The fun times continue....
http://www.japantoday.com/jp/shukan/368
A smirk upon the death of a classmate
The verbal assault by a teacher was the root cause of the bullying that led to the suicide of a 13-year-old boy in Chikuzen, Fukuoka. It has been two weeks since the boy's death, but the heinous ripple continues.
Ever since the incident, the town of Chikuzen has been enveloped by an abnormal depressing atmosphere. The students, who walk at a faster pace than usual, hold an orange-colored-card in their hands that reads “No interviews accepted, PTA of Miwa Junior High School.” The school has placed a gag order on everyone.
But new facts emerged at a wake that was held on Oct 13, two days after the suicide. “Some kids were looking into the coffin with a smirk on their face as if they were telling the boy ‘Look what you have done to yourself,’” said a neighbor of the deceased boy who attended the wake. “I was both angry and afraid after seeing such conduct. The wake took place at the family’s home. One had to wait in line for several hours as the line reached 300 meters, so the kids could have possibly lost their composure due to the long hours of waiting.”
It has been now revealed that many students told the 13-year-old boy, before his death, to “disappear” or “die.” Some kids at the school, after the death of the boy, reportedly said: “Nothing changes, even though he’s gone,” or “It’s a big relief now that he is gone.”
“Cursing the dead like that, therefore siding with bullies rather than the bullied suggests a mass psychology of control by fear,” said psychiatrist Shizuo Machizawa. “Those who feel no guilt and who led the bullying have the characteristics of a psychopath. They are very power-hungry and anti-social. At their age, that is a very dangerous state to be in.”
Not all students have been callous. Some visited the bereaved family and apologized in tears that their words and actions could have led to the death of the boy. However, one relative of the boy said: “While some of them were brave enough to confess their guilt, there were others who reluctantly offered an apology just for the sake of an apology. It simply made us sad.”
As for the teacher, who reportedly started all the trouble, he was seen by reporters walking on the school grounds with a smile on his face on the day he was reportedly hospitalized due to depression. (Translated by Toshiya Fujii)
October 31, 2006