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Country background information
South Africa
Lebanon
Ethiopia
South Africa
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South Africa fact box
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Comparable figures for the UK
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Capital:
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Pretoria
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Capital:
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London
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Languages:
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11 official languages including Xhosa, Zulu, Afrikaans, and
English
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Languages:
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English (official) also Welsh and Gaelic
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Religions:
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68% Christian. Traditional African religions and Islam also
followed
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Religions:
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about 8.4 million active participants, of whom 80% are Christian
of various denominations; significant minorities are Muslim,
Sikh, Hindu and Jewish
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Area:
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1,221,040 kmē
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Land area:
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245,000km
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Population:
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38 million
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Population:
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58 million
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Life expectancy at birth:
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64 years
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Life expectancy at birth:
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76 years
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Adult literacy rate:
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81%
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Adult literacy rate:
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99%
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Population with access to safe water:
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99%
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Percentage of population with access to safe water:
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99%
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Public expenditure on education (as % of GNP):
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7.1%
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Public expenditure on education (as % of GNP):
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5.3%
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GDP per capita:
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US$3,242
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GDP per capita:
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US$18,898
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About South Africa
South Africa lies at the southern tip of Africa. From 1948 until
1994 it was ruled by a government which imposed the system of apartheid,
or ‘separateness’. This political system was designed
to create a white state which could exploit black people for their
labour. Apartheid laws meant that non-white South Africans were
denied basic rights (such as the right to move about freely) for
many years.
As part of the apartheid system black children were educated to
become a labour force. In 1953, Dr Verwoerd, Minister of Native
Affairs declared, ‘When I have control over native (black people’s)
education, I will reform it so that the natives will be taught from
childhood that equality with Europeans (white people) is not for
them.’ Black people’s schools were overcrowded and poorly
equipped.
Protest grows
In 1976, the South African government made Afrikaans a compulsory
language in schools. Black children protested about being taught
in the language of their oppressors. They organised a protest which
was crushed by the police. Hector Peterson, a boy of 13, was the
first child to be killed, but hundreds more died in the protests.
For years to come thousands of black pupils stayed away from school
in protest. Young people missed out on their education but played
a key role in the fight for change in their country. In 1987, they
held a conference about children and apartheid law. When the United
Nations adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989
South African young people demanded their own charter of rights.
About the Children’s Charter of South Africa
In 1992 children’s workshops were held all over the country.
Each workshop drew up a list of demands and selected ten representatives
to attend a national Summit, which lasted five days. For the first
time a children’s charter of rights was written and approved.
In 1994, South Africa’s first democratic elections were held.
Black people were allowed to vote for the first time. The new government,
under President Nelson Mandela, incorporated the Children’s
Charter into the new National Constitution. Today children’s
rights are part of the highest law.
The government now faces the challenge of making society more equal,
but without spending more money. Two million children do not go
to school, but there are plans to make education compulsory over
the next decade and limit class sizes to 40 by the end of the 1990s.
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The Children’s Charter of South Africa
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Children should be treated the same, no matter what their
colour, race, sex, language or religion.
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Children have a right to a name and nationality.
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Children have a right to a loving and caring family,
a proper home, clothing, and healthy food.
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Children have a right to free, equal, non-racist, non-sexist
education.
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Children have a right to good health care and medical
attention and should be protected from drugs, cigarettes,
and alcohol.
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Children have a right to be taught about sexuality, AIDS,
human rights, child abuse, and how to protect themselves.
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Children have a right to be protected from abuse, neglect,
labour, and violence.
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Children have a right not to be held in prisons or police
cells.
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Children have a right to have a say in all matters which
affect them.
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Children have a right to practise their own religion
and culture.
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Children have a right to be placed in safe and secure
‘families’ when they are orphaned, abandoned,
refugees, or exiled.
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Lebanon
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Lebanon fact box
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Comparable figures for the UK
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Capital:
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Beirut
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Capital:
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London
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Languages:
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Arabic. French and English are also widely spoken
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Languages:
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English (official) also Welsh and Gaelic
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Religions:
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More than half the population are Muslim (Shi’a, Sunni
and Druze), the rest are Christian (predominantly Maronite,
Greek Orthodox, Greek Catholic, and Armenian)
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Religions:
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about 8.4 million active participants, of whom 80% are Christian
of various denominations; significant minorities are Muslim,
Sikh, Hindu and Jewish
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Area:
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10,452 kmē
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Land area:
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245,000km
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Population:
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3.9 million
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Population:
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58 million
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Life expectancy at birth:
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69 years
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Life expectancy at birth:
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76 years
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Adult literacy rate:
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92%
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Adult literacy rate:
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99%
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Population with access to safe water:
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94%
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Percentage of population with access to safe water:
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99%
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Public expenditure on education (as % of GNP):
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2%
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Public expenditure on education (as % of GNP):
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5.3%
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GDP per capita:
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US$3,000
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GDP per capita:
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US$18,898
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About Lebanon
Lebanon is one of the smallest countries in the Middle East. The
religious and ethnic background of its people is varied. Christians
have long dominated economic and political life. There are various
groups of Muslims, including Sunni, Shi’a, and Druze. Armenians
form a significant minority of the population. Palestinian refugees
first arrived in 1948, after the creation of the state of Israel.
Most do not have citizenship and still live in refugee camps on
the outskirts of the main towns. The civil war in Lebanon has often
been seen as a Muslim/Christian conflict, but its causes are more
complicated.
Independence
After Lebanon became independent of France in 1943 tensions grew
between those who saw Lebanon as an Arab nation and those who believed
the country should be closely linked to Europe. There was a brief
civil war in 1958.
