Schoolboy hospitalised after beating by bully - as classmates film it

A Stanger schoolboy, who was bullied by a classmate, is being accompanied to classes by members of his school's pupils' representative council.

The 17-year-old, described as "the new kid", has been bullied since he joined Stanger Manor Secondary School, on the KwaZulu-Natal NorthCoast.

Despite his bully being found guilty by the school's tribunal and suspended for a week, sentenced to 20 hours community work and having to write an essay on the negative effects of violence in schools after an incident in February, the bully assaulted the boy again last week.

A video clip of February's vicious attack, in which the boy repeatedly punches the victim while others egg the assailant on, has been making the rounds on social media since Friday.

[Scroll down to see the video - warning graphic imagery]

After the attack earlier this year the boy was treated for his injuries in hospital.

"He is from the Western Cape and the boys bullying him have been at the school for a long time," education department spokesman Kwazi Mthethwa said yesterday. "It appears that this incident occurred while the boy was changing classes.

"It was decided that members of the [pupils' representative] council would accompany the boy from class to class."

He said the school had dealt with the matter, but the boy's parents approached the department's district manager on Friday because they were not satisfied.

"We have now decided that a tribunal must look into this very serious matter. We want a full investigation and a report on exactly what happened. We will not allow bullying in our schools," Mthethwa said.

He said the pupils who egged on the attacker by shouting "f*** him up" would also appear before the tribunal.

KwaZulu-Natal police spokesman Lieutenant- Colonel Thulani Zwane said the children who had encouraged the assault could be charged with incitement.

"The victim can charge his classmate with assault and can also open a charge of incitement against those who encouraged the boy to continue beating him," Zwane said.

He could not confirm that a criminal docket had been opened.

Below is a short clip of the video edited to obscure the children's identity: