TARIQ A. AL-MAEENA

 

This past week millions of children in the Kingdom made their way to school for the beginning of the school year.  For the parents of some of these children, there remains a degree of anxiety as their children disappear behind the gates of their schools.



Mandi, an American mother who lives in Riyadh and operates a popular blog (undertheabaya.com), recently wrote of the unease and fears of some parents who have had unpleasant experiences within the Saudi school system.  In a piece titled "abuse in Saudi schools" covering some of the abuse children are confronted with at the hands of school teachers and officials, Mandi wonders, "How do you answer your sweet child when you ask him where the bruises on him came from and he says from his teacher? What are the reassuring words you can say when your daughter writes in her diary that she hates herself and wants to die because her teacher called her names? What are your options after several complaints have been made to the teacher and the school administration, and the physical and verbal abuse continues?"



She then goes on to list several cases of child abuse that leave a reader reeling.  In one instance, a "Saudi father, Abu Muhammad, took the day off work to tour nearby government schools for his son who will be entering the first grade. His aim was to drop in unannounced, meet the teachers and administration, observe the students’ behavior, and make sure the facilities were up to his standards. As he approached the administration office, he heard strange noises which he recognized to be the sounds of a struggle. Much to his surprise, when he turned the corner to the principal’s office, he found the principal towering over three children who were huddled together on the floor, trying to protect themselves from the beating they were receiving from this vile man. The principal noticed the arrival of Abu Muhammad, straightened his thobe, replaced his shumagh and igal, and rushed the boys out of the office as though nothing had happened. Needless to say Abu Muhammad did not choose that school for his son."



She offers another account of a mother who after discovering bruising on her son’s body had her husband visit the school to investigate. The mother relates, “My husband went to the school to complain. The school said they would investigate, but still permitted the teacher to work with children during the investigation. They gave my son a gift. The teacher later called us to apologize and also said that the kids were fighting and he didn’t know what to do, so he hit them. He was not taught how to deal with normal child behavior, and he’s been my son’s teacher for three years.” When she confided in friends about the abuse her son had received, she was told that since she’s living in the land of Islam, she should take the good with the bad and let the abuse go.



Mandi documents several more incidents of teacher/school abuse toward children.  She contends that "even when complaints are successfully made, school administrations are quick to try to cover up the problems and make excuses for them, rather than to deal with them directly."



As Mandi hears it, "many parents wish to make official complaints at the Ministry of Education, but phones are never answered and without access to reliable transportation, this can be difficult for many mothers to do. Administrators, when they do recognize the problem, often times do not have acceptable ways to deal with it. Either they don’t want to offend a teacher who has been working for them for years, they’re afraid of retribution from people with connections, or they’re simply at a loss for what to do. They may try to appease parents and children by gift-giving and excuse-making, but a long term and permanent solution is needed for this problem."



Mandi is not alone and should be commended for bringing to light some of the excesses parents have reported schools taking in the treatment of their children.  Parents must under no circumstances be quiet and accept such form of treatment as their child’s psychological future could be at stake. In recent times there have been condemnations of teacher abuse by clerics and media personnel.  How about hearing a louder call against pupil abuse? 

 

- The author can be reached at talmaeena@aol.com. Follow him on Twitter @talmaeena