The actions of the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (MPNI) and the Basic State Prosecutor's Office (ODT), as well as all related actors, must send an unequivocal message to the professional and lay public that neither sexual harassment nor the cover-up of sexual harassment and violence in schools and other educational institutions will tolerate, said the non-governmental organization Prima after a meeting with the head of the mentioned government department, Anđela Jakšić Stojanović.
The NGO welcomed the minister's moves so far, especially that, as they say, she did not hesitate in collecting documentation on these cases and forwarding it to the ODT. They added that they will continue to take an active interest in the progress of state authorities in connection with numerous cases of sexual harassment and violence in primary and secondary schools that the public recently learned about, and which were the subject of the meeting.
"Amendments to the current Law on General Education, about which the MPNI informed the public these days through the media, are compatible with the needs of our system and give us hope that this time a serious, professional and sincere approach was taken to solve this problem, as well as all future cases in the field of sexual harassment and violence at school," said the NGO Prima.
In the press release of this NGO, it is also stated that Jakšić Stojanović and the executive director of Prime Aida Perović agreed to meet immediately after the holidays in order to create a protocol on handling cases of sexual harassment and violence in schools, when both the victim and the perpetrator are students of the school, when the victim is a student, and the perpetrator is a peer or an adult outside the school, as well as in cases where the perpetrator is an employee of the school, and the victim is a student.
"Also, it was agreed to continue cooperation through the organization of trainings for school employees, including school administrators, who would acquire the skills and knowledge of how to recognize a victim or potential victim of sexual violence and how to provide them, above all, with professional and psychological support. The NGO Prima continues to be active deals with prevention, counseling and the fight against sexual violence", the announcement concludes.
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