JOHOR BARU: A mother who lost her son to bullies four years ago, is disappointed to see such incidents repeating time and time again.
Hawa Osman, 58, said it broke her heart to see such incidents recurring despite the tragedy of her son, Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnain’s death in 2017 that drew nationwide attention.
“I am sad, angry and disappointed to see such cases happening over and over again even after what happened to my son.
“It seemed like no lessons were learnt from our tragedy. I really hope this does not happen again.
“No mother should go through what I went through,” she said.
Hawa said the pain caused by bullies did not only leave lasting effects on the victim but also their family members.
“My three other children, especially my youngest son who is 19 years old, are deeply affected by what happened. Even for me, whenever I hear my son’s name or see his photos, my tears will flow,” she said.
She urged schools and other educational institutions to protect students who want to report bullying cases among their peers.
“They are afraid to report (them) as they may get harassed by the bullies as well.
“It is important for them to know that it is safe for them to lodge a report,” she said, adding that institutions should take action immediately.
Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia (UPNM) marine cadet officer Zulfarhan’s death made headlines this year after his abusers were sentenced to jail.
Zulfarhan’s nightmare began on May 21, 2017 when he was interrogated by a group of students over accusations of him stealing another student’s laptop.
The interrogation escalated to abuse involving a steam iron. Zulfarhan died on June 1, 2017, in Hospital Serdang, Selangor, from the injuries inflicted on him.
On Nov 2, six UPNM students were sentenced to 18 years in jail each for culpable homicide in the death of Zulfarhan four years ago.
Meanwhile, five of the six, together with 12 others, were found guilty of voluntarily causing hurt to Zulfarhan in a bid to extort a confession from him over the laptop theft.