Shiga police question 3 boys accused of bullying suicide victim

There is just so much wrong with this on so many levels. There are, from what it seems to me, just too many people in the chain that utterly failed to do their jobs.

A serious house-cleaning is needed, from top to bottom, and prison terms (highly doubtful, but hopeful) passed out for those found guilty.

Even those not found guilty, particularly those who were supposed to be guiding, monitoring, educating, and taking care of the boy should resign in disgrace.

I hope the father has the strength to follow through with this to the end.

three bullies routinely forced him to “practice” killing himself. According to the answers, they punched the boy in the toilet, forced him to eat dead bees, pulled down his pants and taped his mouth.

two of three boys denied bullying the victim and said they were only fooling around

Someone needs to 'fool around' with those boys with a baseball bat. Then they'll understand the difference. Call it tough love or an education in reality.

The most precious thing in this universe is the life of a conscious being.

Its seems neither the culprits or the school have any remorse whatsoever. What a fine example they are setting. If only Karma were a real thing.

I get so angry when I read these stories about the J-cops refusing to do anything until pressured into doing so. They will pour huge amounts of money into investigating a hit and run (as they should) but will not pursue a case with vast amounts of evidence provided to them. Is this an ego thing? If you did not crack the case yourself then it has no merit. The police system in this country needs an overhaul and not soon enough. I hated bullies growing up and have no problem in seeing these jokers put away. Not everything you do here should be driven by benevolence.

In the questionnaires, the boy’s classmates said that three bullies routinely forced him to “practice” killing himself. According to the answers, they punched the boy in the toilet, forced him to eat dead bees, pulled down his pants and taped his mouth.

So these kids left witnesses yet they contend they were only fooling around? If so, then they are sick, sick kids.

And not to get side-tracked but did these witnesses say anything BEFORE the poor kids took his life? Or did they just "speak up" because of the questionnaire?

Sorry, typo, it should say".....BEFORE the poor kid took his life?"

Yes hatsoff, violence to deal with violence, they'll teach them!

These kids are monsters. Their parents raised monster kids while society - the teachers, the other students and no doubt the public - all looked the other way while this continued. Japan as a nation should hang its head in shame. Not the first, won't be the least. How many company men have offed themselves because of similar treatment? Ingrained in people's minds here to pick on someone. Needs to be stopped but that will ONLY happen when the adults grow up and stop acting as children.

I don’t think anyone can come up with a solution to these issues in Japan without looking at their own childhood and working out the reasons why they did those things in the first place. You need to get them right out of the system and get the parents involved, cause they are the ones raising a bully in the first place so there has to be some real BAD thing going on there. The parents are either TOO BUSY to know what’s going on (even though mum is typically a full-time housewife but those Dorama soaps demand a lot of attention) or just don’t give a damn or too wasted to care or whatever. If you don’t knock this shit out of them when they are teenagers, then you shouldn’t be bringing up kids in the first place.

Like I've said before, monster parents and now monster children.

Good for the father. I am glad he's taking this much further. If these boys are prosecuted and charged. It might change the views of "getting away with it" attitude currently flaunting these bullies minds. They should face the father a apologize for their actions. Afterwards, send them to juvi. I am sure they would not be so tough there. Juvi is not a social hang out. There they would be bullied and have a taste of their own medicine. Not only that, they need a photo of the deceased hung in their cell to face everyday to remind them the reason why they are there.

The parents are either TOO BUSY to know what’s going on (even though mum is typically a full-time housewife but those Dorama soaps demand a lot of attention) or just don’t give a damn or too wasted to care or whatever. If you don’t knock this shit out of them when they are teenagers, then you shouldn’t be bringing up kids in the first place.

I think there is also the issue of expecting teachers/schools to do all the raising. When anything happens, nearly here points the finger at the school/teachers and parents seem to be the scared cows that never get touched and questioned. As it is now, have the parents of the bullies even been questioned??

And yep, SAHM too busy to look after their kids. PTA, eikaiwa and cafes get in the way.

tmarie, we'll have to agree to disagree on this one then.

These kids are laughing at the system. There's the evidence right in the article. They think they're untouchable, and maybe even their parents too. There's no remorse at all. And is a minor going to receive just punishment for this case? They can suck up all the counselling you might want to give them and they'll just stroll out the other end laughing at you.

