Glen View 1 High School has been forced to release “A” Level results for one of its students after the intervention of human rights lawyers, who threatened to take the institution to court for withholding them.
BY SILENCE CHARUMBIRA
The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) had this week written to the school demanding that it releases the results or face court action. The school chickened out and released the pupil’s results.
ZLHR, in its letter dated January 26, said the pupil was now unable to further her studies, progress with her learning and fully actualise her potential because of the decision by the school to withhold the results to force her to pay outstanding fees.
“The sad state of affairs is not only deplorable, but unlawful and unconstitutional. The Constitution guarantees the right to education in Section 75 and children’s right to education in Section 81 (1) (f),” the letter read.
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“In the present instance, our client’s right to education stands violated by your refusal to release her results to her. This also has a bearing on her future life and livelihood as you are now bent on leaving her in a permanent state of limbo.”
The letter said in terms of the Constitution, any attempts by the school to recover any debts cannot be predicated on an ongoing violation of the law. “The best interests of the child are the supreme consideration and limiting a child’s rights as a debt recovery scheme cannot be countenanced at law,” the letter, copied to Primary and Secondary Education minister Lazarus Dokora, stated.
Efforts to get a comment from Dokora yesterday were fruitless, as his phone went unanswered.