Amnesty International South Africa has called for justice for three-year-old Unecebo Mboteni, who died after falling into a pit toilet at his preschool in Mdantsane in the Eastern Cape last year, saying it is “outrageous” no-one has been held accountable.
Unecebo died in April 2024 after falling into a pit toilet at Little Champions Day Care Centre. According to Amnesty International SA, his parents, Loyiso and Andiswa Mboteni, have yet to receive answers from the school or the department of basic education (DBE).
“It is outrageous Unecebo died after falling in a pit toilet surrounded by faeces and urine and to this day no-one, including the DBE and the school, have taken sufficient responsibility,” said Amnesty International SA executive director Shenilla Mohamed.
“Unecebo’s parents are not sure if the pit toilet he was found in has been removed. They told us they have not received any communication from the school or DBE since burying their child.”
Mohamed said the family recently learnt from the investigating officer it could take three to four years for police to complete a full investigation into Unecebo’s death.
“We cannot allow Unecebo’s death to be buried in silence or forgotten in the shadows. Unecebo and his family deserve justice and nothing less.”
Recurring tragedy
Unecebo is the third preschooler in the Eastern Cape known to have died in a pit toilet since 2018:
- in 2018 five-year-old Lumka Mkhethwa drowned in a pit toilet at Luna Primary School; and
- in 2023 four-year-old Langalam Viki was found dead in a pit toilet at her preschool.
Despite repeated government pledges to eradicate pit toilets, they remain in use in many rural and under-resourced schools.
Broken promises
Plain pit toilets were banned in public schools in 2013 under Minimum Uniform Norms and Standards for Public School Infrastructure in the South African Schools Act. The DBE committed to eliminating them by 2016, but the deadline has repeatedly been missed.
In 2018 the department launched the Sanitation Appropriate for Education (Safe) initiative to speed up the process, but Amnesty said many schools, particularly those outside the Safe programme, continue to rely on unsafe sanitation.
“We cannot have a single child using illegal, dangerous plain pit toilets 31 years after South Africa obtained its freedom. A child’s experience of education continues to depend on where they are born, how wealthy they are and the colour of their skin,” Mohamed said.
Amnesty is urging the DBE to include early childhood development (ECD) centres in its audit after responsibility for ECDs has recently shifted to the department.
‘His death will not be in vain’
Unecebo’s father said the family would not stop fighting for justice.
“My son died in a death trap set up for poor people. His death will not be in vain,” he said.
Amnesty International SA has taken up Unecebo’s case as part of its global Write for Rights campaign which mobilises thousands of people worldwide to demand accountability in cases of injustice.
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