But if they come home to find their house burned down and if someone does them over with a baseball bat then you can rest assured they will know that for every action there is a reaction. It's not the answer to all cases but civilized society breaks down when people don't play by the rules.

The whole incident is a serious burn to J-coppers and the school alike. This simply doesn't happen in a civilized world. Truly pathetic. Those responsible must be made to join humanity (if they ever were part of it).

he school maintained that it did not think bullying was the cause of the death. However, earlier this week, school officials and the Otsu Board of Education reversed their stance and conceded that bullying most likely drove the boy to leap to his death from a building last Oct 11.

The whole bag of douche bag officials needs to be sued by the parents and then they should go after the board of education. THis makes my blood boil. Deny deny deny and only after public ridicule do the right thing.

I would be burning the place down if this happened to my family.

These　kids really are laughing at the system....apparently one has a Yakuza for a dad...hence the pathetic reaction of the school from the outset. I hope they are charged and taught that no-one is beyond the law...the douche bag officials and teachers should be fired too!

The parents of the then second-year student filed the suit against the alleged three bullies, their parents and the city, seeking about 77.2 million yen in damages. The case's second oral proceeding was held at the Otsu District Court on Tuesday.

I got this from Yomiuri Times. I hope the parents win and set a precedence against bullying.

These kids are laughing at the system. There's the evidence right in the article. They think they're untouchable, and maybe even their parents too. There's no remorse at all. And is a minor going to receive just punishment for this case? They can suck up all the counselling you might want to give them and they'll just stroll out the other end laughing at you.

I certainly don't dispute that they are laughing at the system but violence towards the bullies isn't the answer. Why not make them do community service like picking up garbage by the side of the roads for a total of 500 hours - something that will punish them but also help the community?

And why not punish the parents for raising such beasts??

Shanabeller, you've just suggested that one parent is a yak and then in the next sentence commented on WHY perhaps the teachers didn't do anything and then suggested the teachers be fired. Can you not understand that perhaps the teachers were also victims of these parents?

I'm not one for moddle coddling children who bully others, but some of the suggestions on this forum are outrageous. Taking a bat to them? Burning down their house? I think that even sending them to a juvenile detention centre to "give them a taste of their own medicine" is not even a good option.

First of all, acts of violence against them just support the whole bullying theme. You're proving to them that might is right. The only thing they will learn from that is to be the strongest or become bullied. Sending them to 'jail'. Really? That's your best idea? The only thing that will do is provide a bit of revenge as it will do nothing to improve the child's behaviour unless they have qualified personal to help the boys understand what they did was wrong.

I'm not saying I have any of the answers, but there HAS to be something better than just more violence.

tmarie, yes I totally understand, some of the teachers involved were probably intimidated, but at the particularly at the board of education level there should have been more action to investigate (with police) the entire thing rather than attempting a cover-up.

School bullying happens everywhere in the world. However what they did to this victim was particulrly sadistic. Sadly some children are bully magnets, the way they walk, dress, stand, loners, the list is endless. It takes me only a few seconds to determine if a child is likely to get bullied, yet many people including their family don't even notice. Observe and identify these kids and see that they get various methods of therepy and training to make them look strong or fit in to the society invisibly. It is in a childs instinct to bully to some extent, even a little bit. I did it at school too, I'm not a bad person, Its part of growing up. Many parties at fault here for what happenned, we can all do something to help prevent bullying if we are more observant!

So your issue is with the BOE and not the teachers, right? Thing is, in many, many cases, the BOE will side with parents - which is why parents know they can bully teachers and get away with it. Monster parents is a very huge and real problem in Japan these days. I love teaching but can't for the life of me understand why people want to teach in Japan with how badly teachers get treated here - between taking the blame for badly behaved kids, the hours, the pay.... No wonder so many female teachers quit and become SAHW.

if the law don't protect you, then who will? ultimately you have to do what you have to in order to protect yourself.

C'mon people! We're talking about professionals here! The J-cops (and the BoE) know excatly what they're doing. They're highly trained in the art of "smoke and mirrors."

Sadly, the father is learning this the hard way.

