EARLIER this year, the Nelson Mandela Museum issued a call for submissions as part of a Human Rights Essay Competition.
This required Grade 10 and 11 learners to pen down 3 to 4 pages of a well-researched and argued essay on which legal instruments they would rely on to foster and protect their rights, as enshrined in the constitution, if they felt discriminated against by other learners and educators owing to their sexual orientation.
The competition officially closed on 20th February, and the contest has seen a whopping 702 scripts pouring in from schools across the country.
The team of adjudicators, made up of a group of independent candidates, has already started the daunting task of picking the top 10 essays. They said they are looking for innovative ideas, critical thinking, and passionate advocacy.
The chosen entries will then go through to the next round of the competition, and they will orally present their essays at the Nelson Mandela Museum in Mthatha on March 13th. There, the top three will receive competition prizes, whilst the rest will receive participation certificates.
