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VICKY ABRAHAM
THE cry of a majority of children in Africa and South Asia is equal treatment for everyone, especially the less privileged.
This is a message that came out strongly during interviews conducted by Inside Education with children from Botswana, South Africa, Nigeria, and India, as 166 cities globally are primed for the commemoration of the Nelson Mandela International Day on Monday, July 18.
Inside Education further motivated children to send a written essay or drawing of the late President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela.
Born on 18 July 1918, Nelson Mandela spent 27 years of his life incarcerated for his fight against racial discrimination meted out at black people by the apartheid government. Upon his release from prison, he led South Africa into democracy as the first black President in the country.
Based on the significant role that Mandela played toward the liberation of his country, in 2010 the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) declared his birthday, 18 July, an internationally celebrated day – the Nelson Mandela International Day.
As part of the celebration, the public, schools, businesses, and governments often devote at least 67 minutes of their time to making the world a better place.
Schools often organise activities for children as part of the celebration of this prestigious event.
However, due to the third-term closure of schools, most children from Mandela’s own country will not celebrate the prestigious event. But this did not deter them from sharing their views about Mandela and the changes they yearn to see in honour of his legacy.
Since schools in Botswana, Nigeria and India are not yet closed, children from these countries will celebrate through presenting written speeches about Mandela before their peers during class lessons. Their teachers will also further educate them about him and his history.
Responding to Inside Education, Chief Executive Officer, Ms Ashika Onita Nazareth and Dr Ambika Nazareth who is the founder and president of Little Infant Primary and High School in Mysuru, Karnataka, India said as part of the pre-celebration the school educated students about Mandela.
“It was an excellent inspiration to learn about him. Students began to enquire about the significance of their own names when Ms Ashika Onita Nazareth mentioned that Nelson Mandela lived up to his name,” said Dr Nazareth.
Apart from his fight against injustices meted out at the black generation, Mandela had a heart for children and the poor. He was also known for emphasizing the importance of quality education.
The Nelson Mandela Foundation’s (NMF) Communications Officer, Morongwa Phukubye confirmed his love for children during an interview with Inside Education, stating, “Madiba (Nelson Mandela) always listened closely to what children and young people shared with him. He encouraged a spirit of inquiry and critical engagement.”
The Foundation’s plea to all who support the 67 minutes campaign is to “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”
Although the Foundation’s theme for this year is centered around climate change, food security, poverty and inequity, there are numerous things that it encourages the society to do to keep Mandela’s legacy alive.
Inside Education interviewed children from South Africa, Botswana, Nigeria and India to share their views about Mandela and this significant day.
Their grave concern was slavery, discrimination against the poor and the high rate of crime in society.
The children interviewed were below the age of five whilst Mandela was alive as they were born between 2008 and 2010. Yet, the knowledge they gained about him has made them to yearn to walk in his footsteps.
People Should not be Treated Like Slaves – Equal Treatment for All
In honour of Mandela, a 12-year-old Nigerian who envisions himself as a doctor after completing school, Wisdom James told Inside Education in a telephone interview that “the less privileged are treated badly and I don’t like that.”
He urged nations to treat the poor equally with kindness and “not like slaves.” Wisdom is in JSS2 Class (equivalent to Grade Eight in South Africa) in Iloro Junior Grammar School in Iloro in Lagos, Nigeria. As future doctor, Wisdom said he desires to touch lives by “treating people who are sick.”
His peers, 12-year-old twin brothers Meshack and Shadrack Peter also from Nigeria, shared the same views, that everybody should be treated equally.
Shadrack, who wants to work as a lawyer, has the heart for fighting for people’s human rights.
Just like Mandela who qualified as a lawyer and founded the first attorney firm run by black partners in South Africa, Mandela and Tambo in Ferreirasdorp Johannesburg, South Africa, Shadrack envisions himself ensuring that nobody does anything contrary to the law.
