For several weeks now, the Polish sports community and public opinion have been shaken by the issue verbal attacks and harassment of 15-year-old Daria, daughter of the famous Ukrainian-Polish volleyball player Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie Yuri Gladyr. The case was publicized by Onet Sports Review and quickly triggered a wide reaction – not only the media but also state institutions and even Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.
According to journalists’ findings, Daria, a student of a prestigious high school TE Vision in Warsaw, she was allegedly the victim of prolonged harassment by her peers. From the outset, the girl’s family has been demanding a clear response from the school and protection for the child.
School: “This didn’t happen on our campus”
The injured girl’s family is fighting for justice for their child. Meanwhile, the school the 15-year-old attended claims it was not responsible. The school claims the case was wrongly transferred to the school, arguing that the harassment occurred off-campus and outside of school hours.
The Wizja Educational Society even published a statement in which it emphasized that the events described took place outside school and outside school hours, and their source was – according to the outlet – “a personal conflict between teenagers.” The letter also accused Daria’s family and the Onet journalist, Sebastian Parfjanowicz, giving the case a national character.
The family representative strongly disagrees with these statements, Mateusz Mickiewicz, which emphasizes that we are dealing with classic bullying and that the school has not responded adequately to the scale of the problem for a long time.
Statement of the management of the TE Vizja Secondary School
“Pursuant to Article 97 § 1 item 4 and Article 123 of the Act of 14 June 1960 – the Code of Administrative Procedure, a decision was made to suspend the proceedings regarding the issuance of a decision regarding the removal of student Daria Gladyr from the list of students of the TE Vizja High School with Bilingual Departments.
The proceedings have been suspended until the relevant authority resolves the preliminary issue. Therefore, the earlier decision will not enter into force on the planned date.
— excerpt from a letter signed by the school principal, Emilia Nagucka
After the publications of Onet and our article from December 22 Daria’s mother also spoke on the matter.
I sit up at night wondering how it’s possible that my daughter should be punished for being the victim of psychological abuse. She’s the only victim in this case. Where’s the justice in that? — said Marina Gladyr, mother of a 15-year-old girl, in an interview with Onet.
A Quiet Twist
Although the school publicly distanced itself from responsibility, on the same day – as journalists revealed – a letter signed by the school’s principal was sent to Daria’s parents. Emilia Nagucka. It follows from this that the administrative proceedings regarding Daria’s removal from the list of students were suspended.
This means that the decision to remove the girl from school – originally planned for the end of December – did not enter into force, and the victim of violence can continue their education.
“This is a breakthrough, though not the end of the matter,” the family’s attorney emphasizes. “The most important thing now is the child’s safety and a calm explanation of what really happened and the school’s role in it.”
State reaction
Following media publications, the matter was taken up by:
– Warsaw Police Headquarters,
– Ministry of National Education,
– Board of Education.
Family courts operate in parallel, which – as the attorney emphasizes – are to assess students’ behavior in terms of demoralization and the well-being of minors.
“According to our knowledge, the Ministry of National Education and the Education Authority have initiated audit proceedings. I see this as a clear signal that state authorities recognize the need for intervention. Until the case is finally resolved, Daria should not be subjected to further negative administrative actions,” Mickiewicz emphasized in an interview with Onet.
“This is important for the child’s well-being. Now it’s time to calmly and step-by-step determine what the bullying looked like and how the school responded. This is a turning point for us, especially considering how things have been going over the past two months,” he adds.
“Bullying has no nationality”
Daria’s family strongly rejects the accusation of “nationalizing” the case.
Bullying is bullying. It has no nationality. Every child deserves protection and safety,” emphasizes attorney Mickiewicz.
The case of 15-year-old Daria demonstrates how easily a victim of violence can be portrayed as a problem rather than a person in need of support. Only pressure from public opinion and the media led to real action by institutions.
Eastern News will follow further developments.
Source: Onet / SE
Journalist and Editor-in-Chief of Nowiny Wschodnie, a news platform followed by more than 140,000 people on social media. A graduate in Journalism and Social Communication, he has been co-creating and developing Nowiny Wschodnie since 2017. He gained professional experience working with local and international media.
He specializes in fact-checking, countering disinformation and propaganda, and information security. His work focuses on Poland, Ukraine, Eastern Europe, and Polish-Ukrainian relations. He is also the founder of a non-profit organization working in the fields of integration and intercultural dialogue.
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