Parents of students from the "Lazo Angelovski" Primary School in the Aerodrom neighborhood of Skopje peacefully went on strike in the school building's hallway for three days, while their children did not attend classes, because the problematic student, with whom the problems have lasted for more than a year, was returned to classes with physical presence.

There was an attempt to transfer the child to a central primary school, but the parents protested there too and did not allow the transfer to take place. The parents justified their actions by saying that their children were suffering physical violence, and the employees of the "Lazo Angelovski" primary school themselves did not know and could not cope with the behavior of the third-grader.

On Monday, according to information from "Sloboden Pečat", when the striking parents gathered in the school hall, they called the police due to a threat that was made against them.

But today, after a three-day boycott, the students are back in class and the parents are no longer protesting. The reason is that yesterday the Parents' Council at the "Lazo Angelovski" Primary School received a notification stating that the Ministry of Education and Science has formed an interdisciplinary committee and that the problematic student will only be at that primary school for 2 more weeks.

The committee includes the school principal, representatives from the Inter-Municipal Center for Social Affairs, representatives of the State Education Inspectorate and the Bureau for Education Development, and the mayor of Aerodrom.

The meeting discussed the activities undertaken to overcome the student's behavior. The meeting reached a joint conclusion in the interest of the remaining 13 students not to miss classes, stating that from Monday, January 27, 2025, the student will be accompanied by professional associates (a teacher and a psychologist from other schools with the consent of the Municipality of Aerodrom) with a shortened time at school from 7:30 to 9:30 according to a plan of activities developed under the guidance of the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture, according to the notification to the parents' council obtained by "Sloboden Pechat".

According to the notification, this was a temporary solution for a period of 2 weeks during which time the Ministry of Education and Science will mandatorily prepare a school outside the municipality of Aerodrom for the student's transfer.

The parents of students from the "Lazo Angelovski" Primary School that we spoke with are skeptical and unsure that the MES plan will come true.

"I don't know what to think, except that they will boycott the next school as well," says a mother we spoke to.

In the "Lazo Angelovski" elementary school in Skopje's Aerodrom, there was a similar boycott in the first half of the year, but all the students supported it. This is the largest school in Skopje, where 1500 students stayed home for several days. Then, before the New Year holidays and the summer break, the Ministry of Education and Science decided that the student would follow the lessons online. Now, with a notification to the parents, they are promised that his stay at the school will be for another 2 weeks, for a period of 2 hours a day, accompanied by psychologists from other institutions.

The parents claimed that the problem had a genesis, a history, and expressed dissatisfaction with the work of the Center for Social Affairs, as well as the pedagogical service. They said that attempts had been made in the past to sweep the problem under the carpet until it escalated to the point where it could no longer be ignored. In a survey at the school at the end of 2024, every class declared a boycott of classes. There was also a boycott at the center's "11 Oktomvri" primary school. There, the principal claimed that she had given consent to the child's enrollment through a regular procedure, but regretted it because she had received information about his history that was previously unknown to her.

Minister of Education and Science Vesna Janevska emphasizes that the child must be provided with an education, but also a solution must be found in the interest of all stakeholders. According to her, the focus of the education system is the child, who, no matter what happens to him in life, should be given a place in society.

The professional services recommended that the student change the environment, which is currently no longer bearable for him at the "Lazo Angelovski" Primary School, due to all the events that occurred previously - several students dropped out of the class in recent years, the violence was both verbal and physical, and both students and employees were exposed to it. The Center for Social Affairs Skopje, when asked by "Sloboden Pechat" about the list of activities they have undertaken in recent years regarding this student, recently replied that it is a "secret" and that they are accountable to a manager.

The school openly says that one of the incidents involved a knife, as well as the undressing in the bathroom of a student who is under state protection as a refugee from a foreign country. Not only the children, but also the principal was hit, and the teacher was pulled by the hair.