KwaZulu-Natal – Wearing no underwear is not against the law, police told a Mandeni headmaster after he called them in to deal with three female pupils caught without panties on.

It was just one of many humiliations faced by three friends from Mbuyiselo High School in Mandeni who claim the often sweaty 17km walk to school caused a rash on their nether regions. Their solution was to not wear panties.

But last week when the principal heard of this, he asked a female teacher to check under their skirts and then called the police. The incident prompted a visit to the school by education department officials this week.

The Grade 10 girls said pupils who heard about this started teasing them, saying they were asking to be raped, then told the headmaster, who called them into his office.

“My two friends were already in the office when I got there. The principal asked a female teacher to check if we were wearing underwear.

“The teacher then led us to a side room and lifted our skirts individually,” said the 16-year-old.

“She questioned why we weren’t wearing underwear. We told her it was for health reasons, explaining we walk a long distance to school and the panties cause a rash. She said we were lying, rude and disrespectful.”

When the girls returned to the principal’s office, the police were waiting for them.

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