S

Liberty Joe - You seem to be saying that bullying is the fault of the kid who gets bullied. It is NOT in a child's instinct to bully, it is NOT part of growing up, and the ones at fault are the ones who do the bullying and the adults who fail to stop them, NOT the poor kid on the receiving end.

Police were quoted as saying that two of three boys denied bullying the victim and said they were only fooling around,

See? Nothing wrong here. Move along folks.

Sarcasm aside, this was bound to happen. As soon as this thing went big, everybody went into CYA mode. The police protecting theirs, the bullies protecting theirs, ad infinitum. Nobody's responsible. Ever.

Parents have to step up to the plate too. Don't allow your kids to be passive victims. Don't ingrain in your kids that the best thing to do is 'gaman', and the problem will stop. Don't ever EVER tell them that they shouldn't cause trouble by reporting the problem. Refuse to be stymied by "the system". Lead by example.

Teachers, keep your eyes open. Don't leave kids alone in the classroom all the time while you dash off for a smoke. Ask your schools for systematic and explicit policies on bullying. One thing that schools here lack is a codified set of standards and rules. Make one, and have the parents/students sign it along with the teachers. Have it specify rules, punishments, and outcomes. That way, nobody can complain when their precious little Taro is suspended for being a bully.

Kids, the best way to stop a bully is to kick his/her ass. If a group is going after you, step up to the leader and punch them in the face. Then kick them when they are down. You may get punished by the school, but the problem will be solved. Bullies at heart are cowards, and fold up when confronted. They will soon find an easier victim to pick on.

Give me the national and the targeted prefecture's penal code, there's something that i don't understand in clear

Now THAT'S a bunch of crap!!! Them BOYS knew exactly what they did and NOW try to play DUMB!! Sure, play it safe boys. Lie to the cops so you can save your own skin.... Them boys parents should be held responsible as well. At least have the parents pay pricely compensation for pain and suffering to the viictim's parents!! And cover all legal fees - that will teach them a lesson alright!!

And what about YOU - SHIGA School. Easy for you to say, "Oh, no...the victim was not being bullied - them boys were just playing around, you know kids these days"! YOU are full of it, too!! Another classic example of EYES WIDE SHUT!! All them teachers are responsible - every single one of them. They have daily briefings to cover and discuss: What went wrong, What is coming, Who did what, When is what, and so on! They ALL knew this and did NOTHING!! Let it BE as the Beatles song goes.... Bunch of hypocrates and inward low lifes.

I'm so with the father on this issue. He did his darnest to bring justice on his son's name and reputation with dignity - following the system, trusting the system, and what they did in return??? Ignore and dust under the rug!! SUE them both royally - I say!! It's no brainer to notice that both, school and precint, failed and are now desperately trying to make up for this tragic oversight.

And YOU - JT....stay on the story - don't let it fadeaway ... for the dear poor boy's sake!!

The bully's actions drove that young boy to jump off the roof of the apt. building. That was the young boy's answer to being treated as less than human by boys who are less than human. To me if you are not a civilized human being, you are an animal who walks on two legs. It is obvious those bully's were not taught/raised to be civilized and not taught to value life. Therefore saying they should not be punished, cause that is all an animal understands when it does something bad. Is saying to them that killing that young boy was okay. They might as well have pushed him off the roof themselves with what they did to him. Murder is murder and all murderers regardless of age should be treated accordingly. Jails and juvenile detentions were made for just such people. Those who act like animals are treated like animals.

In the questionnaires, the boy’s classmates said that three bullies routinely forced him to “practice” killing himself. According to the answers, they punched the boy in the toilet, forced him to eat dead bees, pulled down his pants and taped his mouth.

Just reading this makes me sick. Horror at the bullies, of course - absolute disgust, and won't feel sorry for any punishment these bullies deserve (and more). But I'm also sick that so many classmates (and teachers) knew about it, knew these horrible details, and yet... said nothing.

One thing that schools here lack is a codified set of standards and rules.

This is a misconception, every school has set rules and standards. The problem is that they are not followed.

Cleo and maria

I am not good at explaining with words, you have misunderstood what I am trying to say. Let me have another chance to get my message across that relates to this news article.

