Glenroy Sinclair and Petrina Francis, Staff Reporters

Several warrants of arrest have been issued for a group of Morant Bay High School boys, who sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl, in the presence of a male teacher. The police are now seeking the teacher for questioning in relation to the incident.

Reports are that the incident occurred on Tuesday, November 21, but, up to yesterday, the authorities at the school had not reported the matter to the police.

It was the girl's mother who spoke with the police.

"We spoke with the school's principal yesterday and she gave us the assurance that the teacher would come and speak with us. Up to yesterday, she said the teacher was overseeing exams," a member of the St. Thomas Police Division disclosed yesterday.

Screaming for help

It is alleged that the fondling took place inside a classroom where the boys and the teacher were. According to statements collected by the police, the teenage girl kept screaming, calling on the teacher to intervene, but he did not respond.

It was only when she fell to the ground and began kicking that the boys stopped fondling her. Throughout the incident the teacher did not respond to her pleas for help. Immediately after the incident, the teenager left the science class and reported the incident to another teacher.

Valerie Marshall-Lodge, principal of the institution, confirmed the incident. She noted that she was on sick leave when it happened but that the vice-principal investigated the matter.

Mrs. Marshall-Lodge, however, declined to comment any further on the matter, noting that the child's mother had reported the matter to the police and it could become a matter for the court.

Meanwhile, Children's Advocate Mary Clarke said this kind of abuse against children is happening too often in schools.

"I see all of this as a much wider issue. Children are like monkeys patterning what they see and are exposed to," said Mrs. Clarke.

She appealed to citizens to pause and see what they are doing to children. She said schools must recognise the valuable role they play in protecting the rights of children.

"I can't imagine a teacher was present and did nothing," the Children's Advocate said. She noted that the teacher could be charged with negligence under the Child Care and Protection Act.

Mrs. Clarke told The Gleaner yesterday that she would be passing on the information to her lawyers and her office would be investigating the matter.

Senator Noel Monteith, State Minister in the Ministry of Education and Youth, said he was unaware of the incident.

"(But) if something like that happens I would treat it extremely serious," he told The Gleaner.

According to the junior minister, education should make a difference in children's life. And this is of concern when it (sexual abuse) happens in the education system.

"There are a lot of things that are happening that we are very uncomfortable about," he said when quizzed about the frequency of these incidents in schools.

Sylvester Anderson, president of the National Parent Teachers Association of Jamaica (NPTJ), said he was deeply concerned about the frequency of sexual abuse incidents in the education system.

"As a parent I am concerned about that and as president of the NPTJ, I am even more concerned," he said, adding that the incidents were a replication of what is taking place in the society.