2007 08: School says sorry for caning that left bruises

The Star Online. News. Nation. Monday August 6, 2007

SUNGAI Petani's SMK Sin Min issued a statement to apologise to parents after two disciplinary teachers caned 30 students for flouting rules and bruised some students' buttocks, China Press reported.

The bruising led to upset parents demanding an explanation from the school.

The case, which was reported in Chinese newspapers, received public attention and many versions of the incident were circulated among the Chinese community, causing hurt to teachers and students, the paper quoted the statement.

School authorities, after chairing a meeting with the school's board of directors and the parent-teacher association on Friday, said it regretted the incident and apologised to the parents.

It also said caning students who had flouted disciplinary rules was one of the approaches used by the school for many years to discipline students.

SMK Sin Min principal Lok Kin Hong said that to avoid a recurrence of such an incident, students who are to be caned more than once would not receive the canings on the same day.

On Wednesday, 30 Form One students were caned for not submitting their homework, talking in the class and attending classes without textbooks.

Three of them suffered bruises and their parents confronted the school over the incident.