“I love fighting for the rights of people. I want people to be treated the same. I want to make sure that nobody is against the law.” explained Shadrack, a member of Christ The King Catholic Church.
His twin, Meshack, who agreed with him said, “I do not want people to be treated badly. I want everybody to be treated equally and not to be treated like they are slaves because they are human despite age, race, and background.”
Meshack and Shadrack are JSS1 learners (equivalent to Grade Seven in South Africa) at Onilekere Junior High School, Ikeja in Lagos, Nigeria.
Education – The Most Powerful Tool
Mandela is known for the love he had for education. He once said, “no country can really develop unless its citizens are educated.”
Based on that, 14-year-old Grade Seven learner of High Vision School in Gaborone in Botswana, Kaelo Ndibi, yearns to expand the educational sector in Botswana. He believes that education can be possible for every child, by including recreational activities that cater for learners who are not advantaged in excelling in academics.
He explained that the education sector should not only focus on academics but work hand-in-hand with recreational activities.
He added, “I feel like we are all focused on one lane, and that is academics. But there is so much more to explore beyond the norm. I would throw in many resources into the educational sector if I was the president. I would allow diverse morally correct platforms where kids can go to for recreational activities. This would reduce a lot of ungodly and dangerous activities that we see kids my age engaging on these days.”
Knowledge Makes the World a Better Place
In Johannesburg, South Africa, the outcry of a Grade Five learner at Curro Academy Wilgeuwel, Johannesburg, Lulama Zondi (10) is to learn more about the slavery the Black South Africans faced. Although she learnt from school that the black citizens were segregated from the white race, she believes that there is still more she needs to learn.
She yearns for young black students to gain more knowledge about the apartheid regime and how their fellow black brothers and sisters were mistreated.
“I see this in most cases, us as students, we don’t learn a lot about apartheid and what happened back then. How we were treated because they do teach us about things like that but …if I were a President, I would teach the young black students more about where they come from, how they were treated, and how their ancestors were treated,” expressed Lulama who envisions herself as scientist.
She explained that she learnt from school that apartheid “was the time where segregation happened. Black people lived here, and white people live there. White people had better education and a better life. That’s all I know about it (apartheid). Although my teachers didn’t use the word segregation, they just said apartheid.”
She believes that even though Mandela deserved to be showered with gifts that are worth a lot of money for working tirelessly to end apartheid, she would have empowered him with more knowledge, had she been given the opportunity to bestow the young Mandela with a gift.
“I know that he made the world a better place because he helped us (South Africa) to end apartheid. But I would have given him more knowledge. I believe that could have helped him more to make it (the world) even a much better place. I know he deserved more (than giving him knowledge as gift), but I think knowledge is more powerful. To the older Mandela, I would have given him lots of money because he deserved it for helping us a lot. He worked very hard to show that all of us can be equal,” said Lulama.
Achieve the Economic Objective of Equitable Distribution of Income – Equal Treatment for All
Shifa Ayub and Madeeha Banu from India desire a change in the social system, economic and financial policies of India.
Shifa who is a Grade Nine learner of Little Infant School in Mysuru, Karnataka, India said that had she been a President, she would make distribution of income between the poor and rich more equitable.
Madeeha, a Grade Ten learner also from Little Infant School, wishes that the orphans, disabled, and elderly to be specially treated. She would therefore implement a feasible social security system for such citizens.
Shifa explained she would, “work on reformation of economical and financial policies of the nation to ensure much of national incomes is collected on equitable basis and is allocated for development sectors and rural areas.”
Madeeha said she would implement, “a social security system for our seniors, orphans, handicapped people so that they are treated as dependent. Religious equality treating all religion the same.”
The Nelson Mandela Foundation’s Message to the Children:
Phukubye said the NMF urges the children who were interviewed and their peers across the world to “keep working to make a world in which humanity truly belongs and everyone thrives.”
INSIDE EDUCATION