Caloocan school rumble leaves 1 dead, 3 wounded

A reportedly bullied Grade 10 student knifed dead a classmate and wounded two others in an after-school rumble Friday touched off by a fight over the use of an electric fan.

Police sources said on Saturday that the incident happened in a school situated in Barangay 172 in Caloocan City. The suspect, who could not be identified being a minor, had been arrested.

An initial investigation revealed that the suspect and a classmate exchanged heated words at around noon on the use of the classroom electric fan.

Accompanied by his friends, the classmate waited for the suspect outside of the school compound and confronted him, resulting in a rumble, the police said.

Unknown to the fatality and his friends who were wounded, the suspect had with him a kitchen knife which he used against them.

Upon the suspect’s arrest by barangay tanods or village guards, it was learned that the suspect had tried to carry a knife to school at least a couple of times before but that his mother was able to get the weapon from him.

The suspect said he needed the knife to defend himself from alleged bullying.

The Philippines has specific laws designed to address and prevent school bullying. The primary legislation is Republic Act 10627, also known as the Anti-Bullying Act of 2013.

The law defines bullying as any severe or repeated use of written, verbal, electronic, or physical acts that cause physical or emotional harm, fear of harm, or an abusive environment for a student. It includes cyberbullying, which involves the use of technology to harass, intimidate, or humiliate.

It applies to all public and private schools in the Philippines with schools being required to establish policies against bullying and procedures to handle bullying cases.

The law mandates schools to educate students, parents, and staff about bullying and its consequences, as well as to intervene and take disciplinary actions on bullying cases.

Likewise, schools are required to report serious incidents of bullying to the Department of Education (DepEd).

The same law tasks DepEd to monitor the implementation of the Anti-Bullying Act and ensures compliance by schools. The department also provides guidelines for addressing bullying incidents.

The law is complemented by other policies promoting child protection, such as Republic Act 7610 (Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination Act) and the Child Protection Policy issued by DepEd.