Minister of Education Sonia Parag has committed to taking a tough stance against bullying in schools, amid reports of incidents since the reopening of classes. Speaking with the News Room, Minister Parag said the issue will be addressed with urgency and determination.
She stressed that stronger anti-bullying measures are needed, combining immediate action with sustainable reforms. To achieve this, Minister Parag announced plans to hold nationwide consultations with key stakeholders, signalling a firm government response to creating safer learning environments for students.
“Anti-bullying is something that I will be looking at very heavily in the next couple weeks because there has been instances since school has been open,” Minister Parag said.
The Education Minister emphasised that tackling bullying requires a balanced approach – recognising the wrongdoing while also considering avenues for reform. She noted that while the Juvenile Justice Act provides options for disciplinary action, the education system must develop clear anti-bullying policies within schools and eventually consider anti-bullying legislation.
“If we don’t put measures in place and put strong measures in place it wouldn’t change. It is a behavioural pattern it has deeper social issues, it doesn’t just start in the classroom, it comes from a home environment or whatever environment that child is living in, so all of that has to be looked at, but at the end no one gives anyone the right to pound on someone else child and that is something that I feel very strongly about,” Parag stated.
The Minister also revealed that she has reviewed policies from the Guyana Police Force and the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security, and intends to sit with stakeholders to examine these frameworks further. A key part of her plan is to introduce moral education from the nursery level, ensuring discipline and respect are taught from an early age.
“It is not simply, I am going to suspend you, I am going to expel you, because some children want to come out the school and you expel and they might be happy to come out the school. Meanwhile, another child had to have stitches because they were beaten and he/she does not feel like they have had any justice,” Parag explained.
She stressed the importance of consistency in schools, calling for daily reinforcement of anti-bullying values by teachers. Importantly, Parag said she does not intend to impose policies without consultation.
“I am not going to impose, I want to hear from people, I want to do a national consultation to hear from people,” the minister said.
In January this year, former Education Minister Priya Manickchand announced the development of a strategic plan to address bullying which would parents signing contracts.
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