Ending school violence goes beyond the gates

THIS has been a troubling week in the Western Cape. Stories of gender-based violence, gang shootings and the brutal assault on a pupil at Milnerton High School have left many asking what kind of society are we becoming.

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The attack on a Grade 10 learner by a group of boys armed with sticks and a belt shocked the country. The video that surfaced was difficult to watch and even harder to accept. Whether the motive was revenge or bravado does not matter, it was violent and cruel. Plainly put, it was an assault.

Bullying has been an unspoken crisis in our schools for far too long. It hides behind excuses - and silence.