Limassol school mom takes law into own hands

A woman in Limassol is being accused of assaulting a male high schooler in broad daylight, with media reports sowing confusion as to whether her teen daughter was also an aggressor in the incident or a victim of ongoing bullying that the school was unable to handle.

Local media said a male student was attacked on Friday after school by a woman in her early forties, who allegedly slapped the boy in the face outside a bakery in Agios Nicolaos, a midtown borough in Limassol.

A blurred video that went viral on social media showed a commotion outside the bakery, with many high school students shouting and reacting to what appeared to be physical altercations between individuals.

The parents of the student, who was seen in the video having a busted lip, reportedly filed a complaint with police, saying the boy was assaulted by the mother of one of his female classmates.

Police on Saturday were not immediately available for comment. 

The school mom, who has not denied going ballistic during the incident in question, told a local TV network that her daughter has been the victim of intense bullying from specific students. There were also reports of an incident a day earlier at a bus stop and the mother had gone to speak with the school principal the following day.

“How is this going to end, this is not right I told [the school principal], [my daughter] is at home crying all the time,” the mother said, adding that the educator replied “what do you want me to do?”

“I told her that as the school principal you are obligated to call the parents, have them come in, and you take charge of the situation,” the mother recounted.

The school mom added that she told the principal about school bullies who were also writing on walls offensive comments about her daughter and even trying to push drugs to her.

“After I left the school premises, I saw the student outside the bakery using force against my daughter, I stepped in and slapped him,” the mother reportedly said.

The student in question, aged 15, says he was not the person who wrote offensive comments on the wall. Reports also suggested the bullied girl was often teased about her weight and was once told “you have ten days to go commit suicide.”

Cypriot authorities have been on high alert over increasing incidence of school violence and bullying, while officials are reportedly also seeking ways to tackle bullying in the workplace.