Education department defends girls' right to slacks

The Gauteng education department has defended the rights of eight girls suspended from an East Rand school for refusing to wear skirts, the Saturday Star reported.

The girls wanted to wear slacks, but were allegedly suspended from Tholulwazi Secondary School in Tsakane as the principal told them not to return to classes until they "knew whether they were boys or girls".

The mother of one of the girls said the school demanded to see her child's birth certificate to verify whether she was female.

She told the newspaper she believed that the real reason behind the girls' suspension was that they were lesbians.

On Wednesday, the girls returned to school after around two weeks following the department's intervention in the matter.

Spokeswoman Phumla Sekhonyane said the department viewed the allegations in a serious light.

"No discrimination of any form -- including (that based on) religion, sexuality or creed -- is allowed in schools."