School bullying needs action plan

One SA Movement leader Mmusi Maimane was spot-on when he called it “a parent’s worst nightmare” – that their child had been bullied and assaulted at school, while other pupils looked on jeering and videoed the violence.

He spoke about a video which went viral on social media, showing a teenage girl at a Limpopo school being bullied and slapped.

The pupil is now reported to have died … whether as a result of the assault is not clear at this stage.

Outraged social media users have used the hashtag #JusticeForLufuno to build momentum for action to be taken.

It is disturbing that these sort of incidents are either becoming more commonplace, or we are noticing them more because they are posted on social media as sheer, macabre entertainment.

Undoubtedly, the prospect of becoming “famous” by perpetrating violence appeals to the worst of bullies.

Bullying is an act which thrives only when it can be seen, when the abuse can be witnessed – and applauded – by those with similar warped senses of amusement.

The education authorities must not only ensure Lufuno gets the justice she deserves, they must also put in place programmes to show impressionable children just how evil bullying is.