Police called in to quash school fight
The North West education department says police had to be called in to defuse a fight between grade 8 and 12 learners at Bethel Girls High.
Department spokesperson, Elias Malindi, says the incident happened on Sunday.
"Our officials where already at the school when the fight broke out. The grade 12 learners are the ones who started the fight by ill treating the grade 8 learners," says Malindi.
The grade 12 learners were moved to another school in Coligny.
Malindi says further investigations also revealed a plan to torch the school and harm the principle.
"We found that the plan was to burn the school and assault the principle and maybe even murder the principal, we view this as a very serious threat from our children," says Malindi.
A parent who wants to remain anonymous says he is worried about exams.
"After the police were called by police to assist, some of the girls were teargassed in their rooms in the middle of the night. Some learners were taken to Coligny hoërskool to sleep there and some learners are busy with exams but management does not care. I am telling you this because some learners slept outside the school gates," says the parent.
But Malindi has denied this.
"Parents are relying on information from the learners. We did not evict even one learner. We have organised alternative accommodation in a school nearby in Coligny. The parents of these perpetrators don't want their learners to be removed from that hostel. We explained that these are the learners who are causing havoc in the school, who are ill disciplined and don't want to listen to anyone. They even stripped naked in front of the police," he says.
Malindi says the situation has been stabilised and exams are now continuing.