After a shocking report released last year by the Star revealed that 8 in 10 kids encounter bullying in schools, one would think that school authorities would increase efforts to take bullying more seriously.
Source: The Star
Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case for this 9-year-old girl from Ayer Hitam, Kedah. The victim, who wishes only to be known as Angah, was physically assaulted by school bullies after she refused to give in to their demands for money. The attack resulted in the poor girl suffering severe spinal injuries that reportedly got so bad that she now needs a wheelchair to get around.
Source: Kwongwah
However, this isn’t the first time the schoolgirl had been physically abused by her bullies. She claims that a group of three students, including a boy, have been abusing her since last year.
They would kick her and push her down the stairs. Her bullies would even pull her chair from right under her. Angah had to endure many falls, and as a result of this continued abuse, her spine became bent and she is no longer able to walk properly.
Source: Kwongwah
In order to appease her bullies, Angah had to save up her pocket money or ask for money from her older sister to pay “protection money” to her bullies so they wouldn’t beat her up.
According to Kwongwah, Angah’s bullies would not only insult her, but also her father. Her father is an early retired police officer who witnessed the death of his parents in a car accident. He has been coping with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder ever since.
Source: Today Online
The poor girl couldn’t even look to her teachers for help as she said she would be threatened by her bullies. She told Malay Mail,
“They said they would just tell the teacher I borrowed their money if I reported the matter.”
Angah’s mother lodged a police report on the alleged abuse three days ago. Her mother says that her daughter had been complaining of severe back pains and had not been able to walk properly since June.
Angah was then admitted to Hospital Sultanah Bahiyah on 15th July, where she stayed for a week. The MRI scan revealed that the spinal injuries she suffered were serious, so she now has to use a wheelchair to get around.
Her mother also conveyed her disappointment with the school authorities in not taking the incident seriously as they merely said they would investigate the matter.
Hopefully some action will be taken as State Education and HR Committee chairman, Dr Salmee Said, has since been contacted. He has already assigned the State Education Department to carry out an investigation accordingly.
These bullies need to be stopped and dealt with immediately! We hope Angah gets the justice she deserves.
Also read: M’sian Boy Stabbed In The Chest With Pencil By Bully Who Didn’t Want Him To Submit His Homework
