A physical assault on a grade 12 pupil has put a Limpopo teacher in trouble with the law.
Samuel Matibidi,29, appeared in the Sekhukhune magistrate’s court on Wednesday for the pupil’s attack. He was charged with assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
He was remanded in custody until his next court appearance on November 22.
Brigadier Hlulani Mashaba said the incident took place on Sunday afternoon (November 12) at the St Peters Christian School in Apel policing area in Sekhukhune district.
Mashaba said the victim was in her hostel room studying for ongoing exams when her male teacher came in. He allegedly assaulted her with a belt and shoe.
The injured pupil was taken to the hospital for medical treatment.
If proven, the attack on the pupil is likely to damage the school’s Christian ethos. The rural private school was founded in 1998 with a mission “to close the vacuum the government created by abolishing the teaching of bible”.
Police are still investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Grim picture of abuse against pupils
While it is not yet clear if the attack was driven by sexual intentions, South Africa has a high prevalence of misconduct cases against female pupils by teachers.
The report by Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) earlier this year pointed to the problem not abating. According to ELRC, 48 teachers were sacked for sexual misconduct involving pupils in the period April 2022 to May 2023.
The ELRC is a bargaining council that serves the public education sector nationally and provincially.
The primary business of the ELRC is to promote the maintenance of labour peace in the public education sector.
In March, it was revealed in parliament that the number of cases of sexual misconduct reported to the SA Council of Educators (Sace) have increased sharply in recent years.
The Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga, painted a grim picture of sexual abuse by teachers. In answering to a written parliamentary question by the DA, Motshekga said such cases have risen sharply from 92 in 2019/20 to 169 in 2020/21 and 191 in 2021/22.
“The 2022 crime statistics indicates a total of 294 rapes reported to have occurred on the premises of educational institutions (schools, universities, college, and day care facilities),
“The DA finds it very concerning that Sace only instituted 23 disciplinary proceedings last year. A mere 12% of the reported cases of sexual misconduct,” said the official opposition at the time.
“Of these, 19 educators were found guilty of sexual misconduct, yet only four were struck off the roll indefinitely.”
In their response, Sace said some cases were closed due to lack of evidence to substantiate the allegations.
