The commission this week finalised its investigation, and found the school, the Head of Department (HOD), the North West Department of Education, the Education MEC, the North West Department of Education, and the Minister of Basic Education had, among others, failed to comply with legislation and policy, including the National Building Standards.
Three girls died when a fire broke out at the North West Secondary School for the Deaf in Leeudoringstad in August last year.
A further 54 pupils were admitted to hospital.
The Commission further found the respondents:

did not protect the Right to Human Dignity of the learners;
did not protect the Right to Life of the learners;
failed to adhere to the minimum safety and fire standards relating to fire safety on the school premises;
did not comply with legislative and policy imperatives for reasonable accommodation for learners with disabilities;
did not protect the rights of learners with disabilities to access education;
did not take positive steps to protect the learners, which was compounded by locking the doors to the residential facilities from the outside;
that there is systemic non-compliance with the minimum building, safety and fire standards for residential facilities in special schools in the North West Province.  This includes non-compliance at Hoërskool Wolmaransstad where the NWSD learners were moved after the fire.

“ The South African Council of Educators (must) institute disciplinary proceedings, within three months of receipt of this report, against employees and/or officials of the Second Respondent (HOD, North West Department of Education), responsible for school safety who failed and/or neglected to ensure that safety measures were in place at the NWSD on 24 August 2015.  Where disciplinary measures have already been invoked - either by SACE or the Second Respondent (HOD, North West Department of Education) – that a detailed report of the disciplinary steps taken in the matter (if any) be provided to the Commission within three months of the release of this Final Investigation Report.
“The SAHRC shall engage with the South African Police Service (SAPS) to establish and request that criminal proceedings be initiated against all implicated in the investigations by the SAPS,”the commission said in a statement.

Source: IOL