"Pulled Hair and Slapped 17 Times": School Violence Spreads in China... Japanese Media Warns Xi Jinping Administration on Alert

Angry citizens protesting against the authorities' lukewarm response to school violence. X

Japanese media have focused on the issue of severe school violence occurring across various schools in China, highlighting its spread as a major social problem.

On October 1, the Yomiuri Shimbun, in a report from its Shenyang bureau, covered the situation of school violence in China, stating, "With the widespread use of smartphones and social networking services (SNS), incidents are increasingly coming to light as videos of group assaults are shared online." The report also noted, "The Xi Jinping administration is wary of such incidents escalating into broader social unrest."

Japanese Media, Origin of 'Ijime', Warns: "School Violence in China Is Serious... Xi Jinping Administration on Alert"

According to Yomiuri, on September 5, just after the start of the new semester, a video of a female middle school student being assaulted by a group in Wuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, southern China, spread online. Several female students were seen pulling the victim's hair and slapping her face as many as 17 times. In response, local authorities announced the dismissal of the principal and vice principal, and stated that nine students involved would undergo "corrective education (reform education)," attempting to close the case in this manner.

Previously, in June, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress passed an amendment to the "Public Security Administration Punishments Law," which explicitly includes student bullying as a punishable offense. As a result, the minimum age for administrative detention (confinement) was lowered, and repeat or particularly malicious offenders-those violating the law more than twice a year-can now be subject to detention. The amendment also stipulates that if a school fails to respond appropriately to serious violent incidents, responsible parties can be disciplined. State-run CCTV reported the authorities' stance, stating, "Public security agencies, the education sector, and schools will act together to address violence and ensure school safety." This revised law will take effect starting January next year.

The Yomiuri Shimbun pointed out that the reason behind the Chinese authorities' strengthened measures is the reality that searching for the Chinese term for "school violence" on SNS yields an overwhelming number of related news articles and videos, reflecting the scale of the social problem. In late July in Jiangyou, Sichuan Province, a 14-year-old girl was assaulted and stripped by a group of girls aged 13 to 15. The victim, whose parents are both disabled, had long been a target of bullying. Public outrage intensified when it was revealed that the perpetrators had forced the victim to transfer her mother's disability allowance to them.

Protest scenes triggered by a student's death. X

Children Left Behind by Parents Working Away Become Both Perpetrators and Victims of School Violence... AI Search Introduced on SNS

Local public security authorities announced that two out of the three perpetrators received administrative detention or corrective education. However, backlash spread rapidly, with many criticizing the punishments as too lenient. As a result, large numbers of residents gathered at the city government to protest. Authorities deployed security personnel to forcibly disperse the crowd, and protest participants were transported away in livestock transport vehicles. Currently, related protest videos have been deleted from the Chinese internet. The Xi Jinping administration, which places high importance on "social stability," is highly sensitive to the spread of information that could lead to criticism of the government.

For years, local regions in China have pointed out that "left-behind children"-children whose parents have left to work elsewhere-often become both perpetrators and victims of violence. In February this year, "People's Forum," affiliated with the Communist Party's official newspaper "People's Daily," noted, "Left-behind children are frequently bullied at school." As a result, there have been attempts to utilize surveillance systems to prevent violence.

At a middle school in Xiamen, Fujian Province, a system has been introduced in which artificial intelligence (AI) detects victim voices such as "Help me" and "Don't hit me," allowing for immediate identification of violent incidents. This school has installed more than 3,000 detection devices across its four campuses. A lawyer specializing in criminal cases commented, "Establishing a system that requires perpetrators to pay compensation to victims could be one way to curb school violence."