FTP - By Angela Lim – May 12th, 2010
A video of an enraged youth repeatedly slapping and hitting his female schoolmate in an HDB lift has sparked a wave of outrage from Singapore netizens.
Taken inside the lift, the video, that has been posted on STOMP, shows the male student repeatedly slapping the girl and slamming her head against the lift walls. The conversation in the video reveals that the girl was being accused of ratting on him to the teacher, which she denied.
The attack lasted more than a minute and was filmed by another female student.
Judging from the students’ uniform, comments on online forums suggest they are from Siglap Secondary School. The school’s principal Low Joo Hong confirmed this to The New Paper. Strangely enough, tough, in photos from the assaulter’s blog, it seems both schoolmates are close friends.
And yet, this incident of school violence is not the first of its kind in Singapore or elsewhere.
In January this year, a video of a bullied Malaysian teen made its rounds on the Web.
The video, taken at the stairwell of a shopping mall in Selangor, shows one of the girls slapping the student before others take turns to punch and kick her. The attackers continued to taunt her even as she got down on her knees and pleaded with them to stop.
Last October, a video clip titled “Shanghai Girl beaten” was also widely circulated online. The clip, shot with a mobile phone camera, lasted five minutes and shows a female attacker furiously kicking another girl in the waist and belly as well as slapping her in the face.
Angry netizens retaliated by publishing the attacker’s personal information online and even launched a mass protest demanding justice for her violent behaviour.
Teen violence in schools is not just a problem that plagues Singapore but is increasingly a global concern. The recent suicide of Temasek Polytechnic student Melissa Toh also brings to mind the many problems young teens face.
Do you know what your kids are up to these days and should parents step up to take more responsibility?
What should be done to punish those guilty of teen violence and how can a repeat of such violence be avoided among youths?
No video no talk