PHYSICAL ABUSE OF NON-SEXUAL NATURE BY EDUCATOR-COACHES IN SCHOOL SPORT

In South Africa, after a fourteen years of democracy and the promulgation of a Bill of Rights in 1994, a still increasing awareness of the importance of human rights prevails, which has a notable effect on education. Rapidly developing legislative provisions force educators, school management teams and governing bodies to adapt their approaches by utilising innovative strategies. Part of this scenario is the protection of students’ fundamental right to have their best interests be regarded as of paramount importance, as enshrined in section 28(2) of the Constitution (SA, 1996). Child abuse, as one form of gross infringement of abovementioned right, is a social and legal concern that is centuries old and seriously combated in most civilisations, but the occurrence of this type of criminal behaviour is rapidly increasing. In spite of the promulgation of various acts and large-scale campaigns to curb child abuse, the maltreatment and exploitation of children regularly make the headlines. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, widely accepted as the international norm in this regard, sets out the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of children. The Convention was signed in November 1989, and the United Kingdom ratified it i