The Impact of Kwazulu-Natal Provincial Language Policy on Sesotho Speakers at Nquthu

Abstract

Following the approval of the National Policy Framework and the enactment of Sections 6, 9, and 29 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act No. 108 of 1996), each province in the country was required to create its language policy following the National Language Policy Framework. This was done to give all people residing in that province access to information as informed by Act No. 2 of 2000 as well as The Pan South African Language Board on Act No. 59 of 1995. Following those provisions, the province’s language policy solely encourages the use of the official languages spoken in Kwazulu-Natal, which are Afrikaans, English, isiXhosa, and isiZulu, while marginalizing Sesotho as one of the official languages spoken at Nquthu. The central aim of the study was to investigate the impact of this policy on Basotho speakers at Nquthu, Kwazulu-Natal–South Africa. The study used qualitative document analysis to interpret, explain, and explore issues related to the use of the current language policy at KZN on the Basotho people. The study collected documents from schools and the internet premised on language rights as its theoretical base. The findings of the study indicate that there is no support that Leneha-Tumisi Secondary School is receiving from the district as a result the Basotho residing at Nquthu are faced with the situation of opting for isiZulu as a home language for their children instead of Sesotho. It is recommended that all stakeholders play their part in supporting Basotho at Nquthu. Keywords: Constitution, Language Policy, Language Rights, Basotho, Kwazulu-Natal(KZN)