Environmental & Consumer Protection Foundation v Delhi (Supreme Court of India; 2012)

In response to a petition filed by an Indian charity, the Supreme Court of India directed the governments of all States and Union Territories to ensure that all schools, whether private or state-run, provide proper toilet facilities, drinking water, sufficient classrooms and capable teaching staff. The court held that, under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act (2009) and the Indian Constitution, central, state and local governments have an obligation to ensure that all schools, both public and private, have adequate infrastructure.

Mohini Jain v Karnataka (Supreme Court of India; 1992)

In this case, a resident of Uttar Pradesh state challenged a notification issued by the Karnataka government that permitted private medical colleges to charge higher fees to students who were not allocated 'government seats'. The Supreme Court of India held that the charging of a ‘capitation fee’ by the private educational institutions violated the right to education, as implied from the right to life and human dignity, and the right to equal protection of the law.

Some Children are More Equal than Others: Education in South Africa

 
Two decades after Apartheid was apolished, Some Children are More Equal than Others focuses on how the educational system in South Africa relates to the flagrant inequalities in the country and its still growing wealth-gap. In a nutshell, education in SA operates as a "Tale of two Systems." On the one hand there are 20 % of privileged people who send their children to a functioning schooling system. On the other hand, education is drastically failing 80 % of the children in South Africa. This self-perpetuating circle results in over 50 % youth-unemployment.

The Right to Education for Children with Disabilities in South Africa: SECTION27’s action from national research and litigation strategies to international advocacy

The South African Department of Basic Education has indicated that as many as 489 036 children with disabilities of a school going age are not attending any school at all. The 2013 General Household Survey indicates that of the children with disabilities who do not attend school, 67% report severe disabilities and would therefore require placement in special schools.

Date: 
14 April 2015

43: The Right to Education in Rural Mexico

The disappearance of 43 students of the rural Teacher Education School (Rural Normal School) in September 2014 in Ayotzinapa has deeply touched the heart of Mexican people. It has awaken global solidarity, and has shaken Peña Nieto’s Government. The context in which this takes place is important: a context in which the right to education in rural areas has always been at risk, and a human rights crisis that has gripped in the country over the last decade.

Date: 
30 March 2015

Economic and Social Rights in the Courtroom: A Litigator's Guide to Using Equality and Non-Discrimination Strategies to Advance Economic and Social Rights

The Guide identifies equality and non-discrimination strategies that NGOs, lawyers and activists may employ in seeking to advance economic and social rights (ESRs) before courts. It is also accompanied by an online Compendium of useful cases in which equality and non-discrimination concepts and approaches have been employed to advance ESRs.

The Right to Education: a Daily Challenge

On December 10th,  we celebrate Human Rights Day  in order “to bring to the attention of ‘people of the world’ the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) as the common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations” (UN General Assembly, 1950).

Adopted on 10 December 1948, the UDHR is the first international document, which formally sets out fundamental human rights to be universally protected.

Date: 
10 December 2014

“They Say We’re Dirty” - Denying an Education to India’s Marginalized

In 2009, India enacted the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, which provides for free and compulsory education to all children aged 6 to 14. However, the evidence presented in this report indicates that despite the 3 year deadline to implement the key provisions of the Act, it has yet to be adequately implemented.

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