KUALA LUMPUR: In the wake of a recent case of alleged abuse and intimidation at a military university, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said such incidents occur because they are tolerated and sometimes defended.

But in a strongly worded speech on Friday (Nov 1) at Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia (UPNM), where the latest incident allegedly occurred, Anwar stressed that his government will not tolerate a culture of bullying in educational institutions.

He also urged educational leaders to take responsibility for ending the scourge.

On Wednesday, the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) confirmed that it was fully investigating the case of an officer cadet who was allegedly bullied by his superior at the UPNM Military Training Academy in Kuala Lumpur.

The case has since gone viral on social media and some netizens have expressed concern over why such bullying incidents continue to occur at the university even after the tragic death of a naval officer cadet there in 2017. , which was also related to bullying.

Speaking at the dialogue event on Friday, Anwar said the culture of harassment has become systemic in Malaysia and this is a challenge that needs to be addressed by relevant institutions and ministries.

“It is a small group that does not represent all students but the culture allows it… a culture of bullying, intimidation and gangsterism in schools.

“Whether they are national, Tamil, Chinese or religious schools, it is crazy because we talk about knowledge but not morals and values,” he told the UPNM students, quoted by local media.

Anwar added that he has since instructed Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek to investigate the matter.

“I told the Minister of Education: do not make concessions. “I warned him and advised him not to tolerate it all because we don’t want it to happen,” he said.

The recent incident at UPNM that first surfaced on October 30 is said to involve a final-year student allegedly pressing a hot iron on the chest of a cadet officer, and photos of the burn marks were later circulated on social networks.

“The armed forces take these issues seriously and will not protect anyone involved in the case,” MAF Defense Forces chief Mohammad Ab Rahman told Bernama on October 31.

Some Internet users said that the latest case at UPNM reminds them of the incident that led to the Death of Navy Cadet Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnain, 21 in 2017.

“It seems like the culture of bullying is ingrained at UPNM… if (the university) had taken it seriously, this wouldn’t have happened again,” said X user @chairmanGLC on October 31, and The post garnered more than 3,500 reposts.

In July this year, six former UPNM students were sentenced to death by hanging for the murder of Mr Zulfarhan seven years ago.

According to local media, in addition to having his body repeatedly pressed with a hot steam iron, Mr. Zulfarhan was also subjected to beatings, kicks and punches. The case dominated headlines, with one of the three judges in the case describing it as one of the “rarest and most extreme forms of cruelty.”

Zulfarhan’s father had also expressed his disappointment that a similar form of abuse suffered by his late son had apparently happened again to another student at the military college.

“The claim that the victim was pressed with an iron… is unacceptable… like what happened to my late son, who received 90 marks for being pressed with a hot steam iron. I still cannot forget the suffering he endured,” said Zulkarnain Idros. he told local media Harian Metro.