PM: Students to be expelled for assault, beatings

CHILDREN who assault or deliver beatings to others in school will be expelled, face criminal charges, and be forced to enrol in the Military-Led Academic Training (Milat) programme.

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar issued the warning as she confirmed reports of an incident involving a Form 5 student at South East Port of Spain Secondary School.

The girl is warded at hospital after being attacked inside the school’s bathroom by three schoolmates on June 3, 2025.

Persad-Bissessar said the teenage girl suffered a fractured nose, broken tooth, blood clots in her eyes, and other injuries as a result of the attack.

The incident was filmed by other students and Persad-Bissessar said the three alleged attackers had been identified and were at the time facing suspension.

Adding the entire country was “fed up with the daily dose of school violence” Persad-Bissessar said there would be a zero-tolerance approach to school fights.

“Going forward we will treat every occurrence of assault or beating as an expellable offence in schools and an arrestable offence to be put before the courts.”

She said children must not be allowed to get away with criminal acts because it takes place in a school.

“If someone is 15-years-old and robs you, or assaults you, or extorts you, they are arrested. However if they do the same thing in a school uniform they are getting a free pass.

“It doesn’t make sense that a school uniform is a licence to break the law. This must stop!”

She warned parents that they need to take responsibility for their children’s behaviour.

“If they can’t train them to properly behave in school, then let them stay home and fight.”

Persad-Bissessar said students will also be expelled if they, or their parent, threatens or assaults a teacher or principal.

“I am fed up of seeing our principals and teachers abused and threatened by both students and their parents. We will enforce expulsion rules to the maximum.”

She said onlookers who encouraged the violence would also face suspension.

“Additionally all students caught in videos cheering, clapping and egging on the violence will be suspended because they are also participants.”

She called on teachers to report every act of school violence to the police and added her MPs will get involved if police fail to act.

“I am urging all principals, teachers and students to make reports to the police, and forward the reports to your MP’s If you see no action being taken.”

Sturge: Mandatory Milat enrolment in time for September

Defence Minister Wayne Sturge said the government would speak with the various stakeholders before making Milat enrolment a mandatory part of the expulsion process.

He said the government, with its constitutional majority, was hoping to pass the relevant legislation in time for the start of the September 2025 school term.

“If you commit an offence, there is evidence, and you are charged with a criminal offence, particularly the offences of violence, then we will seek to make it mandatory that you have attendance there (in Milat).

He explained Milat enrolment was being made mandatory to avoid expelled students finding themselves in further trouble.

“If we simply remove you and you are not attending school, you may end up in a gang.

“We are seeking to try to mitigate against that so that we will take that into account to try to protect you from yourself.”

TTUTA pledges to look at measure ‘positively’

TT Unified Teachers Association (TTUTA) president Martin Lum Kin said he could not give a full statement as he had not heard all the details of the government’s plan.

Lum Kin said, though, what he did hear seemed to try want to address violence and indiscipline in the school but added there were legal and psychological issues to be fleshed out.

He said the measure appeared to be a short-term one and said he hoped to see long-term plans as well.

“Preventative measures should also be looked at in these instances where you can address students’ behaviour before they reach this level of violence and indiscipline.”

Lum Kin pledged to support “as far as possible,” initiatives that curbed violence and indiscipline and also protected teachers.

“We want to ensure that there's a safe environment not only for our students but for our educators as well and that there be no issues when it comes to the teaching and learning process.

“School days should be enjoyable days for our children, so any initiative, once it is within the law and brings about some change, we will look at it positively if it is dealing with the causes of crime, criminality, violence and indiscipline at the root level as well.”

He added if the zero-tolerance would curb school violence, TTUTA “will look at it positively.”

Mandatory Milat enrolment not new

On November 23, 2023, education minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly also announced a policy to send students expelled from school for bad behaviour to Milat.

Speaking in the Senate a day later, she said by law, she had the authority to instruct that expelled students be placed in Milat.

She said expelled students were "not cast aside" and added in addition to Milat, their details were sent to three other ministries to possibly help them based on their specific circumstances.

She added sending expelled students to Milat was not a new idea saying, “It is something that we just formalised.”

In 2022, a revised national school discipline matrix was approved.

The matrix provides guidance as to how infractions should be dealt with, and emphasised progressive discipline including counselling and restorative practices.

It suggests students committing their first infraction should be referred to the Student Support Services Division at the Ministry of Education along with a parent/guardian conference, restitution, a three to five day suspension, referral to ministry of social development and family services and the matter being reported to the police.

However, it also states, “Any infraction which involves violence against another person and results in criminal charges being laid against a student will be considered and treated as a severe third offence event, resulting in expulsion.”