Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2000. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2000. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Reuters NewMedia - July 19, 2000
The aim is to put a stop to sexual relationships between teachers and their female pupils in a country where at least one quarter of the population is infected with HIV. Schoolgirls are widely blamed for enticing teachers with their short skirts.
"The ban will go into effect next year and schoolgirls 10 years and older will be required to wear knee-length skirts," a source at the ministry of education told Reuters.
"We are living in tough times because of HIV/AIDS and...we need to address the problem of dress code among students because it all starts from there," the source added.
Girls face expulsion if they breach the ban.
In 1969, Swaziland banned all mini-skirts for morality reasons but the order lapsed because it was difficult to police dress codes in public. A ban in schools would be easier to enforce, the ministry official said. Like much of Africa, where the majority of the world's 34.5 million people infected with HIV live, Swaziland is struggling with an AIDS crisis.
At least 250,000 of the population of one million is infected with HIV, and life expectancy is predicted to drop to 30 years from the present 38. But Swaziland's efforts to curb the disease have been questioned by health experts. The country's parliament this week begins debating legislation for the mandatory sterilization of people infected with HIV/AIDS.
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