Dubai school takes ‘appropriate action’ after bullying video goes viral

Dubai: Appropriate action has been taken after a bullying incident in a UAE school was recorded and circulated on social media on Sunday, according to a statement from GEMS Education.

A 57-second clip posted on Twitter showed a young girl crying, being spoken down to and having her hair pulled. The video was posted by @highdadyy who left a comment asking the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) and Dubai Police to take appropriate action.

“No one deserves to be treated like that,” the message added.

KHDA replied, “We agree, this is unacceptable. Has the school been made aware of this? Please can you DM (direct message) us the details of the school, grade, and students’ names, or any other details you may have. Thank you.”

The initial message wrongly identified another school, who promptly replied, “Thank you for spreading awareness about bullying, this behaviour is certainly unacceptable. We can confirm these students are not from [our school]. Senior Leaders are trying to find out where this incident has occurred. In the meantime could you please remove the tweet with our name?”

Further comments identified the school as a GEMS Education school, and a GEMS Education spokesperson issued the following statement upon request, “We are aware of an earlier incident at one of our schools and can confirm that appropriate action has already been taken in accordance with our safeguarding policy. The school acted promptly to investigate and resolve the issue and we will continue to prioritise the safety, security and well-being of all our students.”