James Nayagam also asked whether pilot tests had been carried out to determine its effectiveness.

He was commenting on education minister Radzi Jidin’s announcement on the three-way mechanism – hotline, email address and the ministry’s public complaints management system (Sispa) – with the details made available at https://www.moe.gov.my/aduanbuli.

Nayagam, who has 40 years of experience in dealing with both victims and bullies, said he believed teachers and administrators were in a better position to help victims.

School staff, he said, could identify both victims and bullies, and provide counselling.

“Those who are being bullied will find it very hard to speak about it, so when they do, it is better for someone to be able to advise them immediately and find out more about the issue,” he told FMT.

He also said the ministry must ensure those manning the hotline were trained to handle calls from bullying victims and whistleblowers.

Nayagam added that the ministry must also state clearly on what it would do after receiving any report on bullying.

“Who will be handling the cases, will there be follow-ups and monitoring of the cases?”

Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia honorary secretary Tunku Munawirah Putra welcomed the bullying reporting mechanism, saying it could help victims whose plight was ignored.

“This is another avenue to report bullying cases to the higher-ups (in the education ministry).

“Some complainants find that schools choose to ignore, take no action, bury such cases, or play down the incidents to save themselves from embarrassment and further investigations,” she said.