The tragic death last Wednesday of an innocent young man full of life, has shocked the whole of Mauritian society. Madouressen Sellamuthu, also known as Kris, was brutally assaulted by 12 youngsters on 27th November at Ian Palach bus station in Curepipe. He was in the intensive care unit at Nehru hospital in Rose-Belle, where he fought for his life for 10 days. Unfortunately doctors could not do much for him.

Kris had been a croupier at Flamingo Game House in Rose-Hill for two years. He was savagely assaulted on that tragic night while he was waiting for a taxi to go to a wedding around midnight. All of a sudden, one of a group of 12 youngsters stopped by him to ask for a cigarette. He gave him one. Then, another of the boys asked for money, but he refused. He was then bullied and, when he tried to run away, they chased him and beat him up. In fact, one of the gang hit him with a piece of concrete. Another one jumped on the poor victim while he was lying on the ground and kicked him brutally. They then walked away to a discotheque.

The police found Kris at 2 a.m thanks to the phone call of a driver who had seen him lying in a pool of blood. At that time the driver was going to pick up two employees at Lake Point. The two employees called the Samu of Rose-Belle. The 12 suspects, aged from 15 to 22, have been arrested and are in custody until the end of the police investigation.

Sadness and anger are the feelings that pervade the Sellamuthu family. The two sisters of the victim, Nella and Azagee, are asking for the death penalty to avenge their brother. Whereas Soopayah, the father, is trying to calm things down by saying that violence is not the answer, he has made it clear that his family and himself will make sure that justice is done.

Following this tragedy, a finger is being pointed at Cité Joachim where nine of the arrested suspects live. The mother of one of the suspects, aged 15, thinks her son, just like as the others, must be punished for what they have done to Kris. On the other hand, she thinks that adolescents nowadays, tend to fall into alcohol and drugs due to a lack of useful occupations.

While, on the one hand, the relatives of Kris are mourning his untimely death, on the other, Mauritian society is wondering if it is not time for our institutions to face their responsibilities starting with children in school. This death is an indication of the social problems encountered by the suburban communities. Questions are now raised as to the ability of our institutions to cope with the violence that has been plaguing our society recently.