T Nhaveen’s unfortunate passing four
years ago due to bullying must not be in vain and we should all take this
opportunity to stand up against bullying, whether in school, workplace, or in
cyberspace. It affects people of all ages but especially the young, vulnerable
and different.
According to the Education Minister, Datuk Mohd. Radzi bin Md. Jidin, the
number of cases lodged against bullying from January 2020 – September 2020 amounted
to 0.04% of the total number of about 4.8 million students in both primary and
secondary schools, as compared to 0.12% the previous year. The years 2016 –
2018 recorded 0.07%, 0.06% and 0.09% respectively.
Malaysia has not enacted any legislation
yet to curb bullying and it is high-time the policymakers look seriously into drafting
the Anti-Bullying Act to prevent bullying and unnecessary juvenile deaths in
the future. Currently, the Penal Code (Act 574) and Child Act 2001 (Act 611) are
inadequate to protect children and adults alike from being bullied and
discriminated against.
I have personally come across people
who were bullied on the social media to the extend where it affected her
reputation at work and she fell into a depression. There are many other similar
cases and we do not need for another bad incident like Nhaveen’s case to remind
us what needs to be done.
The Penang Chapter of COMWEL hopes that
all MPs will be supportive of the Anti-Bullying Act as there must be
legislative action to prevent bullies from the damage they inflict on their
victims. As psychologists will attest to, bullying affects a person’s
self-esteem and young victims are too intimidated to inform their parents or
teachers about the trouble they are in. Although public awareness is equally
essential, the country still needs an Anti-Bullying Act.
Carolyn Khor
Head of Penang Chapter
Chief Secretariat for COMWEL
