Concerned about the controversial promotion of two former Saint Laurent high school principals, Liberal MP Marwah Rizqy is asking Minister Drainville to step in.
• Also read – Sexual Assault: The behavior of basketball coaches has been endured in silence
• Also read: École Saint-Laurent: The “dignity” of several students has been compromised
The new deputy director general of the Saint-Hyacinthe School Service Center is Patrice Brisebois, La Presse announced this morning.
From 2013 to 2020 he was principal at the Saint-Laurent school, where three staff members who worked with young women basketball players are now facing charges of sexual assault or sexual exploitation.
The Director of the Center de Services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys, Dominic Bertrand, has also just been appointed Strategic Advisor to the Ministry of Education.
An administrative investigation by the Department of Education found that “several indicators of inappropriate behavior have been accumulated over the years without adequate action being taken, which has allowed the establishment of a culture detrimental to a basketball program.”
In a press conference this morning in the National Assembly, the MNA for Saint-Laurent strongly advocated that an outside company conduct an independent investigation and suspend those managers during the process.
- Listen to the interview with Marwah Rizqy, Education Spokesperson for the Quebec Liberal Party, on Philippe-Vincent Foisy’s show QUB radio :
“There are currently two victims. There is a criminal case. I asked at the time that the principals involved in this story and the general manager be suspended while the investigation continues. And I had also asked to hire a specialized company,” she said. “For me, the Ministry of Education is not the specialized company here. With all due respect, there can’t be an officer here in Quebec who doesn’t have expertise in sexual assault and workplace harassment who can conduct this type of investigation.
In this case, victim A also confided in Ms. Rizqy. With his permission, the deputy read out a message she had sent him.
“As a victim of sexual assault by school staff and coaches, I am deeply saddened by the promotion of Dominique Bertrand and Patrice Brisebois. Dominique Bertrand has observed demeaning behavior at basketball tournaments. He remained passive. The investigative report, which is not independent, nevertheless indicates that the students’ dignity was violated. So far, however, no one has been held accountable or held accountable. I take these nominations like a slap in the face. If the government really cares about the students of sexual assault victims, it should launch an independent investigation. Victims deserve justice. It is time to take action to ensure acts like this never happen again in our schools” – Victim A
Saint-Laurent’s elected representative directly challenges Minister Bernard Drainville.
“It’s the government, the Department of Education, that needs to do a real investigation to get to the bottom of things. Because there are too many question marks,” she repeated. “I hope today that Mr. Drainville will understand the voice of the victims and then say to himself: We need to get to the bottom of things seriously.” It may also be time for the people of Quebec to take a little more responsibility. Action is important, but inaction is just as important.”
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