Firstly though I don't respect anyone that raise fists, in fact I think the people that behave like that are just ass** s and I am sure you agree. When I say I wasn't a bad bully I mean that I never would have physically harmed anyone. Sure I regret it but give me a chance I was only 14.

I am helping these kids with martial arts training, not to beat up other kids but to inspire confidence in themselves and remove them from being a target. You have to belive me when I say it always works!

We must all do our bit to help these kids, as I mentioned you can help them by identifying the problems and how to overcome them. As maria mentioned, some get bullied that are, poor, fat, rich, short but then this is not always the case

Please think about what I am saying and how you can contibute to help the victims

cheers

I think there is also the issue of expecting teachers/schools to do all the raising.

Tmarie, I think you made a good point. Though not every parent does it some parents do expect schools to take care of their children in more ways than only sticking to the curriculum.

The primary responsibility lies with the parents and it is important that we teach our children values long BEFORE they reach junior or high school.

I believe that raising a bully is not intentional but not noticing the signs should not be excused. Some parents need to be re-educated on the dangers of not noticing that their child might one day turn into a buly.

jonobugs - there's an important difference between "might is right" and "might FOR right". Those bullies already believe might is right.

Making a child eat bees, pulling down his pants, punching him, taping his mouth and making him practice his own suicide are NOT the actions of innocently misguided people who might just need a bit of counselling or time spent picking up litter to set them straight. How long will this society put up with kids being driven to suicide from bullies and inaction from the authorities? Think of the victim. Do you want to read about another incident in a few months? Next year?

If bullies knew there was a chance that they themselves would receive harsh treatment, or that their parents would also suffer repercussions, then maybe they would think twice about what they're doing. As it stands, THE SYSTEM ISN'T WORKING.

I would have no tears for them if they were hit with baseball bats or if their houses were burned down (while empty). I'll save my sympathy for a dead 13-year-old.

Deceased boy school mates are pointing the fingers at three accused students. Surely the teachers, principal, and police were aware of bullying from last year since the boy's father reported the bulying to police THREE times. Too bad JP court system doesn't allow for trial, conviction, and execution of the little devils. Hope the boy's parents win the court case and get a ton of money from accused students' family, teachers, principal, police, and the school board.

I appreciate any effort to teach people to defend themselves, either physically or verbally. However, the danger is that then the onus is on the victim to defend themselves, rather than on the bully / attacker to NOT bully and attack.

This is the same anywhere - rape victims, victims of sexual and physical abuse in the home, victims of attack and theft outdoors, are asked to justify "allowing" the attack to happen, and are even blamed for it!

And how is that any different from what is going on now - blaming the victim for not toughening up, raising his fists, fighting back?

It is NOT the victims' fault for not wanting to / not being able to fight back. It is the attacker's fault. Always.

@JaneM Right.... bad parenting can install bully tactics from a very young age. Many parents don't see there kids as bullies only as good boys and some don't even care. In some cases thier parents were also bullies and don't know any better. Like father like son!

We all need to be aware, not just of a potential bully, but as I mentioned, we also need to be aware of the potential victims and give them the confidence they need to reduce the risk of being picked on.

It is NOT the victims' fault for not wanting to / not being able to fight back. It is the attacker's fault. Always.

Couldn't agree with you more!

If I can say something else

I actually train some bullies in martial arts. Now before you thumbs down me please hear my reason why !!!!!!!!

It installs disipline, courtesy, self control and respect in the bully. Something that the parents perhaps failed to do. They have nothing to prove, they respect their strengh, the show leadership and not dictatorship by force. They have been great support for me combating the issue of bullying

For the potential victims the training installs perserverence and indomintable spirit. They gain strength and confidence in their abilities, and they perform better in school work.

I have done much work with great success in my fight against bullying, likely more than everyone together complaining about bullying in these posts.

If I known this victim and spent some time with him I could have saved him

Well these boys need to be expelled and tried as criminals.

It is NOT the victims' fault for not wanting to / not being able to fight back. It is the attacker's fault. Always.

Seems a bit idealistic to me. The reality is bad things happen and if people are unprepared or fail to save themselves somehow, they suffer. People need to defend themselves or get help. I believe some personal responsibility lies in defending oneself. Saying "It's always the aggressor's fault. Always." is totally pointless. It isn't going to get you unassaulted, or unraped.

