Anti Bullying Law Forms Tribunal With Power To Grant Compensation

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The much-awaited Anti-Bully Bill was tabled in Parliament yesterday, providing a legal framework to prevent and address bullying across government, government-aided, and private educational institutions, as well as child detention and welfare centres.
The proposed law defines bullying broadly as any wilful act causing physical, psychological, or social harm to a victim, whether committed repeatedly or as a single severe incident.
This encompasses physical harm, verbal abuse, social isolation, discrimination based on sex, race, religion, or disability, and cyberbullying through electronic or digital communication.
At the heart of the legislation is the establishment of a tribunal, which will hear complaints from victims or their parents and guardians.
The tribunal will be granted wide-ranging powers to order apologies, remove online content, and award substantial compensation of up to RM250,000 for bullying victims.
The legal authority for the RM250,000 maximum compensation is listed under Clause 43(1)(e) of the bill and further confirmed in the explanatory statement of the document.
The tribunal's composition
The tribunal will comprise legal experts from the judicial and legal service, as well as professionals with expertise in child welfare, psychology, development, and restorative justice.
Each three-member panel hearing a case must include at least one woman, and proceedings will be conducted in an informal, child-friendly manner closed to the public.
The tribunal will have jurisdiction to hear complaints in three circumstances: when institutional anti-bullying committees fail to act adequately, when bullying occurs outside institutional supervision, or when victims are not under any institution’s care.
Notably, complainants must first approach their institution’s anti-bullying committee before escalating to the tribunal, except in cases occurring outside institutional supervision.
For child respondents, parents or guardians may be ordered to attend counselling or parenting support sessions together with their child, or be held financially liable for compensation and expenses.
The bill also prioritises mediation as a resolution method, provided both parties give informed consent, and the tribunal determines it appropriate, given the circumstances and the child’s safety.
Enforceable with criminal penalties
Awards issued by the tribunal will be final and binding, deemed to carry the force of court orders and enforceable as such.
Failure to comply with an award within 30 days constitutes a criminal offence. Where compensation has been ordered, offenders may be fined twice the amount of the compensation and/or face up to two years’ imprisonment.
If no compensation is awarded, non-compliance carries a fine of up to RM10,000 and/or a maximum of two years’ imprisonment, while continuing offences attract an additional daily fine of up to RM1,000.
Tribunal awards may only be challenged in the High Court on the basis of serious irregularity, such as the tribunal’s failure to address relevant issues, uncertainty or ambiguity in the award.
Institutional responsibilities
The bill also places significant obligations on covered institutions, which include all schools under the Education Act 1996, Mara junior science colleges, the Royal Military College, and child welfare facilities such as places of safety, probation hostels, approved schools, and Henry Gurney Schools for juvenile offenders.
Each institution must establish and maintain an anti-bullying committee, implement prevention and management policies, create accessible and child-sensitive reporting channels whilst maintaining confidentiality, and provide counselling services and psychosocial support.
Institutions must also conduct staff training and meet compliance standards set by the relevant minister - either education, defence, home, or women, family and community development - depending on the institution type.
The relevant ministers are also empowered to issue guidelines, commission research, prepare training materials, and conduct periodic audits of institutions, with findings submitted to Suhakam.
The Suhakam children’s commissioner will play a key role in promoting awareness, advising the government on policy development, conducting programmes and workshops, and disseminating research findings on bullying prevention.
Suhakam is also required to report annually to Parliament on all activities related to the prevention and management of bullying.
In addition, the tribunal’s secretary will provide Suhakam with anonymised quarterly statistical data on complaints received and their outcomes.
Protection for children's privacy
The bill also prohibits the publishing of any information that may identify a child involved in tribunal proceedings, with violations punishable by a fine of up to RM50,000 and/or up to two years’ imprisonment.
Legal protection is also afforded to tribunal members, institution officials, and committee members for acts done in good faith. However, this does not extend to negligent, fraudulent, or bad-faith actions.
Importantly, complainants are not prevented from lodging police reports for criminal offences related to bullying, even after filing a tribunal complaint.
The bill thus provides a civil remedy mechanism alongside, rather than replacing, criminal prosecution options.
The tribunal will also only have jurisdiction over bullying incidents occurring after the law comes into force.
The proposed law will commence on a date to be appointed by the minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) via gazette notification, with different provisions potentially commencing on different dates to allow for phased implementation. - Mkini

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