Viral Bullying Incident at Kebumen Vocational School Allegedly Triggered by Instagram Chat

The Kebumen branch of Nahdlatul Ulama (PCNU) has spoken out regarding an alleged bullying case involving a student at a vocational school (SMK) in Kutowinangun District, Kebumen. The private school is under the auspices of PCNU Kebumen, and the school has imposed a suspension on the perpetrator.

“The school is indeed under our responsibility, and we have coordinated with the school. The perpetrator has been suspended. However, the school cannot immediately expel the student before he finds a new school, in accordance with existing regulations. So we imposed a suspension while instructing him to look for another school. The legal process itself is being handled by the police, and we fully respect the ongoing legal process,” said PCNU Kebumen Chairman Imam Satibi, as quoted from detikJateng on Monday (17/8).

According to initial information received from the school, Imam said the incident stemmed from jealousy between the perpetrator and the victim. The bullying occurred during the lunch break.

“The information I received from the school is that the perpetrator, an 11th grader, had a girlfriend who broke up with him. Because the perpetrator could access his ex-girlfriend’s Instagram account, he saw a chat from his junior, who became the victim. It was just ordinary communication, just saying hello, but he became jealous,” he said.

“It happened during lunch break. It turned out such an incident occurred and was not monitored. This is part of our negligence, so we will improve our SOP and services,” he added.

Imam said the victim has not yet been able to return to school activities. PCNU, together with the Education Institution and the Kebumen Regency Government, has visited the victim’s family to provide assistance and psychological support.

“As of today, the victim has not been active at school. We understand if the victim is experiencing trauma or mental shock and needs support. We are very cooperative and understanding of the situation,” he said.

PCNU Kebumen also expressed its deepest apologies to the victim and his family over the incident.

“On behalf of NU, I convey my apologies, especially to the victim, for this incident. We acknowledge that this is part of the school’s negligence that was not prevented. Our hope is that the victim can recover soon and regain his enthusiasm for learning,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Head of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection at the Kebumen Social Service, Arum Dwi Lestari, said that based on initial handling and assessment, the victim’s physical condition has improved significantly compared to the time of the incident.

“When we assessed him on Wednesday (12/8), he still refused to eat. But by Sunday (16/8), he had improved, only traumatised and afraid to go to school. He is still afraid to attend school,” Arum said.

Regarding the detailed physical condition and the results of the medical examination, Arum explained that the victim’s medical examination documents are being handled directly by the police for investigation purposes.

For further handling, the Kebumen Social Service has prepared a number of intensive assistance measures for the victim, both in terms of trauma recovery and support throughout the ongoing legal process at the Kebumen Police.

“There are plans for psychological assistance to eliminate the trauma. Secondly, we will accompany him through the legal process, because it has been reported to the police,” Arum said.

Previously, a video of the bullying incident in Kebumen Regency, Central Java, went viral on social media. In a 34-second video, a student wearing a Scout uniform was seen being punched and kicked by a boy wearing only long trousers.

After investigation, the student was beaten behind a private vocational school in Kutowinangun District, Kebumen Regency, on Friday (7/8) at around 10.00 WIB. The suspected perpetrator was then taken into custody by the police on Saturday (15/8).

“The suspected perpetrator has been brought to the police station, and the examination is ongoing. We will also coordinate with the hospital for the victim’s medical examination and post-mortem report,” said Kebumen Police Chief AKBP I Putu Krisna Purnama, as reported by detikcom.