MATTHEW XUEREB

A school headmaster yesterday denied breaching teachers’ code of ethics when he made a girl kneel down and say a prayer as a punishment for fighting with another student.

Raymond Cassar was testifying before Magistrate Doreen Clarke, during the compilation of evidence against Doris Azzopardi from Valletta, who is being accused of attacking the headmaster with an umbrella on 27 February.

He explained that the previous day, the woman’s daughter and another boy were fighting and as a punishment he made them kneel down and say a prayer. He said that the following morning, at around 8.55am, Ms Azzopardi went to his office, swept everything from his desk and started shouting at him. He said she told him she did not expect him to do anything of the sort.

Mr Cassar said he left the office and the woman ran after him. “She was shouting that she would kill me and that she was prepared to go to prison because of me.

“She tried hitting me with an umbrella but she didn’t manage. I was terrorised because I thought she was going to attack me physically,” he said.

Mr Cassar said he had no idea that the girl in question had a problem with her knees and her mother never informed him about any problem. He said the mother signed a declaration that her daughter was healthy at the beginning of the scholastic year. The headmaster said that the girl had no problems, so much so that two days after the incident she participated in a sports rally organised by the Education Division.

Under cross-examination, the headmaster denied doing anything in breach of the teachers’ code of ethics and insisted that he was just punishing the girl and had no intention of ridiculing her in front of her schoolmates.

The case continues in May.

Police Inspector Pierre Micallef Grimaud prosecuted while Dr Jose Herrera and Dr Veronique Dalli appeared for the mother. Dr Pawlu Lia appeared for the headmaster in parte civile.