Our View: School bullying must not fuel xenophobia

It was inevitable that the far-right nationalists of Elam would try exploit an incident of bullying at a Nicosia school for their xenophobic agenda. The party made a big issue out of a bullying incident at a Nicosia primary school, which it linked to illegal immigration, as the perpetrators were foreign children and the victim Cypriot. According to reports, four children attacked an 11-year-old girl at a school in Kaimakli. “The consequences of illegal immigration in schools is evident,” said a party announcement which also drew its own sociological conclusions. “Their culture threatens ours. They cannot integrate into our society.” Elam’s announcement sparked an immediate response from the Commissioner for the Protection of Children’s Rights, Elena Perikleous, who said the party was fueling xenophobia and encouraging collective blame. The commissioner criticised Elam’s language which, she said, went far beyond condemning an individual act of violence, attributing, instead, collective blame to an entire population group. Condemning violence cannot be used as an excuse for targeting children because of their nationality, religion or migrant background, she said. “Since when is it racism to demand the protection of our children?” asked Elam. “Since when is the recognition of the realities at our schools, condemnation of violence and demand that responsibility was attributed, constitute xenophobia,” it asked the commissioner. The party acted as if this was the first ever incident of violent behaviour recorded at a public primary school, that bullying was unheard of in the past. It had never issued a statement condemning racist attacks at schools of which there had been plenty. Was it because it approved of bullying of foreign children? According to the state’s Safe School Team’s annual report, in the 2024-25 school year there were 510 incidents of violence reported in 93 schools and these involved Cypriot children as well. The report also recorded 51 racist incidents. None of these 500 incidents were considered worthy of issuing an announcement by Elam, which is only concerned with violent behaviour if foreign children are responsible for it. On Wednesday the party called for the resignation of the commissioner because she called out Elam’s xenophobia and crude attempts to rouse public anger against the migrant community. It is regrettable that only the commissioner stood up to Elam racist outburst. Why has the education ministry, which is in charge of public schools, said nothing about this incident? Why has it left the commissioner to take the flak? Perikleous is not responsible for what goes on in public schools and for the way violent behaviour and bullying are dealt with. This is the exclusive responsibility of the education ministry, which we would have expected to respond to Elam’s attempts to fuel xenophobia in schools.