Blitz on bullying as underage crime and suicides rise

China has pledged a nationwide crackdown on campus bullying amid rising cases of juvenile delinquency and suicide in primary and secondary schools, with an added focus on the mental health of minors.

The Ministry of Education will also train students, teachers and parents on laws targeting campus violence, as well as improve disciplinary measures and accountability mechanisms.

In a statement, the ministry said it would launch a thorough investigation of all primary and secondary schools to detect the risks of “student bullying”.

There would be an added focus on strengthening the mental health of pupils, the statement said, with an upgraded system to monitor their psychological well-being and stronger collaboration between schools and hospitals.

Juvenile crimes are rising including alleged murders by schoolchildren, as well as suicides attributed to mental health issues.

Last month, three middle school students in Hebei province allegedly killed and buried a classmate, 13, they reportedly had long bullied. The three are all under 14 years old.

Local police, citing an autopsy report, said the victim had wounds to his head, face and back, and the killing appeared “premeditated”.

The case ignited heated debate on mainland social media on the laws governing juvenile perpetrators of serious crimes.

China lowered the minimum age for punishment from 14 years to 12 in 2021. But the Supreme People’s Procuratorate must still decide whether such suspects should stand trial.

In its annual review last year, it said cases of juvenile delinquency in China were on the rise and showed a trend of being committed by “underage” perpetrators.

In one case, a 12-year-old boy in Hubei province was accused last year of killing a four-year-old girl by pushing her into a cesspit.

The case was dismissed earlier this year as the boy was seen as “incapable of criminal responsibility” at the time of the murder.

Police referred some 327,000 minors, or those under the age of 18, to prosecutors between 2018 and 2022, an average annual increase of 7.7 per cent, according to the Supreme People’s Procuratorate.

Of these, the alleged offences committed by under-16s increased by a yearly average of 16.7 per cent. However, the rate of prosecution of minors declined, the data showed.

A rise in teenage suicide rates is also prompting concern. Data from the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention last year showed the suicide rate among five- to 14-year-olds quadrupled between 2010 and 2021, although the overall suicide rate for all age groups declined. Hong Kong film Time Still

Turns the Pages, released in mainland cinemas earlier this month, has also sparked social media discussion with its portrayal of issues such as adolescent mental health and domestic violence.

“Domestic violence and educational pressure are the surface issues … while the deeper level is to reveal the generational trauma and social anxiety of East Asian families,” a user posted on Douban, China’s largest film rating website.

If you have suicidal thoughts or know someone who is experiencing them, help is available. Call 18111 for the government-run Mental Health Support Hotline, 2896 0000 for The Samaritans or 2382 0000 for Suicide Prevention Services.