Susan Ravuku broke down as she spoke of how she was bullied while still in school because she was dark-skinned and shared that her three children were also victims of bullying.
Ravuku was one of the parents who made a presentation to the SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) on the second day of hearings into bullying, corporal punishment and sexual relationships between educators and pupils in Limpopo.
The hearings took place at Bolivia Lodge in Polokwane and come a month after the death of Lufuno Mavhunga, a 15-year-old Mbilwi Secondary School pupil who committed suicide after she was allegedly assaulted by a schoolmate.
A video of the attack went viral, causing outrage.
Ravuku recalled how she was bullied at school because of her dark skin and she never thought her children would also be subjected to it.
“I am a mother of four children and a community worker at Vuwani and I believe that my children were bullied because of the cases that I report to the police. It was only last week when I learnt about the bullying. My children told me that there was a boy who would take their lunch money and pens. My other child was called names because of his big body. I was so hurt to find out my children were not free at school,” she said.
She said she has decided to start an organisation that will teach the community and pupils about bullying. “I called other organisations in the area and we went to make a presentation at the school. I am happy to say the boy who was bullying my children came to me to apologise after the event,” she said.
Another parent, Azwifaneli Nkhumeleni Mutavhatsindi, said when her child was in grade 3, she was also bullied. “I remember the other day when she came back home covered in dirt. I asked her what happened and she wouldn’t talk. It was her friends who told me that she was bullied at school. I went to report the matter at school and the bully’s parents were called.
“We managed to resolve the issue and the bully asked for forgiveness. However, I have decided to teach learners about bullying so that this does not happen again,” she said.
Congress of SA Students provincial secretary Sello Mahladisa said they have noted that there were high incidents of corporal punishment at school.
“We cannot entertain this kind of punishment at schools. How will pupils learn if they are taught by someone they are scared of? We have also started a campaign on bullying and we demand psychologists to be deployed at all the public schools.
“On teachers having sexual relationships with learners, we are saying that if a teacher is seduced by a school uniform they should buy the uniform for their wives and leave the learners alone,” Mahladisa said.
Civil society group Save the Children SA told the commission that some teachers employed before 1994 were the ones who were still administering corporal punishment.
SAHRC provincial manager Victor Mavhidula said the aim of the hearings is to make findings into whether the provincial department of education and other role players are adequately preventing, addressing and discouraging bullying between pupils in schools in the province.
“We have to know what the challenges are in respect of identifying and addressing patterns of bullying, as well as the interventions required. The [desired] outcome of the hearings is also to identify the prevalence of corporal punishment within schools within the province, as well as trends of sexual relationships between educators and learners,” he said.
The hearings continue.
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