KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 18, 2025: The recent spate of violent incidents in Malaysian schools — from bullying and sexual assault to the tragic stabbing of a teenage girl — has understandably shaken public confidence in what should be safe learning spaces. In the heat of this crisis, some voices are calling for the return of the cane, a throwback to an era when fear of punishment supposedly kept students in line.
But let’s pause for a moment. Is the cane really the answer, or just a reflex from a time gone by?
Yes, schools are struggling with discipline. Yes, students today face pressures we could hardly imagine — social media toxicity, fractured family dynamics, peer influence, and an often overwhelming academic environment. But does striking a child solve any of that? At best, it suppresses behaviour temporarily. At worst, it normalises violence as a tool of control.
Corporal punishment does not teach respect; it teaches fear. It does not instil empathy, responsibility, or moral grounding — the very qualities we desperately need in our young people. If anything, it risks reinforcing the same cycle of aggression we are now so alarmed to see.
What Malaysia’s schools need is not the return of the cane, but the courage to embrace deeper reforms. Values and character education, meaningful counselling, safe reporting systems, parental engagement, and stronger teacher training are not “soft” solutions. They are the hard work of building a generation that understands boundaries, respect, and empathy.
The urgency is real — but not for the cane. The urgency is for us to stop mistaking punishment for discipline, and start teaching our children what it means to live together with respect.
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