SINGAPORE: All three Montfort Secondary School students in the viral video that made its rounds in February share some responsibility for the incident, and will receive “appropriate punishment”, said the Ministry of Education (MOE) on Monday (Mar 3).
In the video, which was posted on Facebook on Feb 22, a group of Montfort students can be seen approaching the boy from behind.
One student tripped and pushed him to the ground, while another kicked him twice. The third boy then stood up and walked away, before a student came from behind and tripped him again.
The video was shared on Facebook more than 10,000 times. It was no longer available as of 11pm on Feb 23.
The Secondary 1 student who was seen being pushed by other students in the video had fought with two classmates earlier, said MOE in its statement on Monday.
A teacher stopped the fight in the classroom. After dismissal, the two classmates followed the student to the stairway and canteen, where the fight continued, the statement read.
“As all parties share some responsibility for the incident, disciplinary action has been taken to help them understand the severity and consequences of their actions,” said the Education Ministry.
The three Secondary 1 students involved will receive “appropriate punishment”, including caning, detention and suspension, said MOE in its statement.
All three have also been counselled, and the school has engaged their parents about the disciplinary actions.
MOE also confirmed that it was aware that a police report had been lodged and that investigations are ongoing.
“Any form of hurtful behaviour is not acceptable and has no place in our schools,” said the Education Ministry in its statement.
“When there are reports of allegations of bullying and fights, our school personnel seek to understand the underlying causes of behaviour, help students learn the consequences of their actions and choices and take responsibility to not to repeat their mistake.”
After the video made its rounds online, a Facebook user named Joleen Wee, who said she was the mother of the boy who was pushed in the video, uploaded a post on Feb 23 about her son’s “traumatic experience”.
“What the school and MOE has replied or answered has raised concerns about the school’s failure to protect its students,” she wrote in her post.
She said her son developed a phobia of going to school and mixing with friends after the incident.
“Through this post, I wished to clarify that my son was not just being bullied! He was assaulted!” she wrote, adding that she had already made a police report.
In its statement on Monday, MOE urged the public to give schools and teachers time and space to investigate such incidents and work with students and their parents to address them.
“We are aware that there may be external parties seeking to exert influence when these incidents happen, and we hope that we can work together to protect schools as a safe space for children to learn and grow,” the statement read.