SiaSL - Absolutely. bad things happen to good people.

In this case however, where the boy is dead, discussion of who is responsible for the boy's suicide, is pretty handy, wouldn't you agree?

These children have to accept responsibility, as do their parents, as does the school and all its teachers and the principal, as do the police, and the classmates, and other victims.

Introspection, acknowledgment of failure to respond, the determination to make sure this doesn't happen again, and putting all this into action, so that another child never feels as helpless as this boy did. These acts are not pointless.

There has been an underlying assumption that the boy who killed himself didn't fight back. We don't actually know that he didn't. He probably did, but 3 on 1 is not a fair fight.

In this case however, where the boy is dead, discussion of who is responsible for the boy's suicide, is pretty handy, wouldn't you agree?

Sure.

Not at all what I was talking about. If you'll notice, I quoted someone and was referring to that.

Stranger_in_a_Strange_Land

Seems a bit idealistic to me. The reality is bad things happen and if people are unprepared or fail to save themselves somehow, they suffer. People need to defend themselves or get help. I believe some personal responsibility lies in defending oneself. Saying "It's always the aggressor's fault. Always." is totally pointless. It isn't going to get you unassaulted, or unraped.

But the problem is that this happened in ah, a closed environment, and education is compulsory. Plus it was a child, not an adult. So if the adults can't protect the child within a closed sytem, then who will? That's like as if a baby is responsible for defending itself. That can't happen, it's impossible.

@stranger in a strange land Right This is what have been saying. There will always be aggressors, bullies...ALWAYS, pain in the a** but they will ALWAYS be there waiting for opportunities to bully and strike. You mentioned assault, rape....same thing applies.

Victims can SOMETIMES be at fault for putting themselves in danger, from bullies, muggers, rapists, blah, blah, blah.. the list of morons is endless! They put themselves in danger unintentionaly, or perhaps because they are a bit different, stutter, or have a disabilitiy, etc. BUT if thier eakness is recognised they/we can work on their strengths and remove themselves from the target.

When I was a kid, I was both a bully, and bullied. I knew what it was like to be bullied, and eventually, as I grew up, learned to stand up for myself, to defend myself from the bullies, and force them to look elsewhere for their amusement. To my younger brothers, I was quite horrible. Constantly tormenting them. However I was never doing it to hurt them, but rather for amusement and fun. My fun. Despite this though, I always knew there were lines that you don't cross, and eventually, I grew up enough to see that fun, needs to be fun for both parties, or else its not fun at all. Age, and wisdom provided this knowledge.

The point I'm making, is that many of us, if not all, are bullied, or bullies growing up. We may not even realize we are doing it, but we damn sure know when its happening to us. These kids may not have realized what they were doing. But they knew they were crossing the line, and thought it was fun. I'm almost certain, they never considered the consequences of their actions. This does not excuse them however. The man who goes out for a night of drinking, never intends to kill anyone driving home, but it does not excuse him if he does. Actions have consequences, and if you are going to bully another, even unintentionally, and in fun, these consequences must apply. These kids, should be sent to jail, and the school should be found guilty of professional negligence.

@Molenir Interesting post and you have seen it from both sides.

You recognised you where getting bullied and did something about it. You recognised that you were a bully to your younger brothers and realise that fun/amuzement must be on both parties.

But I'm also sick that so many classmates (and teachers) knew about it, knew these horrible details, and yet... said nothing.

Aliasis:

I agree. It bothers me a lot, that this boy could turn to not one soul, for help, and no one offered it, even as they watched from the sidelines.

This boy's suffering should be the touchstone for reform. He did not die in vain.

I see I am still getting some thumbs down which would indicate we are still some way from identifying and solving the root issue with bullying I think.

The bottom line is this:

Bullys, thugs, and some stronger names I can think off, ALWAYS have been and ALWAYS will be among us. They will ALWAYS exist. We are therefore ALL responsible for our own safety, from bullying, mugging, assault, etc We are also ALL responsible for the safety and wellbeing of each other.

If you believe in what I say above, and we can reduce victims..trust me!

By habit my people are always watching out for bulliys, thugs, etc in order to aid the protection of society.

instead of protecting the sheep, the sheperds have been slathering them in BBQ sauce and feeding them to the wolves, in bite-sized gobs.

