November 21, 2004

THE Queensland Government has ordered an investigation into why a six-year-old boy was suspended from school after being accused of sexual harassment.

The Year 1 student was sent home this week after he poked a female classmate on the bottom.

The one-day suspension sparked outrage with parents angry at what they saw as extremely harsh punishment for the youngster.

Queensland's Parents and Citizens Council said it was political correctness gone mad with school officials exhibiting a "knee-jerk reaction" out of fear the victim's parents might sue.

The boy spent Monday at home following the incident at Kimberley Park State School, in Brisbane's south, the previous Friday. After the six-year-old girl complained to a teacher, the boy confirmed he had touched her on the bottom, on the outside of her clothes.

Principal Annette Murray deemed the boy's behaviour as sexually inappropriate and handed out the suspension.

"Everyone has the right to feel safe at school and the only way that's going to happen is to make sure all children keep their hands and feet to themselves," Ms Murray said.

But the boy's parents - who asked not to be identified - accused the school of over-reacting.

"It's just ridiculous," the boy's shocked mother said yesterday. "It's over the top.

"They are implying my son is some little sex monster. He is nothing of the sort. He is just a normal little boy.

"Sex and six-year-olds do not go together. He has no concept of sex . . . my son knows that you don't touch a girl's or boy's private parts."

The mother said to suggest his actions had sexual connotations was mind-boggling.

The victim's mother agreed. She sent a letter to the other family on Friday saying there had been no physical or mental harm done to her daughter and the touch had been innocuous.

The boy's mother said: "I have been in contact with her every day. She's fine. She said her daughter had forgotten about the matter."

The family had received dozens of calls of support from the school community. They welcomed news that State Education Minister Anna Bligh had intervened in the case.

"I just want my son's name cleared," his father said.

Ms Bligh said principals had a responsibility to "maintain the good order of their school" but she expressed some reservations about the boy's punishment.

"While suspensions are a valid disciplinary measure, I can understand that some parents may have concerns about the value of suspending Year 1 students," she said.

"Therefore, I have asked the department to examine the circumstances surrounding this case."

Ms Bligh had requested the investigation report be filed with her as soon as possible.

The boy's mother said she was first told by a school official that her son had "hurt" another student. Her son was then given the telephone to explain his actions to her.

"I asked him what had happened and he said, 'I don't know, I just poked her on the bum'. He said all the children had been mucking around. My son would never do anything to intentionally hurt another child."

The mother was particularly angry that a school official had drawn a picture of a naked person and asked the boy to point on the diagram where he had touched the girl.

Ms Murray told the Albert and Logan News that the boy's age was irrelevant. She said the suspension gave the family an opportunity to discuss why it was not appropriate to touch girls in personal places.

But P and C state president Wanda Lambert said it was inappropriate to banish a child who probably did not understand what the fuss was about.

"This reflects society today . . . this over-reaction, all for the sake of political correctness," she said. "People are jumping the gun rather than investigating something properly."

Ms Lambert said the school would have been better calling in both children and parents to discuss the incident before handing out the punishment.

"We don't want children as young as that suspended every time they do something wrong," she said.

Education Queensland's annual report, tabled in Parliament this month, revealed there were more than 37,000 cases where students were suspended for between one and 20 days.

Most of the offences were for physical misconduct.

Although no ages were given, department insiders said there would only have been, at most, "a handful" of Year 1 students suspended.


I don't know if other countries are as "radical" with the whole "politically correct" bullshit.......here in Australia...its beyond a joke.