NATIONAL NEWS - The recent death of a 17-year-old girl, allegedly because of bullying, has sparked concerns about the growing problem of bullying in schools.
The concerns come after a Grade 11 pupil, from a school in southern KwaZulu-Natal, was found dead on Friday last week with a suicide note next to her.
KwaZulu-Natal Social Development MEC, Nonhlanhla Khoza, said the teen was allegedly bullied by her schoolmates, who constantly told her that she was ugly and teased her about the shape of her head.
KZN Department of Education spokesperson, Muzi Mahlambi, told Weekend Witness that the department will investigate the matter and take the necessary action.
Vee Gani, the chairperson of the Parents Association of KZN, said society has failed this teenager.
“If any child gets to a point where they kill themselves because of being bullied, that means we have degenerated as a society.
It means all of us have failed that child because they feel that they can’t talk to anyone and that the best solution or way out is to end their lives.
“It’s sad, a child lost her life when it could have been averted,” he said.
Gani said he believes there has been an increase in bullying incidents at schools.
“I think many cases go unreported, but it’s there and it is happening.”
He said in the past two weeks, two videos of schoolchildren assaulting one another were sent to him.
He said they haven’t been able to identify in which schools these incidents took place. Gani said he is also aware of a child who ended up in a disciplinary hearing on Thursday after he assaulted his bully.
He said the bullying had been going on for some time and that the parents had reported it to the school several times but the school failed to resolve it.
“The last episode happened when the bully came and pushed this boy and he reacted by assaulting him; he assaulted the bully.
“Now he’s sitting in a tribunal, having to answer to why he assaulted the bully, after the school failed to address it when the parents reported it.
It is extremely sad that we are affording the bullies more rights than their victims. “It shouldn’t be like that.”
Gani said schools are well equipped with knowledge of what to do if someone is being bullied. He said when the first report of bullying comes in, it must be dealt with decisively so that there is no re-occurrence of it.
“As custodians, whether it’s the principals, educators, governing bodies or management, you have to create a safe space for all children.
“Anyone who is creating a threat to other pupils at the school must be removed, even if it means expulsion,” he said.
Adults are also to blame
Lifeline executive director, Sinikiwe Biyela, said bullying was a serious issue and also agreed with Gani that it is indeed on the increase.
Biyela said bullying is a form of gender-based violence that gets little attention from schools, communities and from homes.
She said it was concerning that there is no focus on this form of abuse yet it causes a lot of emotional pain for those being bullied.
“It’s something we should be prioritising to protect our children,” she said.
Biyela said the onus lies mostly on parents to educate their children on bullying.
“Everything begins at home, so children should be educated from a young age on what is right, what is wrong and that we are all different.”
What is also concerning is that what you find is that parents are also culprits because you will find them gossiping or laughing about someone who is sick, disabled, overweight or has abnormalities.
“Children learn that such behaviour is acceptable. If we don’t watch what we say and mind our language, they will learn and assume that it’s fine.”
Biyela said some school teachers are also guilty of bullying children by ridiculing them if they perform poorly or using personal insults as a way to reprimand a misbehaving child.
“Teachers also play a huge role in either promoting the bullying or implanting the seed for bullying to grow at school.”
She said there is a need to educate teachers. She encouraged adults, at home and at school, to create safe spaces where they talk about bullying so that it is easily identified, reported and resolved.
