Parents will have to pay: fines for bullying in schools could increase tenfold.

Fines for bullying could increase tenfold

The Educational Ombudsman of Ukraine, Nadiya Leshchyk, claims that fines for bullying in schools could be increased tenfold. She believes that the current fines (850-1700 hryvnias) are not effective enough, as the low amount encourages some individuals to simply pay the fine, avoiding responsibility and educational work with the child. According to Leshchyk, an effective fine should start from 10,000 hryvnias. She also believes that increasing the fine will be a deterrent for all participants in the educational process, including parents, educators, and students.

The ombudsman drew attention to the problem of documenting bullying cases. Typically, cases fall apart due to improper documentation. Victimized students face difficulties in gathering evidence of bullying. Particular concern arises when students document instances of bullying in video or audio, but the bullies' parents or educators confiscate the devices and delete the recordings.

According to Leshchyk, raising the fine to 10,000 hryvnias will make parents and educators take bullying cases more seriously and will motivate them to prevent conflicts from the very beginning.