BULLYING in school is a longstanding problem that has not been properly addressed, stakeholders said, as they called for stricter enforcement and disciplinary action in learning institutions.

They said a law against bullying is necessary to stop the menace.

Activists told The Malaysian Insight the fact that junior students are commonly subjected to ragging by their seniors have long been taken lightly. 

Calls to ban ragging grew following the death of naval cadet Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnain, who was tortured to death by his peers in 2017.

Recently, a video went viral of a group of six students in Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (MRSM) Sultan Azlan Shah punching and kicking a boy in Kuala Kangsar.

Ten students were arrested by police to assist in investigations. Six were suspended from school for two weeks.

Alliance for Safe Community chairman Lee Lam Thye said bullying has existed for a long time and not been effectively addressed.

“Probably they (authorities) know about it but nothing has really been done other than authorities making statements to the media of strict action, but after a while that dies down. There is no in-depth solution to the problem,” he said.

“We hav always heard about bullying in universities. They don’t call it bullying, they use the word ‘ragging’.

“This has been accepted for a long time and nobody questions it. But perhaps the form of ragging in those days might not have been that aggressive or violent,” he said, adding that some victims had died in some serious case.

On the actions of the MRSM students, the former lawmaker said it was an extreme form of bullying that must not be tolerated.

He called for stricter and firmer disciplinary action in boarding schools against bullying.

He said school administrators must not take such incidents lightly or cover them up in an attempt to protect the reputation of the school.

He said the culture of violence must not be normalised and that problematic students must be sent for counselling.

“In extreme cases, where despite counselling they cannot change, then I think they should expel them,” he said.

Police help

Melaka Action Group for Parents in Education (Magpie) chairman Mak Chee Kin said the bullies in the video need to be punished and expelled as it was a planned act to inflict hurt on the victim.

“In those days, we had ragging (in universities) but once it was banned, no seniors dared to do it,” he said

“Schools must emphasise this in the weekly assembly or group discussions. It will be better to engage uniformed personnel like the police to give talks on bullying and its effects and consequences.”

He said wardens in boarding schools also play a major role in preventing bullying.

“They should be able to sense such intentions. Maybe we should also get uniformed personnel like the police to support school wardens.”

Parent Action Group for Education (PAGE) chairman Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim said all schools must have a clear anti-bullying policy.

Such a policy and the consequences of non-compliance must be made clear to all students, teachers and parents, she said.

“An anti-bullying act such as the one France intends to pass, where school bullies will face jail, should be given serious consideration as innocent lives have been lost (to bullying) in the past,” she said.

Mak said such a law will allay the fear of parents.

Lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla said existing laws are sufficient to deter bullies.

Those who inflict bodily harm on others, whether grievous or light, can be charged, prosecuted and punished in the court of law, he said.

“That is more than sufficient. When read together with the Juvenile Act and Child Act there are other provisions to protect from all these issues,” he added.

He said the issue was not about creating new laws but enforcing and applying existing laws.

Scars remain

A victim who was bullied in school recounted the experience.

Nurul, now 37, said her seniors in a boarding school in Selangor used to pull off her headscarf.

“Seniors used to gang up on me and they would force me to say ‘Assalamulaikum’. Otherwise, they would pull my tudung off. Their excuse was that juniors needed to respect seniors,” she said.

“A picture of me taken outside the school hostel was distributed because I was not in a tudung. Tudung was part of the uniform,” she added.

She added that she was also subjected to period spot checks.

She described the act of bullying as toxic. She noted that bullying was not seen as a big issue in the past.

She said bullies are often insecure.

“We need to start preaching that respect and confidence means being humble. Respect others as you wish to be respected.”  – December 13, 2021.