A recent bullying incident at a Phoenix school, resulting in four suspects aged between 13 and 15 appearing in court last week, brought the issue of child safety within educational institutions to the forefront.
On Friday, 15 August, Elijah Subramany, a Grade 8 pupil at Crystal Point Secondary School in Lenham, Phoenix, was attacked by a fellow pupil. His mother, Ruwaida Subramany, said the attack was prompted by the other pupil stealing Elijah’s pencil case. “My son initially reported to his teacher, that his pencil case was stolen. This was the reason he was victimised during break. There were no teachers nor prefects around the grounds, and only the head boy was present to rescue my son. My son did not fight back,” she said. Ruwaida Subramany added that the attack left her son with multiple head injuries and if it was not for the Head Boy, the injuries could have been more severe. The family opened a case with SAPS Phoenix.
KZN SAPS spokesperson, Colonel Robert Netshiunda, confirmed the incident.
Ward 52 DA councillor, Samier Singh, said incidents like these are “not acceptable and have no place in communities.” He added: “It not only threatens the safety of learners but also undermines their education and emotional well-being. I encourage parents, learners, and schools to escalate such matters immediately to the relevant authorities so they can be dealt with swiftly.” Singh stated that if such cases were brought to his attention, he would ensure they reached the relevant authorities and were dealt with.
The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education (KZNDOE) recently commented on the increase in bullying and school violence following incidents across KZN, including at Trenance Park Secondary School in Amaotana and Esther Payne Smith Secondary School in Pietermaritzburg. KZN MEC for Education, Sipho Hlomuka, said: “The department takes these incidents of violence in schools extremely seriously and is working closely with the police to ensure that those responsible face the full consequences of their actions. As a department, we condemn school violence. It has no place in our learning environments and in our communities.”
According to the KZNDOE’s School Safety Framework: “Bullying involves one or more people singling out and deliberately and repeatedly hurting or harming physically or mentally. Bullying has three components. It involves targeting one particular person or group repeatedly over a period of time. It involves an imbalance of power. Bullies have more power than the person or people being bullied. This power may come from, amongst others, differences in age, physical strength, and status or popularity. The goal is to harm the target by hurting them physically or mentally.”
To combat bullying, the KZNDOE advises schools to establish and enforce rules and policies related to bullying, assess what is happening, provide ongoing training on bullying prevention, deal appropriately with bullying, and establish or strengthen institutions to coordinate the school’s bullying prevention activities.
The school was contacted for comment but none was given at the time of print.
