In April, the Malaysian Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam, indignant on TikTok of a joke of one of her teachers on rape. The video, which has gone viral, was the starting point of a movement against the bullying of young girls at school. – AFPTV / AFP
She didn’t pass up a joke about the rape of one of her teachers. Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam, a 17-year-old Malaysian, subsequently became the leading figure in a movement against sexual harassment in schools.
In April, the high school student gave her testimony on TikTok. She recounted how one of her teachers, during a class, after recalling the laws in force in Malaysia protecting minors against sexual assault, added that if the boys wanted to commit rape, they should instead tackle it. to a woman of at least 18 years of age.
Malaysian teenager Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam posted a video on TikTok taking a male teacher to task over an alleged joke about rape during class. The video sparked a nationwide debate and prompted her to create the #MakeSchoolASaferPlace https://t.co/JQSANdcpLN pic.twitter.com/GlRsnJvw3B
– Reuters (@Reuters) April 30, 2021
“He really said that, and the girls were silent. (…) But the boys, oh, they were laughing, as if it was funny to make a joke about a rape ”, indignant the teenager.
“We cannot let this abusive system continue in our schools”
This video has gone viral – it’s approaching 2 million views today. She prompted many young people to speak out about their own experiences of harassment while women’s rights activists praised her for speaking out.
Ain then launched the online campaign #MakeSchoolASaferPlace (“Let’s make schools safer”). “When I mentioned it, I received so many hate messages, I don’t know why,” she explains. It’s just about making schools safer, what is there to debate? “
These reactions reinforced her resolve to fight against what she sees as the humiliating treatment of young girls by the Malaysian education system: “We cannot let this abusive system continue in our schools. “
The video really hit a sore spot, notes the young woman, because this harassment “affects students all over Malaysia. This proves that this is not just a teacher’s joke, but it affects the education system as a whole. “
“Those who speak are punished”
NGOs point out that bullying in schools has been a long-standing problem, with complaints of verbal or physical attacks but also sometimes intrusive palpations of young girls’ underwear to check if they are on their period.
Ain has received many attacks, many of them sexually oriented, a threat of rape and little support from the authorities. “Those who speak are punished,” she laments.
After the video, she stopped attending her school in Puncak Alam, near Kuala Lumpur, fearing for her safety, and was threatened with expulsion.
The teacher has been transferred temporarily
“A lot of young people my age and activists are fighting to draw attention to these issues,” she observes. But I was really shocked to see that the officials, those who have the power (…) don’t care. “
The Education Ministry explained that the letter threatening the girl with expulsion was sent automatically after her absences.
The police launched an investigation and the implicated teacher was transferred from the school temporarily.
“I really want adults to listen to my story and do what’s right for us children,” Ain hopes.