Gauteng Education MEC Condemns Violence After Two Learners Are Stabbed to Death

• Two Gauteng pupils were tragically killed in separate stabbing incidents in Johannesburg and Ennerdale
• Gauteng Education MEC Matome Chiloane condemned the violence against learners and called for community action
• Psycho-social support services were activated for the affected students, educators, and victims' families

Justin Williams, a journalist at Briefly News since 2024, covers South Africa’s current affairs. Before joining Briefly News, he served as a writer and chief editor at Right for Education Africa’s South African chapter.

GAUTENG - Two Gauteng pupils have died after being fatally stabbed in separate incidents in Johannesburg and Ennerdale.

Two learners killed in stabbing incidents

Gauteng MEC for Education Matome Chiloane said he was devastated by the deaths of the two learners. According to the Gauteng Department of Education, a 17-year-old Grade 8 learner from Forest High School was allegedly beaten and stabbed on Friday, 20 March 2026, at Rotunda Park near the school after classes. The learner sustained severe injuries and was first taken to a local hospital before being transferred to another facility, where he later died.

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In a separate incident, a Grade 12 learner from Daleview Secondary School was stabbed to death on Monday, 23 March 2026, in an open veld while walking home from school. The department said both incidents are under investigation by the South African Police Service (SAPS), and no further details have been confirmed. Psycho-social support services have been activated and will be provided to affected learners, educators and the families of the victims.

Chiloane extended condolences to the families and school communities, stating that violence against learners, whether on or off school premises, is unacceptable. He called on communities to work with law enforcement to ensure those responsible are brought to justice and to help protect pupils so that schools remain safe environments for teaching and learning.

Other stabbing incidents

Briefly News also reported that an 18-year-old learner was stabbed to death at a school in Mhluzi near Middelburg in Mpumalanga as schools entered their second week of reopening. The incident occurred during break time. Police said three male learners went to the back of the school premises, where an argument broke out and escalated into a physical confrontation. Preliminary investigations indicate that a 20-year-old Grade 10 learner became involved in a physical altercation with the 18-year-old Grade 11 learner.

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There have been many similar incidents of violence in schools. Learners at a school in Lethabong, Tshwane East, received counselling after a grade 11 learner was stabbed to death in full view of his fellow learners. The suspect skipped school on the fateful day and waited for the victim after school hours before stabbing him to death.

The Hoerskool Roodepoort school principal was stabbed in Roodepoort, Gauteng, while she was trying to stop a fight between learners of the school and learners of West Ridge High School, a nearby school. She was wounded on the hand and was rushed to the hospital, where she was treated.

Source: Briefly News