A 62-year-old teacher groped at least 16 girls between the ages of 8 and 10 in a primary school in Turnhout, in the Flemish province of Antwerp, for nearly 30 years, De Standaard reports.
Colleagues reportedly raised the alarm about the teacher’s inappropriate behaviour, but the former director of the school refused to intervene. The director is also now set to be prosecuted.
In court, the school teacher was forced to answer to the historic allegations. Notably, it is alleged that he openly groped girls in class while they watched Flemish TV show Karrewiet. The teacher referred to his chosen victims as the “cuddly girls” who were allowed to sit on his lap at the front of the class.
'Couldn't resist it'
The abuse came to light after a girl in the teacher’s class had warned her parents to not let her younger sister end up in the groper’s class.
“That school year she was regularly allowed to sit on the teacher’s lap, while the class watched Karrewiet. He then stroked her under her clothes, including her vagina. P [the suspect] had positioned his desk so that there were cupboards in front of it and no one could see anything. He could go about his business undisturbed, yet in a public way,” Kris Luyckx, lawyer for the girl’s parents, told De Standaard.
In court, the suspect did not deny the charges levelled against him. He stated that it “should never have happened” and said that he “couldn’t resist it.” The suspect admitted to offences as far back as 29 years ago. 16 victims have been recorded, all aged 8 to 10.
The suspect reported that he was attracted to smart, beautiful, enthusiastic, and sporty girls. In each class he had up to two “cuddly girls.” Kathleen Crommen, the lawyer for the parents of another victim, said that some children would deliberately stay longer in the toilet to avoid having to enter the class while Karrewiet was playing.
“The impact on the children is enormous. My client’s daughter had the back luck of being one of his ‘cuddly girls’. There is no #MeToo for girls that age. They don’t realise when something goes too far,” the lawyer said.
One victim came forward almost 30 years later. She reports that they would travel to his home together each week, where he would grope her. The woman reportedly still deals with mental problems.
Culture of neglect
The teacher is not the only person to be brought before the court. The former director of the school, who was found to be aware of the abuse, was found guilty of neglect. Several teachers had noticed the suspect's inappropriate behaviour and reported it to the director, but nothing was done.
Teachers notably complained of the suspect giving long hugs to the girls and some staff intervened to remove pupils from his class. When challenged about the inappropriate behaviour, the director would say that she had already talked to the suspect about the issue.
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“It is incomprehensible that the management had not acted decisively. When the strange behaviour was reported, she said that she had never caught [the suspect] in the act. This could have been stopped,” one of the lawyers complained.
“My daughter was eight years old when her teacher rubbed her belly, eight years old when he ran his fingers over her labia, eight years old when her carelessness was taken away from her,” one emotional mother told the court. “She is now 13 and has a shattered self-image.”
The trial of the former school teacher is set to continue on 14 June.
Victims of sexual violence can call 1712 anonymously, chat on nupraatikerover.be (in Dutch) or surf to seksueelgeweld.be (in Dutch, French and German) for more information, or can visit one of the centres to receive help after experiencing sexual violence.
