Home 
Magazine Contributors Frans Hertoghs Kiwikorrels: Harassment trend
Magazine Contributors Frans Hertoghs Kiwikorrels: Harassment trend
| Kiwikorrels: Harassment trend |
 Teasing occurs on many, if not on almost all, schools. In some countries it happens at more schools and more severe than in other countries. Especially widespread in English speaking countries. The United Kingdom is a very good example. And Australia. But also in New Zealand harassment is a favourite pastime of co-students.By Frans Hertoghs Hastings had a new approach. A group of boys beat a victim in front of a dense row of witnesses. Everything was recorded on videos and several telephone cameras that presumably had been brought for the occasion. The harassment had been well prepared and was meant to be put on the internet. The sixteen-year-old victim got cuts in his face and bruises on his head. But that was not enough. Afterwards - and I quote the police - he was tormented and subjected to repulsive humiliations. He did not dare to report it. Even after the images were shown triumphantly on the Internet in YouTube two days later and downloaded thousands of times and sent around the world. The police started to act. Because it was not reported, the police had to act on the basis of the internet pictures and that was supposedly a world first. Two sixteen and fourteen year old boys were arrested and charged. New Zealand has a harassment-mentality. Just like Australia, where recently a video was posted in which hundreds(!) of boys of a fine Catholic school formed a ring around two schoolboys. They were forced to fight each other or the crowd would beat them up. Last year no less than seven New Zealand clips with serious school harassments were taken off the Internet. Obviously in this country harassment is something to show off with. Look at me I am harassing someone maliciously! The whole world must see it. Already terrible enough by itself. But I found the next detail still the most terrible. Surrounding the small group about thirty students were encouraging the attackers actively, as happens at a Rugby game. That is more than watching. That incriminates them. More strongly still, it is the market where the offenders sell their misdeeds. Now the police examine the possibility of tackling those spectators too. Rightly so. Afterwards it turned out that last year similar New Zealand harassment clips had been placed on the internet last year already seven times. YouTube removed the clip from the internet and has promised to check that it does not happen anymore. I doubt if it will make any difference. If the mentality of the New Zealanders does not change, merciless harassment will simply continue; internet or no internet. The Dutch version of this article is published in the July/August 2007 edition of Holland Focus. Ask your News Agent or take out a subscription.
|
||||
