7 in 10 Malaysian children worry about being bullied

Melati A. Jalil Yasmin Ramlan Melati A. Jalil, Yasmin Ramlan Updated 8 years ago · Published on 20 Nov 2017 7:00AM · 3 Comments

A comparative survey that polled 11,000 boys and girls aged between nine and 18 years has found that 54% of children in Malaysia feel they are not being heard or that their views are not helping to bring about change. – The Malaysian Insight file pic, November 20, 2017.

A GLOBAL survey has revealed that bullying is the number one concern for Malaysian children, followed by climate change and poverty.

According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) survey of 14 nations, 77% of Malaysian children, or seven in 10, are worried about being victims of bullying, compared with three in 10 children in Japan and nearly 4 in 10 in the United Kingdom. 

Other issues topping the list of concerns for Malaysian children are climate change (77%), poverty (74%), education access (74%), terrorism (74%) and poor health (73%), says the comparative survey that polled 11,000 boys and girls aged between nine and 18 years. 

Unicef representative to Malaysia, Marianne Clark-Hattingh said the authorities should view bullying seriously if more than three quarters of children were worried about being bullied.

“The comparative findings of the global survey highlight issues of particular concern to Malaysian children compared to others, bullying for example, and this should be taken seriously and addressed,” she said in the report.

In June, 18-year-old student T. Nhaveen died of injuries sustained after he was physically and sexually abused by a group of boys who had had a history of bullying him in school.

Pop star Justin Bieber is among the most popular personalities that Malaysian children would invite to their birthday parties. – EPA pic, November 20, 2017.

Less than two weeks before his death, navy cadet officer Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnain died after he was allegedly tortured and beaten by a group of fellow students who had accused him of stealing a laptop.

Psychologist Dr Mariani Mohamad Nor had told The Malaysian Insight that stress and inability to cope with modern society’s expectations were some of the factors leading to a rise in bullying in the country.

The Unicef survey, which was conducted online, also reveals that 54% children in Malaysia feel they are not being heard or that their views are not helping to bring about change, compared with 51% in Japan, 61% in the US, and 71% in the UK.

“Unfortunately, over half feel that even when they are asked for their opinion, they are not really listened to or their voice does not influence change. 

“As adults we should listen, we should consult children about issues that affect them and take their opinion into account. Although we may think we do, we don’t always know what is best for them,” said Clark-Hattingh.

More than half (53%) of the children in Malaysia also express mistrust of adults and world leaders making decisions on their behalf, compared with 68% in the UK, 59% in the US, and 81% in Brazil.

A high 95% of children in Malaysia believe the world will be a better place if the leaders will listen to children. 

“This percentage is higher than in any other surveyed country (89% in the US; 85% in the UK; 77% in Japan), except South Africa (97%),” said the survey.

Malaysian children listed violence against children (64%) and terrorism (60%) as their top two global concerns.

“The survey clearly demonstrates that children in Malaysia take an interest in global issues and are concerned about their impact on their lives and their peers’. They also have opinions about issues affecting them closer to home,” said Clark-Hattingh. 

Malaysian children also top the charts in smartphone usage at 80%, and spend equal time on social media and homework.– The Malaysian Insight file pic, November 20, 2017.

The survey found former US president Barack Obama and former Malaysian prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad to be the two most popular figures among Malaysian children.

“Barack Obama is the number one choice Malaysian children would invite to their birthday (celebration), followed by Dr Mahathir Mohamed,” the report said.

Third place is shared by football star Cristiano Ronaldo, pop stars Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, and Siti Nurhaliza, and Chinese billionaire and Alibaba founder, Jack Ma.

Malaysian children also top the charts in smartphone usage at 80%, compared with their counterparts in the US (74%), UK (73%) and Japan (63%), and spend equal time on social media (59%) and homework (59%).

The survey aims to establish a baseline of children’s awareness of issues affecting them around the world. – November 20, 2017.

Sign up or sign in here to comment.

Comments

  • Bullying is rampant in the corporate sector. Take the example of axa affin life insurance bhd - the senior managers - abused their position to humiliate, bully, cheat the staff/agency force. Bosses at axa head office (hong kong) look away while hundreds of staff/agency were thrown under the bus. Thousands migrated to join competitors. Axa rots at the bottom of the cesspool and the ceo eventually jumped ship to join hong leong as a junior officer. Read more toxic management at www.changenow083.blogspot.com

    Posted 8 years ago by Chris Ng · Reply

  • No surprise. Children learned from their elders and peers. Whatwith the rampant abuses pepetrated and endorsed by this umno administration, children and even adults learnt it s ok and even given a pat on their backs for bullying and intimidating opponents or people of different views and opinions

    Posted 8 years ago by HC Lung · Reply

  • We see rampant bullying of school children mainly and only in the national type school. This has become been a norm due to the degradation of the education system since UmnoBN insistent of placing non competent and underqualified Ali , Ayub and Ahmad to the job. There has been no ugrading or overhauling on the failed system except for continuious insignificant face lift to show boat the education has reached many levels and literacy on the rise. Coupled to the ineffective education system , the country official religion being given the emphasis and somehow incorporated to the national education system has lead nowhere in educating the youngs in the ethics of humanity and tolerances. Ingrained in their earlier teaching at pondok madrasah of just religious mights has not educated them on the integration with others and eventually programed to be non tolerant to others. This has resulted in the young formulating their own beliefs to be powerful through intimidation. Interacted with outside exposure and information of the extremes practises of racist and the religious fanatics internally and in other countries embolden them psychologically and further compounded by the policy of ketuanan gives courage to all these troubled youth on the false beliefs in succumbing others to their might is tolerated save for police cases of only juvenile sentences. Every bullying cases has only the police in the thick of actions if it is reported. Till today we are yet to see the Education Ministry seriously takes up the role of their responsibilities in their charter to arrest this problem. It is peremptory that the emphasis of morals subject should be inculcate in the education syllabus in the child growing up years and let the religious studies to be a pivate matters of their own making . Due to the lackadasical attitude in the Education Ministry, the concern of bullying which has intensified during the young children educational life, has now perpetuated to their young adulhood in their secondary and even up to vocational colleges and tertiary education. Do not use the vernacular schools as a as a projection for the failure on the set up in the national type school. Do not see bullying being condone or rampant at all in such schools and even the muslim students in such schools are well educated and brought up to interact well with others on free will. Something is very wrong in the education ministries and we have a problem.

    Posted 8 years ago by Lee Lee · Reply