Justice for Zara

This news reminded me of a lunchtime conversation I once had with my colleagues. They were discussing how they would handle it as parents if their kids were bullied. I remember responding quickly and firmly: deep down, if there were no laws, I would want to take revenge on the bully. I would never let my children be bullied by anyone. Just imagining my siblings getting bullied makes my blood boiled.

My colleagues slowly shared their answers too, and most of them revolved around the belief that kids need to learn how to handle bullying themselves. It’s their problem, and parents shouldn’t interfere too much. Most of their answers are more rational (and idealistic in my opinion). 

That is when I realized why our answers were so different. For my colleagues, most of whom are Singaporeans, their idea of “bullying” seems to be something mild, like kids pushing each other around. For me, maybe because I have watched too many movies and TV series on this topic, I know how cruel kids, or human beings in general, can be. Bullying can go far beyond harmless pushing. It can be pure evil, even crossing into crime, such as using razor blades to hurt someone, boycotting them, cyberbullying, giving emotional pressure etc. 

And sadly, my view is not just from fiction. In Malaysia, there was a news about a teenager who was bullied by a large group. They burned him with a hot iron until he died. I thought that was the worst I had ever heard, until I read today’s news: kids, just 13 years old, pushed their classmate from the third floor, then stuffed the body into a washing machine to wash away any DNA evidence of their contact with the corpse. That’s not just horrible. That’s evil.

And yet, there are no consequences, simply because they are the children of VIPs. I’m glad there are still people fighting for her, making sure this tragedy won’t be ignored. But will justice come? I honestly don’t know.

All this while, my birthday wishes have always been the same: first, that the world would have no wars; second, that no girls would ever be raped; third, that my loved ones would always stay healthy.

Maybe it’s time to add one more — that nobody ever gets bullied. Not that birthday wishes really come true. The first one never did either. Ha.