Two other factors in Lebanon contributed to the outbreak of war.
Although parts of Lebanon were very wealthy, there was also widespread
poverty. The poor in the urban slums and the countryside were mainly
Muslims. The strong Palestinian presence of 280,000 refugees in
Lebanon (in 1975) threatened the government, particularly the Maronite
Christians.
War breaks out
In 1975 tensions erupted and civil war began after Phalangist Christian
militias* attacked a bus of Palestinians in Beirut. Muslims were
forced to leave their homes in Christian areas and vice versa. Over
the following years there were shifting alliances between different
Christian and Muslim militias. Syria and Israel both intervened
in the conflict. In 1982 Israel invaded for a second time to try
to remove the Palestinian Liberation Organisation which was a powerful
force in Lebanon.
During the Israeli invasion, Beirut was surrounded. Thousands of
Lebanese and Palestinian people were killed. With Israeli co-operation,
Christian militias murdered between 800 and 2,000 civilians in the
refugee camps of Sabra and Chatilla.
Israel was eventually forced to withdraw to southern Lebanon but
the civil war grew worse. Islamist militia groups began to take
hostages, including Western foreigners. Beirut became divided in
two, with a Christian government in the East and a Muslim one in
the West. The two parts of the city were separated by a ‘Demarcation
Line’.
The road to peace
In 1989, while heavy fighting continued in some areas, Lebanese
parliamentarians met and a peace agreement was signed. There was
to be an equal balance between Christians and Muslims in parliament.
Two years later, the rule of the large militias was over. Only Hizbollah,
an Islamist group, continues to fight against Israel which still
occupies southern Lebanon.
After more than 20 years of war, Lebanon is rebuilding. A ten-year
reconstruction project called Horizon 2000 has been launched. It
intends to bring foreign investment to Lebanon. The government has
argued that the benefits of economic growth will trickle down to
the poor. But poverty and the social tensions that spring from it
are still major problems.
*Militia -- people who are trained like soldiers, but are not
part of an official army.
Ethiopia
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Ethiopia fact box
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Comparable figures for the UK
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Capital:
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Addis Ababa
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Capital:
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London
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Languages:
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Amharic is the official language. Orminya, Tigrinya, Afar,
Somali and others are also spoken.
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Languages:
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English (official) also Welsh and Gaelic
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Religions:
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about 50% Christian, 50% Muslim.
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Religions:
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about 8.4 million active participants, of whom 80% are Christian
of various denominations; significant minorities are Muslim,
Sikh, Hindu and Jewish
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Area:
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1,221,900 kmē
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Land area:
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245,000km
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Population:
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54 million
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Population:
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58 million
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Life expectancy at birth:
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46 years
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Life expectancy at birth:
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76 years
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Adult literacy rate:
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34%
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Adult literacy rate:
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99%
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Population with access to safe water:
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25%
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Percentage of population with access to safe water:
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99%
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Public expenditure on education (as % of GNP):
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not available
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Public expenditure on education (as % of GNP):
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5.3%
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GDP per capita:
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US$97
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GDP per capita:
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US$18,898
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About Ethiopia
Ethiopia has been a crossroads of civilisations and peoples for
thousands of years. The kingdom of Axum was wealthy and advanced
at the time when the Romans ruled Britain. Ethiopia traded with
Egypt and Asian countries.
The steep mountains and valleys kept Ethiopia isolated from its
neighbours. It was never colonised. Although the Italians invaded
in 1896, they were defeated at the battle of Adua, and retreated
to the coast and the north, in what is today Eritrea. During the
Second World War Ethiopia was occupied by the Italian fascist army
under Mussolini. The Emperor Haile Selassie, of Ethiopia, went into
exile in Britain. He returned in 1941 and ruled until 1974.
The path to war
Ethiopia contains a large number of different peoples. There are
64 major ethnic groups, and more than 250 distinct languages are
spoken. Ethiopia has been ruled by Amharic-speaking people for over
100 years. The neglect of other ethnic minorities is one of the
root causes of war.
Over the last 30 years, Ethiopia has seen almost constant civil
war. Rebel groups in different regions have fought against central
control. The country has suffered from several serious droughts.
Wars helped to turn the droughts into famine. In 1984--5 an estimated
half-million Ethiopians died in famine.
Eritrea won its independence from Ethiopia in 1991. The Tigrayan
and Oromo peoples also wanted independence and overthrew the unpopular
socialist government in 1991. Since then the country has been ruled
by a moderate regime, and elections were held in 1994.
Today nine out of ten Ethiopians live in the countryside, although
towns are growing fast. The country is highly dependent on agriculture
and over 65 per cent of Ethiopia’s income comes from coffee.
A large proportion of Ethiopia’s population is under 16 years
of age. Spending on education has increased in recent years but
less than a third of children go to primary school. Fewer than two
in ten children go to secondary school.
Shaping the peace
Now that peace has returned to Ethiopia, people have a chance to
plan ahead and rebuild their lives. However, the economy is still
very weak. If coffee prices fall, the government has less money
to spend on vital health and education services. Cultivable land
in Ethiopia is scarce. Only about 13 per cent of the land is suitable
for growing crops, yet three-quarters of the population depend on
agriculture for their living. The agricultural highlands area is
overcrowded and there are problems with soil erosion.
The Ethiopian government is encouraging tourism as a way of earning
money. The numbers of tourists are rising now that peace has returned,
but there is strong competition with better-known destinations such
as Kenya.
Lesson plan: The next generation
| Lesson plan: It's not Fair
| Lesson plan: From moral
to legal rights
|
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