Lee Lam Thye urges a whole-of-society approach to prevent violence in Malaysia, calling for stronger school interventions, parental guidance and firm law enforcement
KUALA LUMPUR: A comprehensive, whole-of-society approach is needed to prevent violence and aggressive behaviour from becoming normalised in Malaysian society following recent violent incidents in schools and communities.
Alliance for a Safe Community (IKATAN) chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye warned that if incidents such as students being attacked and stabbed in schools were left unchecked, society risked becoming desensitised to violence and accepting it as a way of resolving conflicts.
“Violence must never become a culture in Malaysia. We cannot wait until it becomes deeply rooted before taking action. Prevention must begin now and involve the government, schools, families, communities, enforcement agencies, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the media,” he said in a statement today.
Lee said schools needed stronger early-warning and intervention mechanisms, with teachers, counsellors and administrators equipped to identify warning signs, including aggressive behaviour, threats and serious bullying, before situations escalated into tragedy.
He also highlighted the important roles of parents and digital responsibility, noting that exposure to violent content, online threats, humiliation and cyberbullying on social media could contribute to the normalisation of aggression among young people.
Lee said that alongside preventive measures and programmes to support emotional well-being, law enforcement must remain firm when criminal offences occurred.
“Violence, particularly involving weapons, cannot simply be dismissed as youthful indiscretion or an ordinary disciplinary problem. Where criminal offences occur, appropriate action must be taken under the law.
“However, punishment alone will not solve the problem. We need a whole-of-society approach to build a culture of respect, restraint, empathy and peaceful conflict resolution,” he added.
Lee urged all sectors of society to address violence early, prevent it systematically and reject it collectively to ensure Malaysia remained a society where dialogue prevailed over aggression.