TALLINN - Education and Science Minister Tonis Lukas has formally acknowledged the widespread mistreatment of children that was unveiled during a surprise visit to the Puiatu Erikool correctional facility.
Inspectors questioned all of the students and staff during the May 19 visit, which discovered several instances of malpractice and child abuse.
"In the national children institution, the children were left without essential help and their security was under threat day and night," said Indrek Teder after his advisor made the surprise visit.
"That kind of behavior isn't only shockingly aimless, but also works against the country's social and punishing politics. Mistreatment of children must be ended immediately," he said.
Violence between students had become so extreme that even after receiving grievous bodily harm the kids felt they couldn't turn to school authorities.
The Baltic Times spoke to Janika, whose brother was a student at Puiatu.
"He told me stories about how some people had to offer sex to get cigarettes. He didn't tell me anything specific, [and only said] that what happens there is gross 's and we all know what gross is," said Janika K.
Janika's brother ran off and refused to go back to Piuatu after he was beaten and bullied by his classmates. He is now in jail.
The school's curriculum also failed to meet the criteria set by the state. All of the students in Puiatu Erikool had 35 lessons a week 's even though the maximum number allowed in the second grade, for example, is only 23.
After the lessons are finished, younger students were not allowed to leave the room before older ones do. Staff have implemented measures on how to make students behave better but there has been no analysis of how successful these measures were.
The Ministry of Education and Science has set new procedures the school must follow. The school will have to severely restrict its use of the isolation room. Staff meetings will have to be guided by minister's regulations and disciplinary methods must be specified in the house rules.
The school will have to be brought in line with the ministry's regulations 's and normalize the students' work load 's by Aug. 1.
School Director Toivo Luik, will be reprimanded. The minister will evaluate whether he is fit to remain in the post sometime after the end on the semester on June 2.
