A frustrated mother has raised concerns after her 16-year-old daughter was allegedly slapped by a teacher at Gospel High School last Thursday.
The mother Neeshu Chand says the incident happened at around 3.30pm on 6th August when her husband went to pick up their daughter from school.
She says her daughter told him that a teacher had slapped her on the right side of her face.
According to Chand, her daughter was waiting at her usual pick-up area when a teacher allegedly instructed students to go to a different classroom.
Speaking to fijivillage News, she says when her daughter questioned why she had to go to the classroom as she was waiting for her father, the teacher allegedly slapped her and told her she had an attitude problem.
Chand alleges her daughter then asked the teacher for her name, but the teacher refused to identify herself and allegedly grabbed the student by her school uniform and pushed her towards the classroom.
She says her daughter later asked another teacher for the identity of the teacher involved but was not given her name.
Insert: Chand on her daughter's assault 11th Aug
The mother says her daughter was then prevented from leaving the classroom to report the matter to the school office.
She says her husband and daughter later confronted the teacher with the assistance of the student's class teacher.
Chand says the teacher initially denied slapping her daughter and said she did not remember doing so.
She says the teacher later stated that if she had slapped her daughter, there would have been marks on her face, before eventually admitting that she had slapped the student and saying she was stressed and overloaded.
Chand also says the teacher later explained that students had been instructed to wait in a particular classroom because of a new rule introduced about two weeks earlier.
She says parents had not been informed about the rule and that the teacher told them it had been introduced following reported incidents of molestation in the school's waiting area.
Chand says both her daughter and a student who witnessed the alleged incident provided written statements to the school.
According to the mother, the matter was also reported to Samabula Police Station and her daughter received medical attention.
She says Police told the family that officers would follow up with the student's father and interview the teacher.
The mother says she later contacted the Police Station after receiving no update and was told that the officer handling the case was on a day off.
She says she was told another officer would be assigned to progress the matter and provide feedback by midday, but she had not received any feedback.
Chand says she also emailed the Ministry of Education on the evening of 6th August but did not receive an acknowledgement.
She says she later contacted the Ministry and was told officials were aware of the incident after receiving information from the school.
The mother says she had also forwarded her complaint to Ministry of Education officials and the Fiji Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Commission but had not received a response.
She says her daughter returned to school on Tuesday because she was concerned about missing classes ahead of her examinations.
The mother says her husband also spoke with the principal to seek assurances about their daughter's safety and what measures would be put in place while the matter is being dealt with.
Chand says the family remains concerned about the lack of communication from the school, the Ministry and Police.
The mother is calling for clarity on what immediate measures are being taken to ensure her daughter's safety at school and what action is being taken in relation to the alleged assault.
Questions have been sent to Police, the Ministry of Education, and Fiji Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Commission.
