From MY PAPER, Home, My News
WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 19, 2008
ON GUIDELINES FOR HAZING
DAWN TAY
THE recent outcry over a string of hazing incidents struck a personal chord.
It evoked memories of something that happened to my family 11 years ago.
In the prime of his youth, my older brother suffered a slipped disc when he was tossed into a swimming pool by schoolmates, during a birthday celebration in junior college.
I still remember seeing him lying on a hospital bed, teary-faced and in great pain – he eventually had to undergo surgery to remove the disc.
It was a tough time for him. Gone were his favourite activities: soccer and tennis. And his army years were vastly different from those of his peers: While they underwent military training
which they would boast about, he was filing papers as a clerk.
To this day, he avoids lifting heavy objects in case he aggravates the injury.
Remembering that incident and seeing the recent uproar by indignant Singaporeans, I’d say that it’s time to introduce some guidelines on hazing.
Hazing – which ranges from harmless teasing to even sodomy with objects – has been around for ages.
It entered the spotlight only when clips of ragging in junior colleges and the Singapore Civil Defence Force were posted online recently – the latest being the “taupok treatment” of a junior-college student (see facing page).
Some argue that hazing encourages bonding and acceptance, in the name of good, clean fun. Critics, however, say it’s demeaning and abusive.
Some may be startled to know that hazing is banned in over 40 American states. Penalties can range from fines to jail terms, depending on the severity of offences.
At least 250 hazing-linked deaths have been reported worldwide over the last 50 years, said a report by the United States-based International Journal of Adolescent Health this year.
Granted, hazing incidents which have been reported here aren’t as serious as those in the US, where cases of victims being forced to drink alcohol until they passed out and being spanked with hard objects are not uncommon.
Left unchecked, hazing acts may get more extreme as hazers get bolder. Counsellors say that hazing victims usually take hazing to a more dangerous level on others they haze in future.
And here’s a confession: I’m no innocent when it comes to hazing.
When I was in secondary school, my schoolmates and I thought stripping friends down to their underwear was a hoot.
And I’m one of those guilty people who would gleefully heap themselves upon a hapless squashed victim in the notorious “taupok” move. Getting people drunk on their birthdays is also a favourite tactic of some friends.
It’s only this year that I realised you can have fun without getting out of control.
Prior to unleashing a “taupok” move on an unsuspecting victim during a camp outing, an older friend took time to brief us on the fine art of “taupoking”, without suffocating or injuring anyone.
I was impressed, and thought: “Now, that’s fun, in a responsible way.”
So, it’s important that schools, private and government organisations set guidelines prior to orientation camps and team-bonding activities.
Sure, there will be grey areas. But, with guidelines, we can find safer and fun ways to bond and to celebrate an individual.
I’m sure my brother would agree.
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