The
government of Rwanda took a step toward eliminating religious
discrimination in schools by issuing an order that mandates respect for
the religious beliefs of students.
This is welcome news to students whose conscience does not allow them to participate in certain school activities.
In
Rwanda, most schools are government subsidised but administered by
religious organizations. Enrollment is open to the public, so students
who attend these schools may belong to various religions.
However,
some school authorities have rigidly enforced religious or patriotic
activities or required payment of church taxes. They have punished
students whose religious beliefs do not allow them to comply.
A
government minister in charge of primary and secondary education
characterised the prevailing attitude among some school administrators
this way: “Our students are not allowed to worship in a way that
contradicts our beliefs.”
But
government officials stepped in to correct the problem with an
executive order containing new regulations intended to eliminate
religious discrimination in schools. Article 12 of the government’s
Order No. 290/03, published in the Official Gazette on
December 14, 2015, states that each school shall respect the freedom of
worship of the students and allow them to pray in accordance with their
faith if their religion or church is legally accepted and if doing so
does not interfere with teaching and learning at the school.
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