@pamelot: another boy died 18 years ago, in vain. his father has re-appeared on TV recently and in his own words said that nothing has changed in the past 18 years. by 2030, i think we can be assured, that things will be exactly as they are now. the japanese have a proverb: "when the stew has gone bad, don't throw it away. simply cover the pot."

@ onewrldoneppl You are absolutely right about the shepherds but they will always be there feeding them to the wolves.

Okay...So as the shepherds and wolves will always be there the sheep must protect themselves to survive Does everyone agree??

Okay, okay.. if it makes you all happy the bullys are at fault !!

BUT they will always...always be there..ALWAYS

So the rest of us need to look after ourselves,our families and each other, to protect each other from the slime in society. Then we can prevent incidents like this kid taking his life because of bullies.

Why would the teachers interfere with bullying? Bullying is viewed as a useful part of inculcating groupthink and obedience.

Its viewed as working in school, at work and in the military, and I don't think a small number of adolescent suicides will change that perception.

Two of the kids still deny the bullying in terms of "fooling around", in spite of all of the accounts to the contrary in the school questionnaire. That would certainly seem to evince a lack of reflection and absence of remorse.

And what about the teacher that failed to take them to task, whose implicit attitude that it was just "fooling around" is being parroted by the two bullies? The bullies are 100% culpable, but the teacher is guilty of professional negligence and is should be held accountable.

Which bully is the former cops son? We need to learn more about the stonewalling by the city and the power structure. It seems that I read in an earlier related article that Otsu has the highest suicide rate, maybe it was for youth. Why does Otsu have such a high suicide rate?

Bullying will never die out in the kids' world of things and should be carefully addressed and prevented under the watchful eye of the teachers and parents. Having said that, what seems to have been committed in this case obviously has gone way too far, well beyond bullying to the extent of something that should be regarded as an act of murder at the cruelest level imaginable. The fact that this crime was committed by minors should not have people glossing over the seriousness of the crime committed. The only consideration for their age should be placed on the likelihood that those kids who essentially murdered the boy themselves will never be able to fully comprehend the nature and seriousness of the crime and sin that they have committed. Not with their parents as they are trying to defend their child in the worst way imaginable and, not with the school principal, the teacher and BOE as they are trying to defend their name and reputation in the worst way imaginable. A Lord of the Flies-esque situation in the sense that no adults seemed to be around to watch over them in effective fashion. It would not be surprising if the murderers continue to be making a joke out of this whole incident, while badmouthing and blaming everything on the deceased boy for all the trouble caused. Unfortunately, the only way to make them understand, or more importantly, make the other potential murderers, the principals, teachers and the BOE out there for other schools understand, is to punish and penalize the murderes in the strictest way imaginable and legally possible. This includes a monstrous amount of compensation payment to be settled with the city municipal and ordered to their parents. Even in such a case, I doubt if those murderers will ever be successfully rehabilitated, but the more important issue at hand is to ensure nothing like this ever takes place again elsewhere. For that I am so thankful that the father of the deceased boy has made up his mind to take a stand, enabling the media to cover the incident for everyone to know thereby leading to a nationwide outrage, allowing those with the right minds to stand up and speak their minds through the media, pushing the police and the municipality to take actions, making the school principals, the teachers and BOE for other schools fully aware that matters of this nature can never be tolerated by the nation. If the father did not do what he did, the way everything was handled by everyone prior to his action may have created the worst status quo imaginable on the part of the municipality, the BOE, the school principal and teachers and ultimately the police, risking similar incidents to continue to take place elsewhere without being noticed.

To the father of the suicide victim...GAMBARE. Don't go for outside the court settlement. It's about time Japan's Department of Education system and management to be overhauled comprehensively. And please replaced that heavy bag a 3 foot tall elementary kids can't even manage to carry on their back. Just that bag alone weighs kilos that can destroy kids posture and growing back bones.

I never heard of "Bullying" when I was growing up. I wonder what kind of parents do those three kids have?

What a pathetic and irresponsible school officials and teachers are. Fire them all. "Hung them up high"!!

I never heard of "Bullying" when I was growing up

Where did you grow up? Antarctica?

