The Bonteheuwel Walking Ladies joined the International Women’s Peace Group to launch a peace project at Mimosa Primary School last week.
Soraya Salie, chairperson of the Bonteheuwel Walking Ladies, said the project aims to enforce the ethos of peace among children at a foundation level.
Pupils and teachers were given sunflower seeds to plant at the Bonteheuwel school last Wednesday, May 16.
Ms Salie said they want to spread the message of peace at as many primary schools as possible because of the high rate of bullying, which starts early and gets even worse in high school.
“Bullying is so rife at schools and we are hoping that this peace project will eradicate that, we are trying to intervene at a foundation level already and prevent it from going further,” said Ms Salie.
She said they hoped pupils would eventually learn about peace during Life Skills at school.
The group also used the time to speak to the pupils about child abuse and child protection and told pupils to speak up if they are experiencing abuse or know of people who are suffering from it.
“We also made them aware of how creative they can be when spelling by using their bodies to make letters and we also did some physical exercise with them,” said Ms Salie.
Deputy principal of Mimosa Primary School, Kenneth Reid, said the project was a good idea as many pupils are exposed to gangsterism every day.
He said he hopes the project will teach them that living peacefully is the normal way to live – instead of the violence and crime that they are constantly exposed to.
“Peace starts at school and we want to teach them how to behave normally. This project will be good for our pupils. Bullying is a major problem at all schools and has a negative impact on our pupils. We try our best to combat it and speak to our pupils regularly about bullying,” he said.
Mr Reid said he has welcomed the peace garden at the school: “Each class now has a flower box in which they have planted the sunflower seeds and they will look after it and watch it grow.”