2023-09-17 07:42:42
A defensive reaction to say the least. Has National Education taken seriously enough the case of school harassment suffered by Nicolas, the 15-year-old teenager who hanged himself on September 5 in Poissy (Yvelines)? Letters exchanged between the parents of the deceased and the Versailles rectorate during the months preceding the tragedy suggest that not.
Even worse, two letters published this Saturday by BFMTV attest to the lack of compassion on the part of the institution, which did not hesitate to threaten the family with… filing a complaint against them. “There was clearly a failure in the response that was sent to parents who were extremely worried,” Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne tells us. It should not and cannot happen like that. » During a press conference in the afternoon, the Minister of National Education Gabriel Attal did not mince his words either, calling it “a shame”. “Despite all the efforts made, we are still not up to the task; Put yourself in the place of Nicolas’s parents who received this letter!”, he added.
Several alerts ignored by the rectorate?
As a reminder, during his third year of professional preparation at the Adrienne-Bolland high school in Poissy, between 2022 and 2023, Nicolas would have been the victim of “bullying” and “unjustified insults” from classmates, as confirmed the Ministry of National Education. According to our information, the harassment would have started at the end of September 2022. The teenager was called “bad”, “ugly”, and was told repeatedly that “no one liked him”. He also had to endure insults towards his sister and mother. He would also have specified that these facts took place in front of a teacher who did not react.
In March 2023, the parents are received by the principal to discuss this situation. They immediately notify the rectorate via the ministry’s anti-bullying service.
On April 18, the parents sent a letter to the head of the establishment to denounce the lack of reaction. “During our interview, you promised us a response within two weeks,” they wrote. These 15 days are well exceeded too [nous] We have decided to act in the face of your inaction, that of your administration and that of your teachers. »
They indicate that a handrail was left at the Poissy police station on April 12. “So we will file a complaint and consider you responsible if a disaster were to happen to our son,” they add.
“I urge you to adopt a constructive attitude”…
A few weeks later, on May 4, the Versailles rectorate responded to Nicolas’s family. In this letter, the public service mentions “supposed harassment” suffered by the boy and describes as “unacceptable” the comments made by the father against the teaching staff in his letter.
The rectorate then cites an article of the Penal Code to remind that slanderous denunciation is punishable by five years of imprisonment and a fine of 45,000 euros. “I urge you to adopt a constructive and respectful attitude towards other members of the educational community,” continues the Versailles rectorate. “I will be forced, if necessary, to take all necessary measures,” concludes the missive.
At the same time, the parents were contacted by the psycho-social center of the Poissy police station, contacted by the ministry’s anti-harassment service. According to a police source, two sessions with a psychologist were offered to the young man but the appointments were not honored. The victim’s father reportedly replied to the police that he preferred to wait for the intervention of the national education services before seeing the police get involved.
Towards sanctions
Changing establishments, Nicolas entered a new vocational high school in the 14th arrondissement of Paris. This did not prevent him from ending his life on Tuesday, September 5, in the evening. His funeral took place in Poissy this Friday. At this stage, the link between these past acts of harassment and his death has not been clearly established. The ongoing investigation will have to determine the extent of the relentlessness of his classmates towards him, and whether this continued during the school holidays.
“We are outraged and angry,” denounces Grégoire Ensel, president of the FCPE, the main federation of parents. It is inhumane to dare to write these words to a family in complete suffering. The letter reflects both the burden placed on the families of children harassed as bullies but also the extent to which everyone is helpless at each level of National Education in the face of situations of harassment.
The Ministry of National Education has for its part opened an administrative investigation to shed light on the management of this file, the conclusions of which are expected “within 15 days”, specified Gabriel Attal. “I will draw all the conclusions, including in terms of sanctions. » In the meantime, he will bring together all the rectors this Monday to launch “an audit on all of these harassment situations”.
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