UPNM should not tolerate even one incident of bullying, let alone another one in such a short period of time. — The Star
IT has happened again. Yet another bullying case has been reported at the National Defence University (UPNM), with a 19-year-old cadet allegedly stomped on by a senior.
The victim reportedly suffered cracks in his ribs and on his spine as a result.
This is unacceptable. How can bullying continue in a military college that is supposed to instil discipline, care, and patriotism with the aim of producing potential future leaders of the armed forces?
To put it mildly, it’s pathetic.
Such blatant physical assaults have happened too often. These bullies are not the only ones to be blamed, though. The supervisors of this institution must take the rap too.
Surely there is a need for accountability and responsibility.
These administrators should have given advance, if not continuous, warnings to the trainees. Each time there is a fresh intake, such intimidations by tyrants can be expected to occur. We would have expected pre-emptive action to be taken.
The public, especially the parents, cannot be blamed if we feel the superiors have a lackadaisical attitude about this issue. When parents send their children to these institutions or other similar set-ups in the hope that they will become officers and gentlemen, they surrender the parenting duties to these superiors.
Repeated promises to act are of no use if such unfortunate physical abuses continue to take place.
Last week, Amirul Iskandar Norhanizan, 22, claimed trial to assaulting Salman Saiful Surash, 20, by placing a hot iron on his chest at the UPNM hostel on Oct 22. The victim suffered second degree burns on his chest.
Amirul faces a maximum jail term of 10 years or a fine, and could also be whipped if convicted.
These two cases have come just months after the courts handed the death penalty to six former students over the killing of a fellow cadet at the institution.
The UPNM case gripped the nation in 2017 after the death of Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnain, 21. Six course mates had taken turns to press a steam iron on the victim’s body, including on his private parts. Zulfarhan succumbed to his injuries 10 days after these cruel and beastly actions. The accused – Muhammad Akmal Zuhairi Azmal, Muhammad Azamuddin Mad Sofi, Muhammad Najib Mohd Razi, Muhammad Afif Najmudin Azahat, Mohamad Shobirin Sabri, and Abdoul Hakeem Mohd Ali – now face the gallows for their despicable actions.
We would have expected UPNM to have learnt a painful lesson from the tragedy of Zulkarnain, a promising young cadet with high hopes of a bright future. He suffered extensive bruising and burns on his chest, hands, and feet as a result of the torture using the iron.
The New Straits Times, in an editorial in June, wrote that “the tragic incident was more than just a personal loss. It poses troubling questions about values within our military institutions in their effort to forge leaders of courage, integrity, and compassion.
“It is unfair to lump all military institutions as facing the same issue, but the tragedy has exposed a culture of cruelty, intimidation, and a complete disregard for human life.
“Generally speaking, this incident raises profound questions about our military education.’’
UPNM has failed in all these aspects. I am sure it has produced many brilliant officers, but it should not tolerate even one incident, let alone another one in such a short period of time.
As soldiers, even at university level, there should have been watchful and alert eyes to weed out such bullies. Bullies are often known and feared by other students. Gathering intelligence is part of military training, and we would expect the university to haul them up and tell them off. Bullying fellow university mates isn’t about physical and mental toughness, let’s not try to justify any possible excuses for these pathetic actions.
We expect UPNM and other military schools to churn out potential heroes – not cowards acting tough. These are just people picking on students who are weaker than them physically, or a group attacking one individual.
As expected, there has been a promise of a probe. Isn’t that already obvious?
In fact, it may be necessary to have a comprehensive review of the curriculum, training programmes, the overall culture, and even how interviews are conducted.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim took it a step further, saying bullying has become a culture in the country, as it is tolerated and at times, defended.
He said it was “sickening’’ that bullying is generally accepted and that “it [bullying] cannot happen if such a culture is rejected’’.
The university has promised to take strong disciplinary or legal action against those found responsible.
The fact is: a crime has taken place. The police must be called in, and the culprit – or culprits – be arrested and face charges. They should also be suspended immediately, pending being sacked from the university.
Over the years, there have been other bullying cases.
They include T. Nhaveen, 18, and his friend, T. Previn, 19, who were attacked at a burger stall in Penang. Nhaveen was brutally beaten, burned with cigarettes, and sexually assaulted. He succumbed to his injuries, which included blunt force trauma.
More recently, social media influencer Rajeswary Appahu took her own life on July 5 this year, after filing a police report detailing threats and defamation.
But look around – we are also seeing political bullies who have made threats on social media against minorities. Can the minorities be blamed if they feel they are being targeted? Just because these people hold positions in political parties, or even serve as a Yang Berhormat, it does not mean they are not bullies.
They may not even think they are one, and consider themselves heroes, but this is the kind of culture we have allowed to become prevalent.
They are not role models. The last thing our youth should emulate are these politicians.
As for the repeated bullying at the UPNM, there is relevant advice from the late French philosopher Georges Calguiham, who once said: “To err is human, to persist in error is diabolical.”
