Malaysia - a land where bullies claim to be victims and go unpunished

COMMENT | By now, you’ve probably seen online footage of a young Australian boy Quaden Bayles crying in his car after being a victim of yet another day of bullying over his dwarfism at school.

His distraught mother who, I would like to think, has tried all kinds of means to stop the bullying, decided to record his grief and anger and we hear the boy threaten to kill and take his own life.

This is serious stuff that speaks as to where we are. Why on earth others would torment a child with a disability is beyond me but it happens every day.

Bayles’ mother Yarraka, who breaks down in tears during the video, was criticised in some quarters for not comforting her child immediately but I think she did the right thing in terms of raising awareness.

A "GoFundMe" page has raised A$450,000, far more than the original target required to bring Bayles on a trip to Disneyland, an idea proposed by American comedian Brad Williams.

The Australian National Rugby League, actor Hugh Jackman and basketball player Enes Kanter have also reached out to him.

You would have to be heartless not to sympathise.

According to America’s National Voices For Equality, Education and Enlightenment, a bullying and suicide prevention non-profit established in October 2009, suicides are the largest cause of deaths for children under 14.

There is a clear, causal link between bullying and suicide and the numbers are increasing because cyberbullying now allows bullies an even more constant access to their victims.

I was thinking about this sort of bullying when I ...