Cape Town – Angry pupils held police officers and teachers hostage at a school in the Free State after a schoolmate allegedly committed suicide after being bullied by a teacher.
The pupil allegedly drank poison and was found dead at his home by his grandmother, police said.
TimesLIVE reported that the learner left a letter explaining the decision to take their life.
“It is reported that the child left a suicide note to say what caused the death and then the learners at the school picketed and it became violent,” the report quoted Warrant Officer Peter Mabizela as saying.
Following the news, pupils became violent and attacked teachers, accusing them of being the cause of another pupil’s death, police said in statement.
The incident happened in the Maqheleng area in Ficksburg where pupils from surrounding schools converged on Tlotlisong Secondary School on Thursday.
Learners from various schools around Meqheleng Ficksburg in the free state went on a rampage damaging teacher’s cars and tipping over a police van, learners were protesting after one of the learners committed suicide after being ridiculed by one of teachers at the school. pic.twitter.com/w67bdtSY1g
— CrimeInSA (@sa_crime) February 2, 2023
“Some learners refused to continue with their classes and threatened the teachers who immediately called the police. The police attended to the complaint at the staff room and unfortunately, some learners started throwing stones towards the police vehicle and finally overturned it,” said police spokesperson Warrant Officer Mmako Mophiring.
He said that backup was called to the school and three more police vehicles, school windows and gates were damaged by the learners.
“Teachers and police who were inside the administration block were unharmed except one learner who was a bystander and was hit by a stone on the head,” said Mophiring
According to TimesLIVE, five minors were arrested for public violence and will appear in court after consulting social workers
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Compiled by Olwethu Mpeshe
