Why didn't anybody intervene?

Recently, a disturbing video was released showing footage of a young girl bullying and beating up another young girl at Pasteur Gardens public park in Hanoi.

Both girls were 16 years old. The footage lasts for 59 seconds and shows a defenseless girl being ruthlessly dragged around by her hair, kicked in the face by multiple people, flung around by her clothing, and eventually having her bra ripped off as she tried to keep herself covered. The footage abruptly ends at this point.

Bullying, fights, and the usual altercations one might face growing up are nothing new. However, this incident doesn't appear to be your typical school-aged confrontation and obviously wasn't a fair fight. The victim is systematically and continually beaten despite the fact that there were an abundance of onlookers, the altercation was in a public place and she was completely defenseless. This particular incident was reportedly because the victim of the fight accidentally stepped on her assailants foot the previous day.

Particularly disturbing about this footage, is the continued bashing of a girl who clearly had no intention of fighting back, defending herself or resisting the attack. Even worse, in a public place filled with onlookers, nobody intervenes. Two males can be seen sitting on a park bench within arms reach of the victim, legs crossed, casually looking on as the girl is literally dragged around by her hair, kicked, and bashed.

Some of the onlookers appear to be associated with the girl who leads the beating, and one of them even steps in and kicks the girl as she's being held on the ground by her hair and clothing. There were numerous witnesses who saw the incident and didn't bother to interfere.

The video was posted on the school's forum and has become a hot topic in Vietnam. Both the assailant and the victim were recognised in the video, and both denied it was them.

As police investigated, they determined that the girls were minors and that any discipline would be the responsibility of the education system. The Department of Education has said that it is not the fault of the assailant and that the school and the family are responsible.

While family problems can clearly affect behaviour, the bottom line is that the incident did not occur at school or at home. At the age of 16, a person should be mature enough to be held accountable for their actions. Yes, these types of incidents can be part of growing up, but learning a lesson from it is very important. Placing all the blame on the school or the family of the assailant leaves little to be learned here, and sets an example that if we are young, we aren't responsible for our actions.

What is even more alarming, are the amount of adults who did not take any action. This sets a horrible example for youths. The important thing to note here is that society as a whole should take action when they see that something wrong is happening. That action could be as simple as calling the police, yelling at the teens or, especially when minors are involved, physically stopping the fight. There were numerous people seen in the video that would have been easily capable of safely breaking up a fight between two young teenage girls.

The disciplinary council at Tran Nhan Tong High School, where the girls are studying, has determined the punishments. The girl responsible for the fight will need to report weekly to school leaders about her behaviour. Others who watched and didn't report the incident will be warned in front of the school and "watched closely".

It appears the disciplinary actions are little more than a slap on the wrist. As for the adults who refused to get involved, they should consider how they'd feel if it were their child. It could be argued that they are just as guilty as the assailant.