“People do not understand what the definition of bullying is; they think every little thing that happens in schools is bullying,” is what Greg Boatard, principal of Randfontein Primary School said after a parent had come forward with a complaint about bullying.
The parent claimed that his son was being bullied by three pupils of the school. He said the pupils were called to the principal’s office but said his son had started the fight with the three boys.
Contrary to what was said to the principal, the boy’s sister witnessed what had happened and alleged that her brother was defending himself against the three boys. Furthermore, the angry parent alleged that his daughter also was hurt in the skirmish.
After obtaining a medical report the outraged parent opened a case of assault with the intent to cause grievous bodily harm against the boys.
When Boatard was asked for comment on the matter, he claimed the “incident was not a serious matter”. He also claimed the matter had been dealt with, no disciplinary hearing was required and therefore none of the parties involved were suspended from school.
According to Phumla Sekhonyane, spokesperson for the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE), allegations of bullying are supposed to be acted on immediately. “Parents are informed of an incident. If found guilty perpetrators go through a disciplinary process and are suspended. Psycho-social support is provided to both victims and perpetrators.” This is supposed to happen in such cases.
According to the parent, the three pupils “are still provoking my son at school”. He claimed, “When I fetch my children from school, I see incidents where younger children are bullied in the open”.
When the matter was brought to her attention, Sekhonyane added, “The department strongly condemns any form of violence in schools”.
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