Bullying is universal, hard to determine and happens when you least expect it. But parents in Guangdong may now breathe a sigh of relief as the province will soon test-run a draft law aimed at putting an end to mean behavior in school.
The new regulation, which will take effect on December 1, classifies three levels of bullying behavior ranked from ‘normal’ to ‘mildly serious’ to ‘serious or repetitive.’ The forms include name calling, damaging personal property, posting slanderous remarks or insulting videos on social media and inflicting physical violence.
According to the regulation, schools are required to establish a special committee for handling cases of bullying. Once a case is reported, the committee should reach a solution within the following 10 days and then carry out punishments according to the severity of the acts. Failure to deliver a solution within the time limit will result in penalties for the committee.
The punishments include placing bullies under surveillance, expulsion and transferral to special schools if necessary. Those offenders who have reached the minimum age for criminal responsibilities under Chinese laws, which is 14 and above, will bear the full legal responsibilities of their actions, according to South China Morning Post.
Image via Yangcheng Evening News/Weibo
This new regulation, while addressing a wide range of bullying behavior, places a special emphasis on giving others insulting names, which was well-received online after the announcement.
One Weibo user wrote: “This policy is absolutely great, insulting names can exert life-long impact on one’s life. Take me for example, my classmates used to bully me because I ‘looked like an old guy.’ They’d call me ‘the old man’ and God knows how much stress I had to bear.’’
Another said: “Being called names is the worst kind of feeling and kids should learn how to be kind and respectful early on in life. Hopefully schools will have a healthier environment from now on.”
Other online users, however, questioned whether the policy will be executed properly, with one writing: “What if the bully is the teacher? Many school violence incidents can be linked to teachers themselves. They sometimes either act as the bully or simply turn a blind eye to it.”
Like in many schools around the world, bullying in Chinese schools is a common sight. There was recently a case in which a man in Shaanxi province, a former bullying victim, killed nine people at his former school.
In 2015, the Chinese Youth & Children Research Center surveyed over 5,000 primary and middle school students across 10 Chinese provinces and found that 32.5 percent of them had been victims of school bullying, an alarming percentage given China's massive population.
READ MORE: Bullying Incident at Beijing School Goes Viral, Sparking Outrage
[Cover image via Pixabay]
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