The interim Minister of Education, Mihai Dimian, condemns the knife attack on Monday at a school in Bistrita and announces support for the victims, but also for the students and teachers affected by the incident. In addition, Dimian calls for the modification of the legal framework to increase safety in schools and asks the investigators to clarify if the information that the boy announced his attack on TikTok is confirmed.
“I strongly condemn the aggression produced this morning in a school in Bistrita, in which a teacher and a student were injured. According to the information we have at the moment, both people are in a stable condition. I wish them a speedy recovery and I am with their families and the entire school community. I thank the police and the medical teams for the intervention,” the interim minister of education, Mihai Dimian, said on Monday, according to News.ro.
It announces that the Ministry of Education and Research, both directly and through the County School Inspectorate and the school management, will provide support to the victims and cooperate with the competent institutions to clarify the facts and hold the guilty accountable, according to the law.
“Psychological support must also be provided to the other children and teachers affected by this event. I reaffirm what I stated on Friday: discipline and demand in class presuppose strengthening the authority of the teacher and protecting him against threats, aggressions and pressures. Teachers must be able to demand compliance with the rules and intervene to protect the students, with the support of the school management and state institutions,” the interim minister added.
He requests the support of the parliamentarians for the completion of the legal framework regarding the increase of safety in the school environment, including in the following directions:
An explicit special criminal protection for education staff threatened or assaulted in the exercise of their duties or in connection with them, as well as funded legal assistance and psychological support provided promptly, without waiting for the completion of the process.
The possibility of rapid and proportional restriction of school access and contact with threatened persons for those who present a risk, through reasoned and contestable decisions – “When these measures target students, the continuation of their education must be ensured in safe conditions for all”.
Consolidation of reporting and intervention mechanisms in case of threats, including those published online, with clear responsibilities and quick response.
“The protection of threatened or assaulted students must be strengthened through coordinated interventions between the school, family, police and child protection services. Media reports that the student announced the attack on TikTok must be clarified by investigators, including to determine whether there were signals that would have allowed intervention before the assault. Online threats must be taken seriously and reported immediately. Social media platforms have, in turn, the responsibility to to react promptly to reports regarding threats and content that encourages violence”, Dimian believes.
According to him, the school has clear responsibilities, but the prevention of violence requires the involvement of the family, the community and the competent institutions.
“The reasons and circumstances of the aggression must be established by the investigators, and the public communication must be based on confirmed information and protect the identity of the minors. The teacher must defend the rules of the school, and the state must defend the students and teachers!”, declared the interim Minister of Education.
An eighth-grade student from Bistrita attacked a teacher and another student with a knife on Monday morning. The student was immobilized by the police and is in their custody. The two injured persons were taken by the medical crews of the County Ambulance Service, who gave them first medical care, and they were later transported to UPU SMURD Bistriţa.
Another 14 people required medical attention, a 13-year-old student being transported to the hospital with head trauma.
