EDITORIAL
It is easy to tell when colleges are in session in trouble-prone areas of the capital. Opposite the main student entrance, a large, strategically parked and ominously black truck of the kind used to transfer those arrested in mass round-ups to police stations can often be seen. The word ''Police'' stencilled in no-nonsense, highly visible letters on the side looks intimidating and is intended to be.
This psychological tactic is one of the methods used to deter technical colleges from their once-traditional practice of engaging in blood feuds with rival schools and turning streets, buses and concert venues into combat zones. One police truck which frequently parks opposite a normally tranquil technical college in Thung Mahamek took up its station after a hazing incident supposedly intended to welcome newcomers went badly wrong. A freshman complained to police that three senior students sprayed his back with paint from an aerosol can and then set fire to it. They also forced him to dip his genitals in water spiced with chilli. He suffered serious burns. Initiation ceremonies are one thing; torture is quite another and outlawed by civilised society. A court will rule on the case on July 22.
This was a horrific incident fuelled by alcohol but apparently an isolated one. Despite the fears of social commentators that violence and immorality are rife, discipline among students is far less of a concern today than it was five or 15 years ago.
Some of these fears were stoked by a 2006 Unicef survey branding schools in our region as being violent places where students are physically and mentally abused. It referred to repeated physical assaults and humiliating forms of psychological punishment, sexual and gender-based violence. In other words, bullying. Such behaviour, however deplorable it may be, is not new. This abuse can take various forms, including ridiculing someone, discriminating against skin colour, physical appearance or social status, forcibly taking money or personal belongings, physical assault and sexual harassment. The intimidation can be insults or threats sent as text by SMS or through e-messenger or email services, directly by mobile phone or delivered verbally in foodshops, classrooms or corridors.
Many teachers view it as a necessary rite of passage and, as long as it is kept within strict legal bounds and no lasting harm is inflicted, that is exactly what it is. Bullying has been part of human nature for centuries and is not about to disappear. It is all part of the traditional and often painful process of growing up in a cruel and unforgiving world.
The parents of many affected students barely noticed it back in their own school days because it was dwarfed by the threat of corporal punishment. When caning and state-sanctioned classroom humiliation became socially unacceptable and were banned, bullying became more noticeable.
Inter-school rivalry has largely moved from the street to the sports arena and the authorities spend more time these days fretting about dress codes, negative cultural influences and internet cafes. But that does not mean all is well. One major threat to our education system cries out for attention. Parents in violence-plagued parts of the South have had enough and begun withdrawing their children from schools for safety reasons. Some schools in Yala face the prospect of zero attendance. Military escorts, more financial support and overhauling troubled schools are being considered.
This is deeply disturbing and, if it becomes a trend, would have disastrous consequences. Petty campus problems in Bangkok pale by comparison.
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