Two pupils stabbed in separate incidents

PARENTS are responsible for their children’s lack of socially acceptable behaviour in schools, says Vee Gani, chairperson of the Durban South branch of the KZN Parents’ Association. Gani was reacting to news of two stabbings at two schools yesterday.

In one incident, a 17-year-old Grade 9 pupil was repeatedly stabbed in what was believed to be a revenge attack at Trenance Park Secondary School in Verulam yesterday morning.

The boy was stabbed in the chest, arm and ribs, according to paramedics.

“According to the victim, he was standing near the tuck shop when he was approached by a Grade 11 pupil and two of his friends. One of the pupils drew a knife and without warning repeatedly stabbed him before they fled from the school,” said Prem Balram of security company Reaction Unit SA (Rusa).

“The incident occurred in the presence of other pupils. The stabbing is believed to be related to an incident that occurred at the school last Friday, whereby one of the boys accused the victim of stealing his girlfriend. The victim was transferred to hospital in a stable condition.”

In Pietermaritzburg, a 14-year-old boy was in hospital after an incident at a school in Manor. He sustained stab wounds to his arm, shoulder and back.

Gani said the problem was that the South African Schools Act and the law treated school children differently, despite their violent and criminal actions.

“You can’t have schools where other pupils’ safety is compromised. Stabbing is attempted murder – it is not like bunking class. We can’t have these schools hijacked by these thugs because their sole purpose is to (destroy) learning. It’s just a matter of time before these children die in schools,” he said.

Gani said school governing bodies (SGB) could not be responsible for pupils’ behaviour and safety, hence it was imperative that parents played their role.

He encouraged schools to enforce codes of conduct and sanctions that governed how children should behave.

“Some schools don’t enforce these measures. Every school has a discipline, safety and security committee that falls under the SGB and this is meant to enforce the measures that govern pupils’ behaviour,” Gani said.

He said searches and metal detectors were some of the measures used to reduce the rate of violent incidents at schools, but these were not a solution.

Education Department spokesperson Muzi Mahlambi said parents should ensure their children were well behaved and did not carry weapons to school.

He said the fights and stabbings were a social ill that the department could not deal with alone: “We need parents on board because these children bring these weapons from home. Parents should also take note of every incident of bullying reported by their children because as little as it is, it could be hurting the child. All these bullying incidents should be reported to schools.”