Four schoolchildren in South Africa are to face a disciplinary hearing over a viral video in which black students are seen being auctioned off as slaves, the authorities in Cape Town have told the BBC.
The footage, showing pupils in a cage while other students bid for them, caused outrage when it was shared on social media last Friday.
It was filmed at Pinelands High School and involved students in grade eight, which is the first year of secondary school when pupils are aged around 14.
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has said it has opened its own investigation into the incident.
It comes as two other schools in the country – where white-minority rule ended three decades ago with the election of anti-apartheid fighter, Nelson Mandela, as president – are dealing with alleged racist incidents.
“It is disturbing that these incidences continue to occur 30 years into democracy,” the SAHRC said, adding it was even more distressing that they had occurred in schools.
The four Pinelands High School students believed to be behind the mock auction are currently suspended.
“The investigation is ongoing and nearing completion with 24 learners having been interviewed in the first two [school days] since the allegations were made,” Bronagh Hammond, spokesperson for the Western Cape Education Department, said on Wednesday in a statement sent to the BBC.
“Steps will also be taken against other learners who may have transgressed certain provisions within the code of conduct,” she added.
—BBC