Satanists call for rights - Groups want to work in schools SATANIC groups are set to meet Gauteng MEC for education Panyaza Lesufi to ask that they be allowed to practice their religion in schools. Panyaza Lesufi told Sowetan on the sidelines of an announcement about matric exams that the groups approached him at a religious forum. I had a religious forum and everyone is invited. They were also in that meeting and asked that we allow them to also practice their religion in our schools, he said. Sowetan understands that the groups who go by the names of Pagans and Vampires also approached the previous MEC for education Barbara Creecy with the same request. Lesufi said the groups requested that they be allowed to practice and recruit pupils. Because of the risk and the danger involved, I declined. But I agreed to a one-on-one meeting with them and Im going to meet them when the schools reopen, he said. The department previously fought the matter in court as the groups argued it was their constitutional right to practice their religion in schools. Sowetan reported earlier this year that two pupils from George Khoza High School in Soweto died in alleged satanic ritual-related deaths. After holding a night vigil at the school with the hope of exorcising satanism, some pastors told Sowetan they had discovered satanic graffiti and symbols on some of the classroom walls and desks. According to the Gauteng Schools Education Act, each school should have a religious policy made by the school governing body after consultation and approval by the department. However, the act recommends that harmful religions be excluded from schools. Lesufi said since taking office in May he had distributed religious documents at schools for the spiritual upliftment of pupils. He said he gave a mandate to his team to ensure that each and every classroom has a religious text. He said 41000 Bibles have been distributed to schools across the province, as well as other religious books such as the Koran. Lesufi said he did not understand why there was a Bible in [almost] each hotel room but there was no Bible in each.
Posted on: Thu, 09 Oct 2014 08:38:07 +0000
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