After months of unremitting three students in the hands of bullying, must have seemed like an empty threat, torture his 13-year-old Hiroki issued. "I'm going to die," he told them in a text message. "You are dead, their reactions."
In the month before his death, the verbal abuse escalated into kicking, punching his arms and legs bound, mouth recording. He ate dead bees, stealing, and even his own death "rehearsal". When his teacher was finally told that they only give a verbal warning.
Soon after, the teenager only by his name in the media to determine jumped to his death, West Otsu Japan from the 14th-floor apartment building in October 2011.
His death prompted Japan for decades the most serious attempt to resolve the classroom culture of bullying - has long been considered a rite of passage in a deep highly competitive education system.
Bullying statistics vary, but the new official data reveals worrying trend. District Legal Affairs Bureau in Japan to respond to a record 3988 boxes last year, an increase of more than 20% from 2011, the Justice Department said. The national police agency also said that in 2012 investigated 260 cases of campus bullying, as well as 113 cases from 2011.
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Psychological and physical abuse is not confined to students. Across the 10-month survey shows that in April 2012, the Ministry of Education found that the use of corporal punishment of 840 teachers to students - more than double the number of recorded cases in the past 12 months. Prominent problem in the end of last year, when a 17-year-old boy killed in Osaka, he often beat his high school basketball coach.
In a national uproar over several high-profile incidents of bullying at least two lead to suicide, the government introduced a bill earlier this year, the commitment to zero tolerance for bullying between students and physics teachers punishment.
The bill, which will vote by the end of June, teachers and parents to notify school authorities of bullying cases, to provide victims with the perpetrators guidance, involving the police, if the alleged offense has been committed.
The legislation - part of the education overhaul Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ordered - also called for an outside third party to handle the case when a child's life or safety risk, and for teachers to do more bullies suspended the use of its powers.
Can we do that?
Critics say that the responsibility of teachers is unlikely to be much change. They pointed out that the evidence suggests that teachers often bullying occurs in their watches, is marked as being incompetent, it happens in all the fear, do not act on the rumors.
"Broadly speaking, it does not matter to individual teachers and school officials what to do, they will not be able to prevent bullying, because they work in the school environment, said:" Asao Naito, a professor at Meiji University in Tokyo in psychosociology sector.
Group all important priority than personal feelings, but, if the school has ceased to run their own troops, and the children are free to express themselves as individuals, as adults are allowed to do so, and legal protection of children from school students and teachers of violence, just because it is outside the school, then I think we will see a bullying reduce the number. "
Is not a solution in line with the role of culture in the school, sow discord between the pressure of examinations on a regular basis, crowded classrooms, students, These measures include the introduction of moral education curriculum in elementary and junior high school.
Related courses are sketchy; panel experts suggest that Mr. Shinzo Abe said, only moral education, to teach students the emotional and physical balance. "
'Infinitely community'
In his first major policy speech as Prime Minister since December last year, Abe talking about a crisis in education in this insidious bullying occurs one case after another child who will shoulder the future of Japan, and in this country history and tradition proud wanes, there are also concerns about the decline in academic achievement, should be among the best in the world, it simply will not do for us stand idly by. "
Greeted plans skeptical of some sections of the media. "Japan Times in an editorial, which means that the lofty ideological and moral education, ignoring the root of the problem. Much better, it says that the government will "reduce the burden of teaching and instruments, so that they have more time to share with children" and "obsessed with rote learning and testing."
Mr. Naito said he spent decades bullying does not actually change the school's environmental improvement is not possible in bullying statistics.
The Dalit community, so that students have no choice but to where he introduced Japanese schools. "In an environment so that students have to spend almost all their time together, they live in their own set of rules is not always what is socially acceptable," he said. "Students are forced to follow the pack, think that everyone in the way of thinking."
The Hiroki family what had happened?
Justice, unhappy, and the Hiroki family.
The local police did not initially appeal by his father, and his teacher said that they did not find any evidence of bullying. It was only when the students at his school were invited to complete an anonymous questionnaire teenager the last few days, the awful truth came to light.
In February this year, the Tianjin municipal government finally recognize the bully has played a role in his suicide, and his parents compensation.
However, the passage of time, not weaken his sense of failure, education officials, the police and, most important, his teacher.
As one of his teachers told the "Daily News": "When I close my eyes, his face float to the surface of my mind I was so shocked when it happens, I disappear as a teacher's confidence the. "
 
 



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