Apologised for doing right

‘‘I have lived with my aunty since I was twelve, because it was at that age that things got rough for me. My mother and father were both jobless and had no income. Some nights we had to go to sleep hungry and wait until after school the next day for something to eat, whether it was porridge, bread or whatever was available, and it had to be enough for me and my siblings.

“One evening gunshots went off in the street. We crawled under the bed, because my aunty said that the shots could �ly through the window and hit us. The next day I got into an argument with my teacher at school because I was disturbed and could not concentrate. I kept on crying, even though I did my best to keep back my tears. He said that the classroom was no place to discuss gangsters and that we should work. I told him that he did not respect me and then he threw the chalkboard duster at me. It hit my head.”

Forced to apologise

This was what Jody's teacher threw at her head.

“I was so upset about all this violence in Bonteheuwel. Why did my teacher get so aggressive? That afternoon I told my aunty what had happened. She went to the principal the next day to complain and to tell him that hitting a child was illegal. And that it is forbidden by our country’s children’s rights laws. Then the principal got into an argument with her and asked her if there were any eyewitnesses. My school friends were too scared to speak up against the teacher. I did not blame them because there are many things adults can do to hurt children.

My voice for rights

“I was forced to apologise to the teacher or be expelled from school. I did not want to be expelled from school, so I apologised. In my head I said to myself that I was saying sorry for doing the right thing.”

My voice for rights

“I know my rights. As a Child Rights Ambassador, I am committed to using my voice and my story to stop violence against children and adults. One day, if God helps me, I want to study law so that I can take legal action against people who hurt children. I want to be a child rights advocate.”

Jody, 16