Rising Bullying At UPNM Military Academy, Malaysia Expands CCTC And Discourse On Hotline Cadets

The rise of cases of bullying or bullying at the Universiti National Defense Malaysia (UPNM) military school has made the Malaysian Government take a number of mitigation steps.

"These incidents often involve academy cadets. The academy is where all students from the first to the fourth year interact. For three to four years, the dynamics of senior-junior can cause such problems," Malaysian Defense Minister Mohamed Khaled Nordin said, quoted by Bernama.

This was conveyed by Nordin when launching the Sustainable Knowledge Transfer program, Economic Empowerment, and Strengthening Knowledge for residents of the Bukit Aping FELDA in the multipurpose building of the East Aping Bukit FELDA, Sunday, December 8.

When responding to questions about new regulations at UPNM cadet schools, including the possibility of creating a hotline or special channel for complaints from victims of bullying so that the state can immediately handle it, Nurdin revealed a number of efforts that his party would immediately make.

"We will increase the frequency of attendance and install more Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras. For example, if a fight occurs, attendance can be carried out at 10 p.m. or 2 a.m., depending on the situation, to ensure better monitoring and response," he said.

The member of the High City Parliament also emphasized that the Malaysian Ministry of Defense will not tolerate any form of bullying in the UPNM, and will take firm action in accordance with applicable regulations.

"We have a regulation stating that hiding or covering up bullying and harassment is a violation of the law," he said.

"The most important thing is to convey a clear message that will not sacrifice such behavior. We will take firm action and ensure the punishment is widely published. These are some steps we will take," continued Nurdin.

Previously, Malaysia's King Yang di-Pertuan Agung Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar encouraged the culture of bullying in UPNM military schools to be stopped immediately and called for the return of the reputation of the tarnished university.

The latest bullying case involved five UPNM military school cadet officers. The five were found guilty of bullying their colleague Mohamed Khaled was sentenced to sanctions by the Ministry of Defense on 27 November.

The sanctions include the revocation of the positions of cadet officers, dismissal of the Malaysian Armed Forces, and compensation payments to the government, which are calculated based on the total costs incurred during their academic period.

Previously, a number of incidents of bullying raided the UPNM military school, including the tragic death of Kadet Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnain, who suffered 90 burns from a vapor iron all over his body.