Education Minister Norma Foley has expressed her belief that a video showcasing an attack on a teenager in Co Meath should never have been posted online. The video, which circulated widely across social media platforms throughout the past week, captures a disturbing scene where a 14-year-old boy is assaulted by a group of youngsters. The incident occurred around 2:30 PM on Monday and has been widely condemned.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland program, Minister Foley confirmed that she had spoken directly to the school principal of the victim. She acknowledged that the incident did not take place within the school grounds, yet noted that “all the young individuals involved were students at the school,” implying that disciplinary actions would be a matter for the school’s board of management. A separate investigation by the Gardaí, Ireland’s national police service, is also underway.
The Minister shared that people were “immeasurably shocked and horrified by what transpired in the past few days”. She expressed her sympathy for the young boy who had to endure such a terrifying ordeal, offering him support and well wishes. Minister Foley revealed that the boy and his family are receiving assistance, adding that the child is “eager to return to school in the coming days” after receiving treatment for his injuries at the hospital. The Department of Education’s psychological services are also working with the school “to provide any additional support they may need,” she stated.
Addressing the issue of the incident’s video being shared online, the Minister indicated that its circulation “amplified the horror” of the attack. She stated that the video had been duplicated over 5 million times across various platforms, adding, “It’s difficult to erase it once it has been forwarded so many times.”
Minister Foley appealed to the public to stop sharing the video and urged social media companies to remove it from their platforms. “From the beginning, it should never have been posted, and I believe that’s the most important thing to consider. But secondly, we are very conscious of the need to retract or remove it immediately,” she expressed.
“I think that everyone, throughout society, should have ownership and responsibility for this kind of material. Statistics show us that it’s actually adults forwarding it for a variety of reasons. I’m not making a judgment on the motives, it could be due to shock or anything else, but I think all of us in society need to reconsider how we operate on social media platforms,” Minister Foley concluded.