They said it was due to the fact that the kid is born from a family that has money and strong ties with another family that has power and influence, that the issue of bullying was never addressed until the video went viral on social media. Take note this wasn't just one or two videos of him bullying kids at his school, but several videos on separate occasions.
He would make them choose between kneeling down to kiss his shoes or he beats them up. Surprisingly, though, he is usually smaller than the boys he bullies. By now, said bully had already been dismissed. The dismissal though was of exclusion from the Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU) school grounds only, instead of expulsion. The action to exclude instead of expel is because of the fact that expulsion needs to be initiated by the Secretary of Education, which as reported is also being looked into.
Bullying is an act in which a bad-mannered person overpowers another to win over favours. It is a form of human rights abuse and can be considered a criminal act. In the Philippines, we have a bill set up called the Anti-Bullying Act of 2013 and that is Republic Act 10627. This is defined as, "AN ACT REQUIRING ALL ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS TO ADOPT POLICIES TO PREVENT AND ADDRESS THE ACTS OF BULLYING IN THEIR INSTITUTIONS."
The proper upbringing of a child always begins at home, and the responsibility will always rest with the parents. When you bring a child into the world, as parents, you owe it to the world to turn that child into the best person he or she can ever be. But, society also plays a vital role in whoever that child becomes. Their surrounding is not just limited around their dwellings because they go about the world to mingle.
Joaquin Montesis no different from any child who needs guidance and discipline. It's true that we are not supposed to tolerate any amount of bullying; however, it is also true that the resolution for bullying is not to expose the bully to the same misconduct. There are proper ways to handle scenarios as such and authorities are also in place.
Right after the video sparked outrageous reactions from netizens, it was found out that the bully, Joaquin Montes, has a black belt and a gold medal in Taekwondo. This caught the attention of renowned Taekwondo champ Monsour Del Rosario, who is now holding office as a politician. His appeal went directly to the parents of Joaquin saying, "We’ve all made our mistakes and should not judge people loosely. But to the parents of the bully, let’s be very clear here, this is as firm a judgment as you will ever get from me: Your son is a failed representation of our beautiful sport.”
He also addressed parents as a whole, "Raise your children better. Let’s all raise our children to be better. Let’s raise our sons — particularly those in the martial arts — to be good men.” In addition, Del Rosario also expressed his request to not only expel the bully kid from school but to also expel him from the Philippine Taekwondo Association (PTA).
In a Rappler post on December 21, 2018,
Granted that all proper actions and penalties are undertaken, does it resolve the issue of bullying as a whole? Bullying has lived with us since time immemorial. It is like an epidemic that never ceases. But there is always the hope that we can one day achieve it.
Whatever your reaction is or your take on the issue, do not belittle the bully. It does not solve the problem and you just become a bully-in-the-making yourself.
Always remember that it doesn't cost you anything to be good, so choose to be a good person all the time.
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Sources: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullying http://cnnphilippines.com/news/2018/12/23/ateneo-jett-villarin-bullying-video.html https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/2013/09/12/republic-act-no-10627/ https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1065273/monsour-del-rosario-ateneo-high-school-bullying https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.rappler.com/sports/by-sport/other-sports/219361-philippine-taekwondo-association-statement-ateneo-junior-high-school-bullying-incident https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2018/12/24/1879499/monsour-wants-bully-expelled-taekwondo-group