By BIANCA SYMONETTE, Guardian Staff Reporter, bianca@nasguard.com

Just five days after a 12th-grade student from C.V. Bethel was stabbed to death a few yards from the school campus, police have reported that another 12-grader was stabbed, this latest incident occurring at Government High School.

Police were on the hunt yesterday for the persons responsible for stabbing the 16-year-old boy at the Yellow Elder campus during lunch recess. Assistant Superintendent Walter Evans reported that the incident occurred around 1 p.m. yesterday. The student, who was stabbed in his abdomen, was taken by ambulance to the Princess Margaret Hospital in a conscious state.

As of yesterday evening, he was listed in stable condition.

This latest stabbing is the 13th such incident to occur in schools in the country during the 2007/2008 period.

When The Guardian news team arrived at the school shortly before 3 p.m., students had already been dismissed and teachers were locked away in the library in an emergency staff meeting.

Students, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Guardian what led to the incident.

According to a 10th-grade male student, the stabbing occurred in the vicinity of the school's performing arts, carpentry and woodwork blocks, located in the back of the campus.

Apparently the 12th-grader who was stabbed had been involved in an altercation with some students of the school a few days prior. According to the students, the victim had been absent from school to avoid these persons, who were reportedly in the 10th grade.

When the student was in the back area of the school, he was attacked, allegedly by the 10th graders, who stabbed him to the abdomen and escaped by jumping the school's wall.

The students said after the stabbing the school environment became chaotic, with persons running and screaming. Students saw the 12th-grader emerging from the group of assailants, gripping his stomach and heading in the direction of the school's office. The on-campus nurse reportedly bandaged the boy's wound until the ambulance arrived.

Shortly after the incident the school bell rang, alerting the students to return to class.

"After that, the school was on lock down; no one was allowed to leave their homeroom and we remained in homeroom until after the ambulance left. Shortly after the ambulance left the campus, school was let out class by class probably to avoid any retaliation by other students," the 10th grader said.

When asked whether police should be returned to the schools the student responded, "When the police were on campus incidents still happened. The problem is that the students don't respect the police, so they do all they can to rebel. So it won't make a difference whether the police are here or not."

The student pointed out that weapons were easily sneaked on the campus, as students knew the routine related to the checking of their bags. The student then claimed that only those who arrive to school after 8:30 a.m. are searched, therefore students make an effort to report to school earlier.

The school's principal Geoffrey McPhee acknowledged that the student who was stabbed and his assailants, were involved in previous altercations.

McPhee told reporters that three male students from the school stabbed the 16-year-old with what was believed to be a knife.

"We don't know why they were fighting this particular day, but this is an ongoing event between this student and the group of boys," said McPhee. However, he stressed that the school's campus was usually safe, hence the searching students was unnecessary for the most part.