Criminal and disciplinary action is being pursued against a 15-year-old Form Two student of the Williamsville Secondary School, who is now in police custody for a knife attack against another student on Monday.
The girl was expected to be taken to the Juvenile Booking Centre at the Oropouche Police Station last evening.
The incident, which occurred shortly after school was dismissed, left the victim, another 15-year-old Form Two student, hospitalised with stab wounds to her face, chest and arm.
Speaking with reporters at her New Grant home yesterday, the injured girl’s grandmother, who did not wish to be named, said she became aware of the incident after a video was posted on social media. However, she claimed her granddaughter had been threatened previously by the girl who stabbed her.
While the school is aware of the threats, she said as far as she is aware, no action was taken. Unable to explain how she felt after seeing the video, she lamented that violence amongst students in the nation’s schools is terrible.
“Sometimes I does want to know if it is from upbringing because you can’t just reach that stage,” she said.
However, the grandmother believes that the blame lies with school officials who may want to cover up incidents.
“If something happening and you keeping it undercover, you have to blame the schools because they’re supposed to let the authorities know that this child misbehaving,” she said.
But, she also believes that children need more love.
The grandmother explained that the 10-cm long wound on her granddaughter’s face, from her right eye to lip, was deep enough to expose her teeth and required stitches. She said another x-ray had to be done to ensure that the 3-cm deep chest wound was not causing any lung complications.
“That students need to get punished because is not the first time she did it and it’s not to one person she did it to,” she claimed.
The fight started around 2.35 pm at Williamsville junction, which is a five to eight-minute walk from the school.
The fight, which involved other female students, was recorded by another student and it showed blood dripping from the girl’s face after she was stabbed. She was taken to the Princes Town Health Facility and transferred to the San Fernando General Hospital.
However, there was also a second fight under a tent at the entrance of the school involving female students which was also recorded.
When Guardian Media visited the school yesterday, one of the students, age 13, who was involved in the second fight, was leaving the school with her mother after meeting the principal.
A distressed grandmother of a Williamsville Secondary School student speaks to reporters at her New Grant home yesterday about her granddaughter’s fight at Williamsville Junction on Monday after she was stabbed by another student during a fight and warded at the San Fernando General Hospital.
RISHI RAGOONATH
The mother said she no longer believes her child is safe at the school and is considering getting her transferred to another school. Commenting on the other fight, she said, “I find they should at least have scanners because how this child could be in a school whole day with a knife and nobody knows.”
Meanwhile, business owners and residents explained that the students from the school frequently engage in physical and verbal outbursts along the road after school.
Taxi driver Wendell Baboolal said since school reopened following the pandemic, they have seen an increase in violence among students.
“I don’t know if the pandemic had anything to do with the build-up of frustration that’s been taking place in these kids’ homes but they’re coming out here with definitely some build-up of some sort of frustration.
“I mean, to take out a knife and do that kind of damage that we know of, that is something beyond their age limit, a level of frustration something cause that I could only speculate what it is but in my view,it is something that had to start at home,” he said.
While there is sometimes a police patrol after school, a fish vendor who requested anonymity said a stronger presence is necessary. He said students are disrespectful, undisciplined and violent.
Meanwhile, National Parent Teachers Association president Kevin David also expressed concern over the incident.
“We are very disturbed by the actions of those students. It also indicates the need for anger management and conflict resolution in terms of how students interact with one other within the school environment.”
David said the association has also received complaints that initial reports of bullying in schools were not being taken seriously.
“At the end of the day, students must understand the consequences of their actions. Whatever may have brought about the behaviour or incident on that day, all students must understand the consequences of their actions, even those who were taping and jeering on. It tells that there is some sort of desensitisation in how students view one another,” he added.
David also underscored the importance of active PTA systems, whereby a level of support can be provided to parents and students.
Meanwhile, former president of the Maxi Taxi School Transport Association, Rodney Ramlogan, said before the pandemic he used to transport children to that school and there were incidents of violence but on a lower scale. He urged the Ministry of Education to ensure that the school transport service is fully operational, as it will help in ensuring that students are not left idle after school.
Ramlogan also called on the ministry to beef up security and ensure the police officers are posted at all schools.
“So I am telling the parents again today that the stabbing that we saw with that school child going to have a permanent scar on her face. The Government of this country going to continue watching these children leave school with scars to know that they were not protected well under this Government,” Ramlogan said.
