Two students of Harmony Secondary School Wismar, Linden, are still hospitalised following a gang attack at the school last Monday. A teacher who was also injured and hospitalised has since been discharged.
Guyana Teachers Union General-Secretary Coretta McDonald told this newspaper that the teacher is still traumatised. McDonald commended the Region 10 Education Department for its support. The department met with the Police Commander resulting in police presence in and around the school. McDonald said, “If all stakeholders put hands on the wheel we won’t have this problem occurring again.”
According to reports, on Monday last, teachers and students were attacked as a result of a gang invasion into the school. Members of the gang were armed with scissors, a knife and a piece of wood. It was reported that the gang was summoned by one of its members, who is a student at the school and had been involved in an incident with a fellow student two weeks ago.
A teacher, who was investigating the matter, asked the student to return to the school with his parents but instead he returned with the gang. The teacher, who had appeared on a live broadcast with Regional Democratic Council Vice Chairman Mark Goring, related that the students, “… had a ‘run in’ and one got hit to his mouth and so I was investigating the matter. … I found out that they had an old grievance… that they brought to the school. …I separated them and I told the boy who was the aggressor to go and bring his parents…
“He … returned with a group of boys. They stood outside of the compound… We hired a car to send the other child home. When these boys saw that this boy was not going to come through the gate walking, [and that] he was going into a car, they ran into the compound, up the step, [and] by the time we recognised what was happening, the children were saying ‘close that door these boys are coming with weapons’.
“We did try to close the door, myself and a few teachers, we tried bracing the door. However, these boys ran up the step and kick the door open, hit the teacher to her face so she had to go to the hospital. A pair of scissors was placed to one student’s neck, while another was slapped several times in the face and another child received a severe blow with a piece of wood at the back of his head…”
The teacher noted that parents came out in solidarity with teachers to take a stand against gang violence in schools. She highlighted that there should be police protection at the school and that the school’s back fence, also used as an entrance, should be higher. A request was also made for welfare officers at the school. The teacher added that the gang comprised adults.
Meanwhile, Goring said, “as a council we stand behind the teachers and the students.”
