Video shows group of girls beating another, 13
By CHEN BOWEN in Haikou | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2023-03-23 17:23
A video of campus bullying in Lingao county, Hainan province, went viral recently, generating heated discussion online.
In the video, a group of girls beat a girl with their hands and feet and pushed her into a river, while holding up a mobile phone to record the process and saying, "Don't hit her with sticks" in Lingao's local dialect. The victim, with her hair disheveled and bruises visible on her upper body, kneels and says, "I'm sorry".
The victim's aunt, surnamed Liu, told Beijing News that the incident happened in Lanquan village, Jialai town. The 13-year-old studied at the Hainan Lingao Siyuan Experimental School.
On the afternoon of March 13, the girl left school with schoolmates and was taken to other towns. A number of strange girls beat her several times and restricted her freedom of movement for days.
Liu, the aunt, said the bullies threatened her niece several times, threatening that if she ran away they would beat her parents who are disabled. On Saturday, the victim returned home with bare feet, explaining to her parents that she "just fell down accidentally" for fear of reprisals.
After her family saw the bullying video on the internet, the girl finally admitted to her parents that she was bullied and recounted what happened over the past few days.
The victim's family reported the case to the police in Jialai town, Liu said.
The girl was taken to First Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University for treatment. The medical report showed that her left eardrum had been perforated. Liu said doctors had also informed the family that the girl's eye had been injured by an object inserted into it. The damage was irreversible and her eyesight will be difficult to recover, they said.
The police in Jialai town confirmed to Beijing News on Wednesday afternoon that the case was under investigation.
The Lingao county education bureau has also looked into the case and launched an investigation. Representatives of the school have visited the victim to inquire about her physical and psychological condition.
The local public security department is coordinating with the families on both sides to deal with follow-up matters, an official surnamed Lin from the bureau told Beijing News.
