DURBAN - A SOCIAL media lawyer said cellphone recorded videos of schoolchildren being assaulted and bullied must be used as learning and teaching opportunities for pupils in a non-judgemental way.
This followed a bullying incident that was captured on camera and shared on Facebook, calling for the department to intervene and for the bullies to be arrested. In the video, pupils from the high school are seen standing with their phones recording while a schoolgirl is being slapped repeatedly by three other schoolgirls.
A bullying awareness campaign is being planned at the high school, which cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim, who is a minor.
On Monday, the high school’s school governing body (SGB) chairperson Thamsanqa Khumalo said the police, the parents of the attacked child and the alleged victim, who is a minor, discussed the incident. Khumalo said a mutual agreement was reached with all parties as the schoolgirls were friends.
“The pupil who was attacked forgave those who had hit her. They even made a video of the apology so that they could share it on social media.”
He said while the incident happened outside school, they had to intervene as the children were identified by their uniform.
Sarah Hoffman, a social media lawyer and co-founder of KLikd, said there were two things that needed to be kept in mind regarding bullying – the bystanders and filming incidents of bullying.
“The conversation we need to have with our children is that in standing by and watching and filming someone being beaten up, that too is a form of bullying. We need to empower students with courage to stand up against bullying and start having these conversations. We need to use videos and incidents such as these, as tragic as they are, as learning and teaching opportunities for our students in a non-judgemental way,” said Hoffman.
She said that when it came to the filming of bullying incidents, while a video can be helpful from an evidence point of view, sharing such videos was harmful and painful to the victim.
“It often creates a secondary harm far more than that caused by the actual act of bullying. If you do film for whatever reason, absolutely do not share it on social media; it must be given to authorities.”
The provincial Department of Education said it prioritised the matter and it was receiving urgent attention with the tribunal set down for Wednesday (tomorrow).
“Our position towards school bullying remains, in that we do not tolerate such behaviour. This is completely unacceptable and no pupil should ever be subjected to such humiliation and suffering at the hands of another. Perpetrators will definitely face the toughest consequences,” said Education MEC Kwazi Mshengu.
Mntomuhle Khawula, an IFP MPL who sits on the Education Portfolio Committee, said it was saddening to see girl children harming another schoolgirl, especially in a country where calls to protect women and children were constantly made.
“This is a disgrace. It shows the kind of community South Africa has become, violent and angry. This is concerning as it shows that as a society we distance ourselves from the upbringing of other children not being our own. It takes a village to raise a child. It should have been stopped by those who witnessed the incident. This one incident is just the tip of the iceberg, we don’t know how many others go unnoticed.”
DA Education spokesperson Imraan Keeka described the attack as vicious and sickening to the core.
“Worse still, there is more than one person involved in this vile and detestable assault, while some others are despicably jeering and recording on the sidelines. This is a criminal act, and those who are responsible for the assault must be criminally charged.
“A strong message was sent earlier this year when the perpetrator of another horrible bullying act was met with the might of the law and should be a lesson for all. There is no doubt in my mind that the book must be identically thrown at the perpetrators of this odious offence,” he said.
Keeka felt the department should investigate the matter fully and involve the police and arrange urgent counselling for all involved.
“I urge people who come across the video clip not to share it … it may have legal implications for those who do.”
Daily News