Rights of victims and penalties for harassers. School bullying becomes a priority for the next school year 2023.
After the suicide of young Lindsay, 13, the Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, and the Minister of Education, Pap N’Diaye, said they wanted to make the fight against bullying at school the absolute priority of the back to school 2023.
franceinfo: But what are the rights of victims, and what penalties do harassers face?
Philippe Duport: It’s very recent, the right not to be harassed only entered the Education Code in 2019, via the law for the school of trust. “No pupil or student shall suffer acts of harassment resulting from remarks or behavior aimed at undermining their dignity, altering their physical or mental health or degrading their learning functions”.
And when that happens, the establishment must react very quickly…
Yes, to this text is added a case law which says that the right for a student not to be subjected to harassment is a fundamental freedom. The establishment – as soon as the facts are reported by the parents – immediately, it is important, must put an end to the situation.
There is an arsenal of measures ranging from warnings, reprimands, accountability measures – the equivalent of community service – or exclusion measures, temporary or permanent. The harassed, underlines Maître Valérie Piau, specialist in education issues and author of Piau Guide, the rights of students and parents of studentspublished by The Studentis often forced to change establishments, which the rectorate will facilitate.
What if the establishment does not react?
Then the State will be able to be prosecuted, condemned to pay for its deficiency, in particular if there is a suicide.
We have seen the sanctions taken by the school, there is also the criminal aspect…
Yes, school bullying has been in the penal code since 2014. The penalties can be extremely heavy. From three years in prison and a 45,000 euro fine to 10 years in prison and a 150,000 euro fine, if there has been suicide.
It should be noted that the financial sanctions, pronounced against a minor, are the responsibility of the parents. And that a criminal complaint for harassment can trigger the opening of a social investigation with, at the end, for example, placement in a home. The national hotline situations of cyberbullying: the 3018 is the national toll-free number for victims of cyberbullying at school.