SA schools are dangerous
Mar. 28th, 2008 08:29 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
nairiporterMost pupils agree that schools are dangerous
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=105&art_id=vn20080314055548750C300815
Gangs that rob and stab each other, teenage girls who have sex with their teachers, and pupils who attack their teachers - these are just some of the terrible things that teenagers say are happening at their schools.
The Star decided to ask pupils themselves what they thought of a report on violence in schools, which was released by the SA Human Rights Commission this week, showing that schools are among the most dangerous places to be in South Africa.
At Gandhi Square - a bus rank in the city centre where school pupils from all over Joburg converge every afternoon - some pupils said they thought the report was exaggerated and would unnecessarily scare their parents, but by far the majority said violence was happening in their schools.
The teenagers agreed to speak only on condition of anonymity.
Many of the children said they feel safe only if they hang around in big groups of friends, and very few would walk alone for fear of being attacked and robbed by other pupils.
Many of the teens said adults have no real idea what is happening with the youth.
"Our parents don't know what we are doing," said one girl. "Often we leave home in our school uniforms, but we never go to school.
"We go to bunking parties where we drink and have sex. A lot of the girls fall pregnant because of those parties. We also forge sick notes from parents, so our schools never realise what is happening."
While girls would not admit to any sexual harassment, which the report indicated is a growing problem, they did say that some teachers were sleeping with pupils.
"Girls sleep with teachers for marks, money and transport. We all know about it. We've seen girls holding teachers' hands and kissing them. They do it in front of us," another girl said.
Another group of girls, from an all-girls school, said they have walked into the toilets and witnessed older girls grabbing and "fingering" the younger girls as part of the bullying occurring at the school.
Teenagers said they form gangs inside their schools, carrying weapons like knives and guns.
Gangs wait outside girls' schools and hold them up with knives to steal their school bags.
Many of the boys said they carried knives to school because they felt they needed something to protect themselves from other pupils.
"Fights often happen over girls, if they want to steal from you, or from gambling. There is a lot of gambling happening at school, and if you fight over cash, knives come out and people get stabbed," said one boy.
A 16-year-old, who was clearly the most popular member of his group, pulled down his shirt to show the scar he received during a stabbing incident at school.
He said he had spent six months in jail for stabbing another boy with a broken beer bottle. He has a tattoo on his arm to show he belongs to the CMF (Come Motherf****r) gang.
"It's survival of the fittest out there. If you don't stab back, then you die. That's how it is," he said.
The 16-year-old and his friends said they had seen teachers who had been hit in class.
"Teachers stay away from us. They are scared. I have seen a teacher being hit with chairs and lots of other things. Sometimes it's a teacher who does the hitting, and then it's serious hitting - not just a slap."
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=105&art_id=vn20080314055548750C300815
Gangs that rob and stab each other, teenage girls who have sex with their teachers, and pupils who attack their teachers - these are just some of the terrible things that teenagers say are happening at their schools.
The Star decided to ask pupils themselves what they thought of a report on violence in schools, which was released by the SA Human Rights Commission this week, showing that schools are among the most dangerous places to be in South Africa.
At Gandhi Square - a bus rank in the city centre where school pupils from all over Joburg converge every afternoon - some pupils said they thought the report was exaggerated and would unnecessarily scare their parents, but by far the majority said violence was happening in their schools.
The teenagers agreed to speak only on condition of anonymity.
Many of the children said they feel safe only if they hang around in big groups of friends, and very few would walk alone for fear of being attacked and robbed by other pupils.
Many of the teens said adults have no real idea what is happening with the youth.
"Our parents don't know what we are doing," said one girl. "Often we leave home in our school uniforms, but we never go to school.
"We go to bunking parties where we drink and have sex. A lot of the girls fall pregnant because of those parties. We also forge sick notes from parents, so our schools never realise what is happening."
While girls would not admit to any sexual harassment, which the report indicated is a growing problem, they did say that some teachers were sleeping with pupils.
"Girls sleep with teachers for marks, money and transport. We all know about it. We've seen girls holding teachers' hands and kissing them. They do it in front of us," another girl said.
Another group of girls, from an all-girls school, said they have walked into the toilets and witnessed older girls grabbing and "fingering" the younger girls as part of the bullying occurring at the school.
Teenagers said they form gangs inside their schools, carrying weapons like knives and guns.
Gangs wait outside girls' schools and hold them up with knives to steal their school bags.
Many of the boys said they carried knives to school because they felt they needed something to protect themselves from other pupils.
"Fights often happen over girls, if they want to steal from you, or from gambling. There is a lot of gambling happening at school, and if you fight over cash, knives come out and people get stabbed," said one boy.
A 16-year-old, who was clearly the most popular member of his group, pulled down his shirt to show the scar he received during a stabbing incident at school.
He said he had spent six months in jail for stabbing another boy with a broken beer bottle. He has a tattoo on his arm to show he belongs to the CMF (Come Motherf****r) gang.
"It's survival of the fittest out there. If you don't stab back, then you die. That's how it is," he said.
The 16-year-old and his friends said they had seen teachers who had been hit in class.
"Teachers stay away from us. They are scared. I have seen a teacher being hit with chairs and lots of other things. Sometimes it's a teacher who does the hitting, and then it's serious hitting - not just a slap."
