BULLYING in school should not be taken lightly.

Parents and teachers play a crucial role in addressing this issue right from the onset to ensure that mental and physical trauma is dealt with early. Swift and effective action will minimise the possibility of a situation escalating into a more serious case.

The police, too, must exercise caution in applying their special powers of investigation. They must treat young offenders differently from adults as the full force of the law can leave significant psychological scars on an impressionable young mind.

The police should only intervene when the seriousness of a situation warrants their involvement, and then only in cooperation with the parents and teachers. However, their involvement should start early as an advisory on the law.

Most young minds engage in such extreme mischief without realising the legal consequences of their actions. The benefit of the doubt should be accorded to them as either child, juvenile or youthful offenders. Even the law recognises the age of such offenders, and court sentences are generally more lenient compared to those for adults.

Parents and teachers must be the frontline handlers of bullying in schools. Early disciplinary action must be firm, swift, and impactful, complemented by a connection to the police, especially for cases bordering on criminal offences.

Strong collaboration among these three parties is key to ensuring that pupils neither go overboard nor are let off too lightly in cases of bullying.

Courts should always be the last resort. It is vital to know the difference between schoolboy mischief and a criminal offence. – November 15, 2023.

* G. Selva reads The Malaysian Insight