14-yr-old speaks out: ‘blackmail turned to bullying’
The boy’s suffering started when he was nine.
By-SAKSHI BAGRI
GUWAHATI : A nine-year-old boy from Guwahati was blackmailed, bullied, and sexually harassed for two and a half years by his neighbour. He did not dare to talk to anyone about the same.
In 2016, a boy, who cannot be named, got caught up in a web designed by his 15-year-old neighbour. It all started with lending his phone to his abuser; via the phone, he sent some videos to his phone to put thesurvivor in trouble. The nine-year-old was scared and afraid that his family wouldn’t believe him. The abuser started to take advantage of that by asking for money. The survivor thought it would be over soon and stole from his own house. But gradually the demand increased.
The blackmailing then turned into bullying; being a neighbour it was easy for the abuser to enter his home when he was alone. The abuser even made him cancel his plans so that he is alone in the house. He sometimes brought friends and they physically abused him. The survivor said, “I now have an addiction because of him. At first, I was forced, but now it is an addiction.”
There were incidents when the survivor was forced to strip and the abuser took photos to furtherblackmail him. The survivor said, “He used to show me videos that I didn’t like. He used to touch me inappropriately at times, I was disgusted and when I retaliated, he posted my naked picture that he had taken, on Instagram.” All this continued for two and a half years. He couldn’t even escape his abuser in school. It just wasn’t about money anymore.
He mentioned an incident when the abuser attacked him and he broke his left rib cage and when asked about it he made an excuse to avoid more problems with his abuser. One day the abuser’s stash of money was found on the terrace and finally, the survivor revealed everything to his family and told them about the blackmail but didn’t dare to tell them about the bullying and sexual harassment. The abuser's parents knew about the blackmail and hence were forced to vacate the house. The abuser was even suspended from his school for his actions.
“It still hurts as I sometimes see his family,” said the survivor. He said that it affected him as when he finally got rid of his abuser, he became a little aggressive. One can still sense the pain in his voice.
A psychologist said “Children are scared to talk to their parents about these issues, they are afraid of how they might react.” She also mentioned that bullies are insecure and hence theybully or harass others to seek attention. She said, “It might also be the case that, the abuser has gone through an incident in the past which hurts him and hence is trying to vent out his frustration on others.”An incident like this can leave a permanent scar on someone’s mind. The takeaway from the counsellor’s interview is that abuse starts at home. No one is born as an abuser.
The story first appeared in The Times of Bennett, the lab newspaper produced by the first semester students of The Times School of Media.
Join exciting programmes offered by Bennett University
In 2016, a boy, who cannot be named, got caught up in a web designed by his 15-year-old neighbour. It all started with lending his phone to his abuser; via the phone, he sent some videos to his phone to put the
The blackmailing then turned into bullying; being a neighbour it was easy for the abuser to enter his home when he was alone. The abuser even made him cancel his plans so that he is alone in the house. He sometimes brought friends and they physically abused him. The survivor said, “I now have an addiction because of him. At first, I was forced, but now it is an addiction.”
There were incidents when the survivor was forced to strip and the abuser took photos to further
He mentioned an incident when the abuser attacked him and he broke his left rib cage and when asked about it he made an excuse to avoid more problems with his abuser. One day the abuser’s stash of money was found on the terrace and finally, the survivor revealed everything to his family and told them about the blackmail but didn’t dare to tell them about the bullying and sexual harassment. The abuser's parents knew about the blackmail and hence were forced to vacate the house. The abuser was even suspended from his school for his actions.
“It still hurts as I sometimes see his family,” said the survivor. He said that it affected him as when he finally got rid of his abuser, he became a little aggressive. One can still sense the pain in his voice.
A psychologist said “Children are scared to talk to their parents about these issues, they are afraid of how they might react.” She also mentioned that bullies are insecure and hence they
The story first appeared in The Times of Bennett, the lab newspaper produced by the first semester students of The Times School of Media.
Join exciting programmes offered by Bennett University
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