City launches campaign to curb bullying after attack on girl, 12

Xingtai, Hebei province, launched an anti-bullying campaign on Saturday to curb such acts in schools after a middle school student was beaten up by roommates.

A 12-year-old girl at Huigong Experimental Middle School in Qinghe was beaten by seven roommates last month after a conflict erupted between the girl and one of the seven, according to a statement by the local publicity department.

All schools in Xingtai should create ways to prevent bullying from occurring, Wang Dawei, deputy head of the education bureau of Xingtai, said during an emergency meeting on Saturday.

"Schools need to designate specific tasks for teachers and officials, and link the tasks with their appraisals, to ensure the safety of students," Wang said.

Photos of the victim in this case, surnamed Liu, that were published on the internet showed many bruises.

The incident caused a public stir, especially among parents, after it was exposed last week online.

An investigation by the local government and public security department found that the seven bullies, three of whom were called from a neighboring dormitory, were all under 14 years old.

The middle school was ordered by the education bureau of Qinghe to punish the seven and provide psychological counseling and tutoring for Liu at home.

Minors under 14 are not subject to criminal punishment under the law, Wang Zhenyu, director of Beijing Yipai Law Firm, was quoted as saying in a report by Beijing News.

"The social correction and supervision of juvenile behavior is not enough," he said.

The Qinghe education bureau also demanded the dismissal of the students' dormitory supervisor and other punishment for the teacher in charge and the school's principal.

The middle school apologized for its failure to protect the student from harm.

"We will try our best to handle the issue and call on the whole society to pay more attention to the educational environment for juveniles," a statement from the school said.

China's Ministry of Education and 10 other central government departments jointly released an action plan about a year ago to curb bullying in schools, which has become a grave issue in recent years.

Under the plan, aimed at middle and primary schools, physical or verbal assaults, insults or online attacks are considered acts of bullying.

The plan includes specific measures to address the problem of bullying, including education of students and parents and installing video monitoring devices in schools.