Psychiatrist on Ateneo incident: Don’t bully the bully
MANILA, Philippines — Bullying the bully is wrong, a psychiatrist said, after videos of a junior high school student physically and verbally attacking his peers immediately went viral on social media and triggered blistering comments online and offline.
A student from the Ateneo Junior High School was seen in separate videos apparently bullying his peers—from making a boy say “Bobo ako (I am dumb)” to assaulting a schoolmate in a campus comfort room.
The shocking videos spread like wildfire on social media and ignited simmering outrage from netizens, some of whom even issued threats against the attacker and urged the school to seriously look into the incident.
READ: Fight me, Fil-Canadian challenges bully’s dad | Palace, DepEd remind schools to enforce anti-bullying measures after Ateneo incident
In a television interview with CNN Philippines, Dr. Camille Garcia, a psychiatrist, underscored that a tit-for-tat exchange won’t solve the problem of bullying and would just aggravate the situation.
Garcia also explained that bullies engage in “power plays” as a “compensatory behavior” because, oftentimes, these kids are not considered achievers in their families or have suffered chronic tormenting by their peers.
“It would be more difficult because instead of putting an end to bullying, we would have another victim who will likely suffer from depression and other risks,” Garcia said in Filipino.
“It’s not right to bully the boy because perhaps the reason why he did that is because he experienced severe bullying by his peers in the past,” she added.
Ateneo officials and a children’s rights group have called on the public not to share the video.
In a statement released on Thursday night, ADMU president Jose Ramon Villarin said the school administration was not treating the matter lightly.
“Let me be clear: the school does not condone such behavior. We have our codified standards of conduct and all students are made aware of these and their rights and responsibilities,” Villarin said. “The school is not silent on its stand on violence and it will not hesitate to impose the penalty of dismissal or even expulsion in cases of grave misconduct."
CHR: Protect minors' privacy
On Saturday, the Commission on Human Rights reminded the public to protect the right to privacy and confidentiality of the children involved in the Ateneo bullying incident.
"Bullying is not a simple issue that only the child victim and his family have to face. Intervention of school officials, especially if the bullying incident transpired in the school premises, is needed to adequately address and if possible, to eliminate the same," the CHR said.
"It is imperative that the right to privacy and confidentiality of all children involved must always be protected, not only by the school administrators, the parents, other parties concerned, the media, as well as users of social networks,” it added. — Ian Nicolas Cigaral
The Department of Education issues a reminder to all public and private schools of the importance of adopting and enforcing anti-bullying policies after a video of an Ateneo student verbally and physically attacking schoolmates went viral.
The parents of the Ateneo student bullied by a schoolmate break their silence, saying that rather than remembering their son as a victim, they want the public to see him as a young man of good moral foundation.
"We want you to see that he is not a loser and that he does not deserve to be pitied; rather, he should be exalted for his sense of dignity and justice beyond his years," they say in a statement given to GMA News.
"We would rather that the public does not know his name, as our son does not deserve to be memorialized as the 'bullied boy from Ateneo.' He is much more than the poor and hapless boy you see in that 2-minute video," they added.
The Department of Education urges schools to "conduct a thorough and complete review" of their procedures and policies in light of bullying at the Ateneo de Manila Junior High School that resulted in the dismissal of a student seen assaulting a classmate in a viral video.
It also tells private schools to align their anti-bullying policies with those required by Republic Act 10627, the Anti-Bullying Act of 2013.
DepEd says schools should comply with its Child Protection Policy "which requires all public and private kindergarten, elementary, and secondary schools to create their own Child Protection Committee to ensure that cases and instances of abuse and bullying are closely monitored and expeditiously investigated."
DepEd says the Ateneo incident should be a wakeup call to take bullying cases seriously. "Bullying is a societal issue that demands the cooperation of teachers, parents, school administrators, community members, and even the media to instill among learners the culture of peace and the value of respect for one another."
The Philippine Taekwondo Association (PTA) decides to indefinitely an a student taekwondo practitioner involved in violent incidents.
The PTA suggested that that child undergo supervised counseling and rehabilitation to be reinstated. Should the family decline, the young practitioner will also be expelled from the association.
"We truly believe that the best way tp move forward from this incident is to provude the child with the necessary guidance and mentorship and an opportunity to exhibit remorse and provide restitution to the community in general," the association said in a statement.
The Palace, in a statement, says it commends Ateneo de Manila University on its "swift action" in the case of a student seen in a viral video bullying another student in a school washroom.
"While we respect ADMU's academic freedom, we hope that it could finish the ongoing investigation the soonest and with regard to due process, in line with applicable jurisprudence on school," presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo also says.
READ: Malacañang's statement on the dismissal of Ateneo student involved in a bullying incident | @alexisbromero pic.twitter.com/CiqCZGAP5b
— Philstar.com (@PhilstarNews) December 23, 2018
"We hope that this occurrence will serve as a reminder that bullying is something that should never be tolerated nor condoned in any civilized institution," he also says.
Ateneo de Manila University has decided to dismiss a student seen in a video that went viral this week of him assaulting another student in a school washroom.
Fr. Jose Ramon Villarin SJ, ADMU president, says in a memo to the university community that the decision to dismiss the boy, a student at the Ateneo Junior High School, was reached "after a thorough investigation that included listening to all parties involved."
BREAKING: Student involved in Ateneo bullying case dismissed from school. @PhilippineStar pic.twitter.com/25i8LEvD8o
— Janvic Mateo (@jvrmateoSTAR) December 23, 2018
The university president stresses "the Ateneo is very clear on its stand on bullying" but says he has also ordered a "task force" to study the situation at ADMU and make recommendations on creating a safer environment on campus. -- with a report from The STAR/Janvic Mateo
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