Mom says teacher beat her 11 yr. old

It may not be classified as police news but one Belize City mother believes that if not a crime, it’s at least a shame the way her son is abused at school.

Janelle Chanona, Reporting
Anna de la Fuente?s 11-year-old son is a student of St. Ignatius Middle School but on Wednesday, the young mother says the child suffered serious physical abuse, at the hands of his teacher. The disciplining tool? A car antenna.

Anna de La Fuente, Parent
?He gone bathe and afterwards he tell me how the teacher lash ah right, pan de leg with wah antenna and it really left wah big bruise pan his leg. And nuh only that, last week he lash ah and he still have the mark from the antennae pan eh hand.?

Janelle Chanona
?As a mother how did that make you feel??

Anna de la Fuente
?Really bad. I really mi feel like just have da teacher front ah me mek I do the same thing to he that he did to my child because not even me lash him like that, fi mek he di go on like that with my child. That nuh fair.?

De La Fuente says she has taken her case to the media after receiving several disturbing reports of what has been happening inside the classroom of standard four C.

Anna de la Fuente
?I know lot of parents wah agree with me pan this.?

Janelle Chanona
?Has your child told you about other incidents in the classroom with the same teacher??

Anna de la Fuente
?Yes, with the same teacher.?

Janelle Chanona
?What has he told you??

Anna de la Fuente
?He told me that one day the same teacher tek a little boy and I nuh remember what he tell me the little mi do but I think he say he mi wah go dah bathroom or something like that or and something, he stand up or something and he tek the little boy and slam ah against the wall. I nuh think that fair. Maybe by doing this what I di do right now, something positive wah come out of this.?

?I nuh have a problem with discipline because sometimes when children deh home they dah something and when they deh dah school they dah something else. I nuh mind if he mi discipline the child that moment when he mi do that wrong but nuh that way because I nuh left mark pan my child; never yet.?

The teacher in question has been identified to News 5 as Cipriano Caliz, by the principal of St. Ignatius, Mrs. Riveroll. This afternoon Riveroll declined to comment on the situation except to say that the matter will be dealt with internally. Because of her experience, de la Fuente has this message for other parents.

Anna de la Fuente
?Every parent should at least tek wah time fi their child because you nuh know weh that child di go through and at least I glad and I thank God that at least I tek wah time, at least five minutes with my child.?

According to the Ministry of Education, government policy is that physical discipline is not recommended, but where it is deemed necessary such punishment should be carried out only by the school principal or in the principal’s presence.