Stabbing at school raises fears among teachers

“A SIGN of a sick society.”

This was how the National Teachers’ Union (Nantu) yesterday described the murder of a 17-year-old boy in Windhoek’s Khomasdal suburb over the weekend. Duarte Hendrickse, a pupil at Cosmos High School, was stabbed in the head with a screwdriver on Saturday night.He died a day later in the Medi-Clinic hospital.The suspect is a 15-year-old boy from the MH Greeff Primary School in the same area.The teenager has been in custody since the incident, and made his first court appearance on Tuesday.He will remain in custody, at least until Friday, when he will be screened by a social worker.”The morale of the nation is at risk.If even schools are not safe places any more, we have reason to be concerned,” Ronald Somaeb, Nantu’s Secretary for Information and Publicity, warned at a press briefing in Windhoek.”The behaviour of learners even in grade seven, that is demonstrated by this incident, calls for intervention at the highest level,” he said.The union called on people from across the spectrum of Namibian society to involve themselves in the effort to restore order and discipline in schools, before Namibia faces the same problems overwhelming other societies throughout the world.Nantu regional organiser John //Khamuseb, also a teacher at MH Greeff, confirmed that the stabbing took place in front of the Dawid Bezuidenhout Secondary School.Pupils there had been attending a fundraising event for their matric farewell to be held later this year.Nantu’s Khomas Regional Executive Vice Chairperson, Paul Sauerwein, referred to cases in South Africa and overseas where children take guns to school, saying that soon the problem might put Namibian teachers’ lives in danger.”The advancement of cellphone technology and the like has also brought about a lot of debate in countries like South Africa, where children are apparently sharing information on things like committing the perfect murder.Communication is becoming a lot more freely available now, and this we need to take note of,” he said.Parents, the union said, need to get more involved in raising and disciplining their children, while Government needs to be more creative in coming up with alternative entertainment for young people.”Even at matric farewell functions you won’t find young people without a drink,” the union said.”Nantu…condemns all incidents of violence and murder in the Khomas Region and the entire country.We express our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families of all those who lost their loved ones due to senseless, barbaric acts by their fellow Namibians.May God console you during these difficult times,” the union said.Duarte Hendrickse, a pupil at Cosmos High School, was stabbed in the head with a screwdriver on Saturday night.He died a day later in the Medi-Clinic hospital.The suspect is a 15-year-old boy from the MH Greeff Primary School in the same area.The teenager has been in custody since the incident, and made his first court appearance on Tuesday.He will remain in custody, at least until Friday, when he will be screened by a social worker.”The morale of the nation is at risk.If even schools are not safe places any more, we have reason to be concerned,” Ronald Somaeb, Nantu’s Secretary for Information and Publicity, warned at a press briefing in Windhoek.”The behaviour of learners even in grade seven, that is demonstrated by this incident, calls for intervention at the highest level,” he said. The union called on people from across the spectrum of Namibian society to involve themselves in the effort to restore order and discipline in schools, before Namibia faces the same problems overwhelming other societies throughout the world.Nantu regional organiser John //Khamuseb, also a teacher at MH Greeff, confirmed that the stabbing took place in front of the Dawid Bezuidenhout Secondary School.Pupils there had been attending a fundraising event for their matric farewell to be held later this year.Nantu’s Khomas Regional Executive Vice Chairperson, Paul Sauerwein, referred to cases in South Africa and overseas where children take guns to school, saying that soon the problem might put Namibian teachers’ lives in danger.”The advancement of cellphone technology and the like has also brought about a lot of debate in countries like South Africa, where children are apparently sharing information on things like committing the perfect murder.Communication is becoming a lot more freely available now, and this we need to take note of,” he said.Parents, the union said, need to get more involved in raising and disciplining their children, while Government needs to be more creative in coming up with alternative entertainment for young people.”Even at matric farewell functions you won’t find young people without a drink,” the union said.”Nantu…condemns all incidents of violence and murder in the Khomas Region and the entire country.We express our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families of all those who lost their loved ones due to senseless, barbaric acts by their fellow Namibians.May God console you during these difficult times,” the union said.