This Act establishes a system enabling victims of offences to claim compensation from the State…
N°1513 – Law of December 3, 2021 on the fight against harassment and violence in schools
The first chapter of the Law relates to “general provisions”. Thus, a Section 1 bis entitled “Fight against harassment and violence” was integrated following article 50 of the Law n° 1.334 of July 12, 2007. This section is subdivided into 6 subsections:
- The first one concerns the general provisions with articles 50-1 and 50-3 relating to the role, action and responsibility of the State regarding the state of “situations of harassment and violence within public or private educational institutions”.
Section 50-2 also provides a definition of “school-based harassment.”
- The following section describes the prevention and fight against harassment and violence, including the organization of training for educational staff (article 50-4), awareness-raising activities for the educational community (articles 50-5 and 50-6) and the prevention and fight against harassment and violence Plan established by each school (50-7 and 50-8).
- In addition, article 50-9 of the third sub-section introduces the designation of one or more referents within the school whose missions are specified subsequently (Articles 50-9 and 50-10).
- Article 50-11 refers to the designation of a delegate for these same missions of prevention and fight against harassment and violence, designation which takes place among the personnel of the National Education, Youth and Sports Department.
- The fifth sub-section is concerned with the procedure for reporting cases of harassment or violence, which may be initiated by any student, victim or witness, or any parent who believes that his or her child is a witness, victim or perpetrator of a situation of harassment or violence. The educational personnel listed in section 50-04 are required to report it.
- Finally, the last sub-section concerns the handling of situations of harassment or violence in the school environment, including the actions expected of the school principal. (Articles 50-16 to 50-20)
The second chapter of the law deals with penal provisions. In this regard, the context in which listening to, recording and transmitting spoken words, as well as fixing and recording a person’s image, constitute an infringement of private and family life was modified in Article 308-2 of the Criminal Code.
Thus, an infringement was established when the words spoken or the image taken of a person were “in a private place” but now the context is broadened to apply to similar situations “in a private or confidential capacity”.
In addition, sections 308-4-1 to 308-4-3 have been inserted.
These articles relate to the diffusion of words or images of a sexual nature (Articles 308-4-1 and 308-4-2 of the Penal Code) or not (Article 308-4-3 of the Penal Code) with, among other things, the assumption that the victim is “a student of a public or private institution”.
The last chapter deals with various and final provisions, including the annual report on the application of the provisions of the Law, which must be prepared by the Director of National Education, Youth and Sports.
