LETTER | Bullying has been pervasively part of society at all levels in any organisation, including the family unit. It is rooted in the primordial instinct of man to influence, dominate and exert might over right.

Initial parental guidance in ethics, morality, respect, discipline, etc, lays the early foundation before regulatory discipline is introduced in early education.

Poor parenting initially contributes largely to the overall problem, which normally is rectified to a large extent during early education, where proper implementation and adherence to school discipline in complying with rules and regulations helps to mould a young child's mind towards the required goals of being a good citizen.

There will be those difficult ones who will need a firm disciplinary hand to get them on track, while a smaller minority will need law enforcement to step in. This discretion is carefully applied by all the stakeholders concerned.

Weak parenting, poor guidance and lack of supervision by teachers at the early stage contribute largely to why bullying can escalate to serious crimes.

We must keep in mind that every case of bullying, involving school mischief, has elements of a crime that range from using criminal force, theft, assault, criminal intimidation, extortion, unlawful assembly, etc, of which we have ample laws to deal with it, as it is.

The police rarely step in, unless of course the ingredients of such mischief escalated into serious crime. Police consultation is another option.

The key is in early implementation of strict school discipline, as it prepares the young mind to understand and comply with moral ethics, requiring parents and teachers first to work hand in glove to identify and curb any recalcitrant behaviour from the outset.

It is opined that cases that do not constitute serious crimes should be left to school discipline for action to be taken.

Disciplinary teachers hereon must be handpicked carefully and sent for special training courses to handle the young mischievous mind, so as to first exhaust all disciplinary, reformative and reconciliation avenues before turning to law enforcement. The pupil’s welfare is the priority.

The burden then lies upon those responsible in the respective educational administration to be held both responsible and accountable for serious offences that take place on their watch. The burden of showing that it was not preventable and not due to their own lack of internal supervision shifts to their shoulders.

An act that criminalises all forms of school kids’ mischief as bullying can be misinterpreted, misunderstood and counter-productive to our young minds and their future, especially when you have overzealous people interpreting the ingredients of an offence.

The focus, rather than enacting overlapping laws, should be on focusing on the triangular combination of parenting, schools and police consultation.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.