EDITOR’S COMMENT

Choices and consequences in South Africa: bullying and the new step-aside ruling

Maybe, just maybe, South Africa has reached a turning point when it comes to dealing with bullying and criminality. I say that after the recent announcement of a “step-aside” ruling by the ANC’s National Executive Committee (NEC) and the high-level investigation by the Limpopo Department of Education into the alleged suicide of 15-year-old Lufuno Mavhunga following a bullying incident at her school, which went viral.

I was actually gobsmacked when I heard that the “30-day step-aside” ruling had been passed, considering the factionalised state of the ANC at the moment. And yet, the clock is ticking steadily towards 30 April, the deadline for members of the ruling party, who have been charged with corruption and other crimes, to step down from their positions.

Also important is the investigation into the circumstances around the death of Lufuno, trending widely on social media as #JusticeForLufuno. SowetanLIVE reported that the bully “allegedly attacked Lufuno because she had blocked her on WhatsApp and Facebook… after Lufuno had allegedly received insulting messages.” The attack was accompanied by cheering from other learners, who, I believe, should be criminally charged along with the bully.

Failure to do something about the escalating violence in our schools is a ticket to ever-more shocking crime statistics in a country already reeling from crime. Tina Thiart, founding member of 1000 Women Trust1, which is running a campaign against bullying in all forms, says that as many as 57% of South African learners have been bullied at some time during their high-school careers and that child bullies have usually experienced violence in the home between adults. Further, she points out that male school bullies are twice as likely to bully their girlfriends and partners in later years. “When one considers that we have 2.2 million school-going children in this country, those percentages translate into truly staggering numbers,” she says. Unlike the brand-new step-aside ruling, South Africa already has legislation in place to deal with bullying in all its forms – but it’s only effective if we act on it.

According to LegalWise2, criminal charges can be laid at police stations, regardless of the age of the bully. Bullies under the age of ten years may not be arrested – instead, a probation officer/ qualified social worker will likely be appointed to do an assessment of them. Following this, the bully will be referred for counselling or therapy, placed in an accredited programme, or provided with support. If the bully fails to comply with the decisions made by the probation officer, he or she may be referred to the Child Justice Court.

Bullies aged ten years and older may be arrested. They will also be assessed by a probation officer, after which they will have to attend a preliminary inquiry at a Magistrate’s Court. Then they will be referred for diversion (such as a rehabilitation programme) or to a Child Justice Court, which will continue with the criminal charges. If the bully fails to attend the inquiry, a warrant of arrest may be issued.

Avenues available to victims include obtaining a protection order in terms of the Protection from Harassment Act, and/ or reporting the bully to the school’s governing body, after which the school needs to conduct a disciplinary hearing and discipline the bully in terms of the school’s Code of Conduct, which could lead to the bully being suspended.

While I knew that bullying happened in South African schools, as it does everywhere around the world, I did not realise the severity of the problem until now. According to the findings of a recent study by the Youth Research Unit (YRU) of Unisa’s Bureau of Market Research – “YRU@BMR”3 – 58% of the learners interviewed had experienced violence – including physical, psychological, verbal and sexual – at school; 11% of them had considered suicide and 47% of educators considered resigning from their teaching positions.

Why are our schools, which are supposed to be safe places of learning, becoming increasingly violent? The YRU@ BMR study says that the causes of school violence are deep-rooted and multifaceted, stemming from “family problems, parental negligence, socioeconomic circumstances and substance abuse.” And, while there are rules and policies in place, “incidents of violence are increasing in secondary schools in Gauteng,” the report says, with learners often too scared to speak up.

South Africa’s national police crime statistics for October to December 20204 , reported seven murders, 11 attempted murders, 24 rapes and 89 assaults GBH (grievous bodily harm) in educational institutions around South Africa. It is very likely, though, that the figures are a lot higher, in light of victims’ fears of retribution and the consequent lack of reporting. But the reported situation is bad enough – so bad that the South African Council for Educators (SACE) has just released its Teachers’ Safety and Security in South African Schools: A Handbook, to help teachers deal with safety and security at school5 .

As the world’s fifth most dangerous country, of the 144 countries covered in the Gallup Law and Order Index of November 2020, South Africa desperately needs to take a tougher stance on all forms of criminality, including school violence. And some of the responsibility lies with parents. Instilling good values and common decency in our children, and teaching them that choices come with consequences, begins at home. Quite honestly, I think that parents of bullies should also be held legally responsible to some degree.

Rest in peace Lufuno Mavhunga.

Ingrid Olivier, Editor

ingridolivier@idotwrite.co.za

1. https://www.bullying.co.za/about-us/

2. https://www.legalwise.co.za/help-yourself/ legal-articles/how-treat-bullying-schools

3. – “YRU@BMR” https://bmr.co.za/2020/07/29/ school-violence-in-gauteng-a-convoluted-problemwith-deep-rooted-causes/

4. https://www.saps.gov.za/services/october_to_ december_2020_21_crimestats.pdf

5. https://www.sace.org.za/assets/documents/uploads/ sace_53049-2021-04-16-SACE_Handbook_awweb.pdf?fbclid=IwAR0QpihSawRAk0zOBgnccEdvQ 4Lf-fEaq7oGnvuoUhWuFYwDLxXmgSNI3BU