The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education says normalcy has returned to St Faith’s High School in Rusape, Makoni District in Manicaland Province, following a dispute between parents and the school’s responsible authority the Anglican Diocese of Manicaland which disrupted learning.
The protracted stand-off between the church, the school authorities, and parents over the payment of a US$600 mission fund culminated in a march to Makoni District Education offices by learners on Wednesday, 14 February.
In a statement released on Thursday evening, the Ministry of Education said teaching and learning continued at the school without any further incidents. Part of the statement reads:
The Ministry today met with the members of the Responsible Authority, (the Anglican Church); the School Development Committee and [Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education] officials (Head Office, Provincial and District Offices). During the meeting, all sticking issues were resolved amicably.
The meeting agreed that normalcy returns to the school and that pupils continue to learn in a safe and healthy environment.
It was also agreed they continue working harmoniously and cordially to enable the provision of a conducive environment for effective teaching and learning.
The parties also accepted that they play different key complementary roles and agreed that if there are any differences they must be resolved through amicable engagement processes.
Ugly scenes were witnessed during the learners’ march as one of the police officers who was deployed to control the situation unleashed a dog on the learners, sending the children scampering for safety.
The incident was condemned by Amnesty International Zimbabwe which highlighted that peaceful protest is a human right and urged authorities to respect, facilitate and protect this right.
