Sin Chew Daily Report
By Liu Ziqing | Photos by Chen Jinghui & Tan Xiangxuan
Lawyer Tham Joe Ping believes that prevention is more important than punishment, and that close cooperation between parents, schools and enforcement authorities is necessary to curb bullying.
Sin Chew Daily Report:
The law is not only an important tool for victims to defend their rights, but also the baseline of social justice. However, due to the general lack of legal awareness among the public, this often affects how cases are handled and progressed.
When bullying occurs, how can victims and their families seek redress through legal means? What challenges or opportunities exist within the current legal framework? And what legal responsibilities are involved?
How Can Victims Pursue Accountability?
“Existing laws have already put in place many frameworks to deal with school bullying, but the problem often lies in enforcement and lack of awareness,” said practising lawyer and the founder of the Firm, Tham Joe Ping.
He explained that school bullying is not a single-faceted issue. It involves both criminal and civil liability, the legal responsibility of schools, protection mechanisms for minors, and society’s overall understanding and implementation of the law.
To hold a bully legally accountable, it is necessary to distinguish between criminal and civil aspects. Criminal liability involves lodging a police report, followed by investigation and a decision by the public prosecutor on whether to press charges. Civil action, on the other hand, requires victims or their families to engage a lawyer and file a lawsuit in court.
The key difference is that criminal cases are led by enforcement authorities, while civil cases are initiated by victims themselves, who must bear the costs and manage the process.
The Legal Responsibility of Schools
In bullying cases, schools play a crucial role. Joe pointed out that under existing case law, schools owe students a duty of care, meaning they must take reasonable steps to ensure students’ safety.
If a school is aware of bullying but chooses to take no action, this may amount to a failure in fulfilling its legal responsibility. In such circumstances, victims are entitled to bring a claim against the school, and if successful, the school may be liable to pay damages.
In certain situations, the law also imposes a duty on schools and adults to make a police report, particularly in cases involving sexual offences or serious harm to minors. Failure to act may expose them not only to civil liability but also to criminal consequences.
How the Law Balances Punishment and Protection for Minors
For bullying cases involving minors, the legal system emphasises protection rather than punishment.
Under the Child Act 2001, offenders below the age of 18 are afforded several protections:
- Proceedings are conducted in camera, with no public or media access, and minors are not handcuffed.
- Judges will prioritise warnings or community service, and imprisonment is only imposed as a last resort. Minors cannot be sentenced to death.
- Juvenile offenders are sent to reform institutions, where education and community-based programmes are provided.
- Records of juvenile offenders are sealed and not accessible to the public, and will only be considered if they commit similar offences again as adults.
For minor victims, the law allows them to testify anonymously or via video link, in order to minimise further trauma.
Gaps in Enforcement and Awareness
In July this year, amendments to the Penal Code (Sections 507B to 507G) expanded the scope of bullying to include verbal harassment, intimidation and stalking, effectively providing broader protection to victims.
However, Joe pointed out that enforcement remains a challenge.
“Victims often report such incidents to the police, only to be told that it is a civil matter and cannot be handled,” he said.
Based on his experience handling such cases, enforcement officers often lack standard operating procedures or familiarity with newer forms of bullying, such as online group harassment or deepfake-based attacks, resulting in reports not being acted upon.
At the same time, prosecutors, lawyers and judges also need time to familiarise themselves with these new provisions, as there are still no established case precedents.
Even so, he noted that every bullying case contributes to societal progress. “These cases matter because society is paying attention.”
From movements such as “Justice for Zara” to various anti-bullying campaigns, each wave of public attention and court decisions creates opportunities for reform.
A Proposed Anti-Bullying Law
Recently, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform), Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, indicated that an Anti-Bullying Bill is expected to be tabled in Parliament in October this year, with implementation planned for next year.
Joe believes that while such legislation may be necessary, it should be approached with caution.
“The Penal Code and the Communications and Multimedia Act already cover most forms of bullying. Introducing a new law may create overlap and make enforcement more complicated.”
He suggested drawing from Japan’s approach, focusing on assigning legal responsibilities to schools, parents and society — for example, requiring schools to implement anti-bullying policies and clearly setting out procedures for adults when bullying is identified, with legal consequences for non-compliance.
Building a Safer School Environment
Joe emphasised that prevention is more important than punishment, and that close cooperation between parents, schools and enforcement authorities is needed to address bullying.
He suggested establishing cross-disciplinary mechanisms involving schools, parents, police, lawyers and counsellors — to form anti-bullying advisory groups that can intervene early before situations escalate.
He has assisted several schools in implementing similar mechanisms, with positive results.
Where schools fail to respond adequately, he encouraged the public to make use of the Ministry of Education’s online complaint platform, SISPAA. Through this system, state education departments will investigate and provide reports within a stipulated timeframe, allowing the process to be monitored.
On the proposal to install CCTV in religious boarding schools, Joe considers it a reasonable measure, provided that cameras are installed only in public areas such as corridors, canteens and classrooms, and not in private spaces like toilets or changing rooms.
He noted that while this may involve some compromise of privacy in public spaces, it can serve as both a deterrent and a means of evidence collection.
Conclusion
Joe concluded that school bullying cannot be resolved solely through the introduction of new laws. Enforcement capacity, the responsibility of schools, and public legal awareness are equally important.
“We already have laws to punish perpetrators, but without shared responsibility and greater awareness, bullying will continue to happen.”
This article is translated from the original Chinese report published in Sin Chew Daily. For the original version, please visit:
https://www.sinchew.com.my/news/20250925/supplement/6890112
