Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1448619
7 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 6 FEBRUARY 2022 NEWS 'Systematic destruction of a person' They recount how even when schools went online last year because of the pandemic, Jacob was subjected to remote bully- ing. He was mocked, ridiculed and challenged to fights. And at one point a fake Instagram account impersonating him was created. "This was organised, system- atic destruction of a person," Joyce says as she leafs through multiple screen shots of of- fensive Instagram messages directed at her son. Offensive messages were also sent via the school's Teams portal and deleted immediately while the teacher was conducting her ex- planation. Joyce feels that the school's inability to deliver a strong response to the toilet incident emboldened the group of bul- lies. They continue to taunt Jacob online in horrible ways, she adds. The parents sought help from the Anti-bullying Unit within the education ministry but they were informed that independ- ent schools fall outside their purview. "From what we were told, ed- ucational officials can visit in- dependent schools but only if invited and even then, they can only make suggestions," Philip and Joyce recount. They point to the efficient and effective response the ed- ucational authorities had in the wake of shocking video footage that emerged recently of a 12-year-old girl assault- ed by fellow students. The girl attended a state school and although the incident did not happen on school grounds, dis- ciplinary action was taken and help provided to the victim and the bullies. "It hurts to see the swift ac- tion and condemnations after this incident by the ministry because a video surfaced online but our call for help fell on deaf ears when we approached the education department about our son's problem," Joyce says. Financial conflict of interest She believes children at- tending independent schools have a right to enjoy the same level of safeguarding afford- ed to students in government schools. "We feel that independent schools should be better reg- ulated because management has a serious conflict of inter- est when dealing with bullies whose parents are supporting the school financially," Philip and Joyce tell me. MaltaToday has sought an- swers from the education ministry on the remit of the Anti-bullying Unit when a case involves an independent school but received no replies. Questions as to whether the law should be able to empower the educational authorities to investigate cases of bullying as part of licencing requirements also remained unanswered. A conference on restorative justice in schools organised by the Malta Foundation for the Well-being of Society last week, heard how there were 366 referrals for bullying to the specialised unit. However, only two cases came from in- dependent schools – one from a middle school and another from a secondary school. Philip argues that independ- ent schools may not have the motivation to take tough ac- tion against bullies since they depend on the money parents pay. He says the lacuna should be addressed. "If a school takes tough action it runs the risk of having par- ents pulling their children out of the school with the conse- quence of losing thousands of euros in revenue and possibly other benefits if the family has business connections," Philip says. Suffering in silence Jacob's parents believe that the educational authorities, which ultimately issue oper- ating licences for educational establishments, should have the ability and duty to ensure anti-bullying procedures in in- dependent schools are not only in place but also followed. "After all, any establishment that is regulated is subject to inspections and law enforce- ment were necessary and we don't see why independent schools should be treated dif- ferently," they say. Their appeal is a call for ac- tion so that bullying victims like their son do not suffer fur- ther victimisation at the hands of school management, who should be protecting them. "Our son is now dealing with the consequences of the bul- lying he has had to endure at school but our appeal is for the authorities to take the is- sue of bullying in independent schools as seriously as they do in State schools," Philip and Joyce say. They know that any changes will do little for their son now but they hope action will be taken for the benefit of many children who are suffering in silence. Note: Names have been changed to protect the identity of the people involved. school and ignored by authority