Anyone who thinks that someone should be criminally prosecuted just for being a bully is an outright fool. Unless there was an actual physical assault performed on the victim, no crime was committed. Sure, it's wrong to be a bully, and there are psychological repercussions to being bullied, but it's not murder. Not even close. And for 13 year olds, bullying and being bullied is just a part of life that people learn from and hopefully are trained to grow out of. Criminally prosecute a 13 year-old for being a bully?!? Please. Sell crazy elsewhere.

Ted Barrera

Have you read the previous articles on this? There are eyewitness accounts to various physical assaults, this is not just about name calling.

Where do you come up with that callous response? The kid was physically assaulted numerous times and tormented. It may not be a murder charge, but what do you think bullying is?

In all likelihood these three kids are going to be prosecuted on the basis of the responses of their classmates relating to their bullying, which of course included physical assaults. And one of them apparently has admitted to "bullying".

Ted Barrera: Incase you are not well informed about this particular incident this is not necessarily about prosecuting a 13 yr old for being a bully. Otherwise you may be one of those I referred to earlier as someone possibly with the tendency to gloss over the gravity of the criminal act committed due to the age of the suspects and the use of the "bullying" terminology which may not be truly applicable in this case. This is indeed murder at the cruelest level in my view, provided all that is reported is true. There are reasons to believe the boy's death was part of their plan. How can anything be more cruel than intentionally forcing someone to take one's own life through severe mental and physical abuse on a daily basis. Age should not really matter in this case.

If this was America then he wouldn't be dead he would by in the can for a school shooting. God bless America for teaching respect through superior firepower.

waltery: didn't you see the recent story in America about the 3 boys who were bullying that old lady on the bus? They all got suspended for a year...no one tried to sweep anything under the rug there.

These interviews are too late and have nothing to do with preventing; they may even contribute to damaging these 3 boys' futures. Run a inquisition on the Jcops in Otsu and the teachers at that school.

These boys are already getting their punishment and so are their families. Mainstream press are not publishing their names addresses where their father works etc. However, this stuff is all over the net. These guys are screwed. They will have a tough time ever getting a job, believe me.

Hatsoff: I am definitely not suggesting that those boys should be let off easy, what I'm saying that resorting to violence is just ludicrous as it just spins the whole issue into a cycle. If it was truly an option society would see it happen. We have laws and rules. Sometimes they don't work, but they keeps us (society) together in a reasonable fashion.

Everyone who is clammering to attack the boys with bats or burn down their houses are having emotional knee jerk reactions without even knowing who the boys are, or what they are like. What those boys did was atrocious and they need to answer for what they did. Revenge, however, should not be an option.

Age should not really matter in this case.

Then you're suggesting that, had the bullying been done by the three boys' parents, rather than the boys themselves, the case ought to be treated the same. Which is surely a bit over the top.

lucabrasi:

Then you're suggesting that, had the bullying been done by the three boys' parents, rather than the boys themselves, the case ought to be treated the same. Which is surely a bit over the top.

Not sure if I understand you clearly, but obviously if it were a group of adults who jointly conducted such an act against a 13 yr old boy then they should be (and legally can be) punished and penalized in a much stricter manner than what would be considered for the three boys. One of the points I was trying to make was that we should not be discounting the gravity of the crime under influence from the fact that it was committed by minors. Regardless of age of whoever committing the crime, it was essentially a very cruel act of murder in itseld if all reported is true. What I also meant was that due to the gravity of the crime and the consequently expected challenges in successful rehabilitation of those who committed the crime, more focus and attention should be placed on ensuring that nothing of this nature will ever be repeated elsewhere.

Ted Barrera

Anyone who thinks that someone should be criminally prosecuted just for being a bully is an outright fool. Unless there was an actual physical assault performed on the victim, no crime was committed. Sure, it's wrong to be a bully, and there are psychological repercussions to being bullied, but it's not murder. Not even close. And for 13 year olds, bullying and being bullied is just a part of life that people learn from and hopefully are trained to grow out of. Criminally prosecute a 13 year-old for being a bully?!? Please. Sell crazy elsewhere.

Then it sounds like you're the bigger fool. If an adult does the same thing a bully does then he will be sure that he will be arrested.

