Avele temporarily closes

By Pai Mulitalo Ale 21 March 2016, 12:00AM

Avele College was closed temporarily on Friday following a school brawl on Thursday after school. 

According to the principal Matafeo Reupena, the decision to close the school on Friday was made mainly for the safety of the students.

Matafeo said some of his students were injured from fights in town on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. 

He said after the morning fight between Avele and Saint Josephs College on Monday, the deputy principal of Avele went with one of their senior teacher to Saint Josephs to find a way to solve the problem. 

“We asked them to talk to their students on Monday and for us as well to talk to our students. 

Unfortunately, those talks never worked because that same day, it (fighting) happened again after school. 

Matafeo said the incident on Thursday was on that was out of control. He said he doesn’t know why Don Bosco got involved. But his advice to all the students was,  “Don’t try to hide the truth, just admit who’s wrong,” he added. 

Matafeo said he is not protecting anything or anyone he knows is in the wrong. 

“Once we have confirmed the Avele students who were involved, they are out,” Matafeo added.

Many students were injured in the fight on Thursday.

According to Matafeo, one of his staff members who went with their deputy principal to Saint Josephs’s College to try to solve the problem, was among those who were injured. 

Matafeo said their school didn’t close because his teacher was injured but he feared for the safety of his students and the whole school. 

“We all have relatives in Saint Joseph’s and also at Don Bosco and this ongoing problem is something that we need to solve.”

Matafeo said they are looking at other ways to teach the students how to learn.

On suggestion is that if they get caught creating fights they will be handed them over to the village council to be punished by their own village.

Zone A sports was also cancelled on Friday due to what had happened and according to Matafeo, other principals of the Zone A supported his decision to put their sports activity on hold. 

Principals of all schools in Zone A and B will meet on Monday at the Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture to resolve the problem.

By Pai Mulitalo Ale 21 March 2016, 12:00AM

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