A Western Cape High Court judge, who dismissed with costs an application by a group of parents to set aside a decision to change the name of Hoërskool DF Malan, said in his judgment that a governing body is ‘best placed to change the name of a public school’.
The school in question was named after Daniel Francois Malan, the inaugural National Party prime minister of the apartheid era, from 1948.
TimesLIVE reports that, following calls for a change of name from former pupils, the matter was put the vote among parents on October 15, 2021; 85% of the 3 466 votes favoured the name being changed to DF Akademie and the governing body then ratified the name and submitted it to the Western Cape education department for confirmation.
However, four aggrieved parties – Barend Rautenbach, Johan Smit, Francois Malan and Barend de Klerk – challenged the move.
In dismissing their application, Judge Robert Henney said that, given who DF Malan was, ‘it is not surprising that the retention of such name would come under political scrutiny in a post-apartheid era and that people would demand a name change’.
‘It is for these reasons that the governing body decided to reconsider the symbols of the school which included the name of the school.’
Noting that a governing body is ‘best placed to change the name of a public school’, Judge Henney noted: ‘The governing body was alive to the sensitivity around the potential name change of the school because it had to engage with two groups, the DF Malan Must Fall group, and those who were outright opposed to the name change.’
Andre Roux, chairperson of the governing body, said they were pleased with the judgment, especially the finding that the process followed had been rational and fair.
It is not yet clear if the four objectors intend appealing the decision.
[Image: IISG, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=66552774]