Anyhow, saw on the FNN News that the teacher did know about the bullying since he received a phone call from the crying student. The police now know that teacher was aware of the bullying and still did nothing of it! Absolutely insane! Now that this fact has come to light, I now agree that he needs to get fired! If he's not capable of protecting his students, he doesn't deserve to call himself a teacher!

If he's not capable of protecting his students, he doesn't deserve to call himself a teacher!

Do you agree with "If he/she's not capable of protecting his/her child, she/he doesn't deserve to call himself/herself a parent"?

Thumbs down but no replies? Come on folks. If that sentence was okay with teacher in it, it should be okay with parent in it.

Just can't take my mind off the boy, imagining everything he had to go through at his age. Pretending everything was fine with his parents, his classmates, hiding his true feelings within himself. Didnt even leave a note. Must have been a mentally tough boy, with his own sense of pride. If only the teachers were a little more caring, a little more sympathetic, a little more mature human beings to get into his inner feelings as any caring and sympathetic adult would do and allow him to finally say "I'm being bullied, and it is just so hard. Please help me." It is just so heartbreaking and painful to imagine how hard he must have cried alone before deciding to do what he did at the end. Sole salvation for us all left behind after all this would come only if the police does a great job at arriving at all the facts to allow this tragedy to effectively serve as a major wakeup call for everyone, for a better tomorrow for all of Japan. Father pls hang in there and police pls do what you have to do. The whole nation counts on you. Realize I may be going a little overboard here but just can't help feeling this way.

jonobugs

resorting to violence is just ludicrous as it just spins the whole issue into a cycle.

Well that's an assumption. The victim who fights back is also resorting to violence. In this case, however, the victim is dead.

Everyone who is clammering to attack the boys with bats or burn down their houses are having emotional knee jerk reactions

And that's an assumption too. For some, such 'street justice' would be a rational approach couched in language the bullies and their parents will understand. (Rational in the context of a system that is not working; rational in that the bullies are laughing at the system and feel untouchable.) It's not the answer to all cases, but the system does not appear to be preventing suicides from bullying, does it? Therefore, you can expect another suicide soon unless a strong message goes out to the bullies.

Counsellors may say to the boys, "Imagine if it were you being bullied. How would you feel?" Others may feel skipping the imagining part to be much more effective.

Since no one else had assumed responsibility, including the police, it should be of no wonder at all to anyone that the bully boys themselves also would deny any responsibility.

It is rather breathtaking to realize that the school would backpedal so much unless, in fact, the information known to them from the beginning clearly connected the bullying to the suicide.

Hatsoff: I think you're starting to get into a completely different topic when you start talking about victims fighting back. I was initially responding to the people who are calling to punish the bullies by taking bats to them or burning down their houses. I'm not suggesting that people shouldn't defend themselves.

As for street justice, as you call it, I believe we're talking about young boys. Do you truly think it's even a plausible idea to take extreme violent measures? You know as well as I do that people who are talking about that sort of thing are completely off base. It won't happen, so why even go there? As for the system not working, I think that there is a bigger problem. First of all, we have to get people to recognize that there actually IS a problem. It seems to me that the school officials only grudgingly agreed that bullying might have been a factor and only after it was forced from them.

Like I stated previously, I am not suggesting that those boys responsible should be let off the hook or even just 'talked' to, but for those suggesting extreme measures of violence really need to seriously consider what they are suggesting. To me, it doesn't even sound as though they are seriously suggesting those things, but rather shooting their mouths off to make themselves feel better. If they really are serious, then I think there is a bigger problem at hand.

jonobugs - everything you say is very sensible. Everything everyone is saying is very sensible. But it's the same talk that goes on every time, and nothing changes. What's that saying? If you keep doing what you've always done, you'll always get what you've already got.

The truth is, it's just hand wringing and it makes people feel better. Reality check: how effective is it?

I will state again. If those boys are done over with a baseball bat (by their peers perhaps? who knows?) or if their houses were burned down, I would shed no tears at all. I make no apologies for that.

Hoko, why would they take responsibility? They've grown up in a country with a culture of passing the buck and looking the other way.

And again, why are people thumbing down my sentence with the use of parents but teachers was okay. Speaking of passing the buck...

People who bully should be caned....just like singapore...cane em... Nuff said

Do something!!!!