learning and teaching, we have to ensure that we emphasise on peoples education for people's power, but more importantly, on the need for both learners and teachers to recommit themselves to the values of learning and teaching without compromising the entire society. If we are to make education fashionable, it has to start with the education of the child, especially the black child. Moving forward, we should all, without expectation of remuneration, go all out to support the initiative to ensure that all learners in schools catch up before their Grade 12 or general examinations in the other grades, and that we will never disappoint the majority of children in this country. We have so much poverty, unemployment, skills shortage and many other challenges facing this country. We cannot sacrifice the one at the expense of the other. Quality Public Education is our right, and no one should stop us in our quest for its demand. Thats the Bottomline, cos the YCLSA said SO! *Buti Manamela National Secretary of the YCLSA* -- Gugu Ndima +27 76 783 1516 -- Gugu Ndima +27 76 783 1516 -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. You don't have to put anything in the message part. All you have to do is to send an e-mail to this address (repeat): [email protected] .
