Gangsterism: Adolescence and Teenagers

Effect of gangsterism towards individual
Gangsterisms are the social phenomenon which occurs widely among teenagers in our country. With the rapid increase of this problem, gangsterisms can give a lot of negative impact towards individual, family, and society. In term of individual, student who involves themselves with gangsterism will face bad consequences in their life including having a dark future. Thus, their future might be threatened due to the result of their behavior. Most probably they will be detained because somehow they able to create chaotic scene in their surroundings. This will also affect their life as they unable to perform their study in higher level and they might spend their teenage years in juvenile school or rehabilitation centre. On the contrary, those with a bright future able to continue their study while they had wasting their precious life in prison.

Effect of gangsterism towards parents
In the context of family, parents need to receive the bad treatment as the result of their children behavior. Most probably, parents might be insulted or becoming the subject of hatred from people in their surrounding. They might be blame for what their children had done and through other people eyes they had to be responsible. Somehow, there are parents who try so hard, in order to guide their children back to the right path. However, some children are too stubborn and ignore the advice of their respectful parents. In addition, parents need to face with reality that their children are not turn into a good person and turn out differently from what they had expected.

Effect of gangsterism towards society
As for society, they will feel insecure and threatened over this matter because they felt that the surrounding is not the safe place anymore due to the violent act of gangster. The behavior of gangster might endanger their life because at some point, gangster can turn out to be a killer and some of them also fight among each other to show their power. In addition, this kind of phenomenon also spread widely in school. Johnson and Johnson (2005) stated that the researchers determined that the alarm about rampant violence in school is not justified, but concern about the frequency with which adolescents victimize each other is, even though the victimizations are more bothersome than injurious. In addition, it had come to the stage where school compound cannot be considered as a safe place anymore due to the gangsterism activities that take place in school area. Middleton-Moz and Zawadski (2002) argue that our own lack of awareness often causes us to be both deaf and blind to the pain experienced by our nation’s youth and, as a result, our young people too often become the prisoners of their sadness and depression, seeing little possibility for change and no way. Therefore, it show that our own lack of concern over what had happened make the matter of gangsterism getting worst until the victim of gangsterism are being abuse physically and emotionally. Society is no longer felt peace and harmony in the country which they had resided.

Statistical figure
The statistical figure was brought out by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin during the Parliamentary session on June 9, 2010 portrays the number of students who involved with gangsterism. From the figure , it stated that the number of students nearly doubled since 2005. It begins with 32 cases recorded and the numbers reach its high peak on 2008 with the value of 81. Although, the number had slightly decreased to 60 cases in 2009 but the number still considered high compared to the earlier cases recorded in 2005.
As for figure which provided by ACP Amar Singh Sidhu on his journal title Journal of the Kuala Lumpur Royal Malaysia Police College, No.4 on 2005, it reveal that majority of delinquents detained in the rehabilitation centre was from Indian races with the number of 316 people. On the other hand, both Malay and Chinese represent the similar number with 111 people for each race to be detained.

Who should be blamed?

Teenager nowadays lack of focus. We mean that they do not know where they are heading, whether in the academic or social sense. Therefore, this gives rise to several problems, mostly gangsterism happens among the teenagers who involved in sosial ills such as drug addicts, smoking, and gambling. These teenagers are not bothered about their studies and it is evident that they are involved in gangsterism. So, who should be blamed for gangsterism? Do we have to put the blame on the parents, teachers or anyone else?

We strongly believe that the one that should be blamed for gangsterism among teenagers is the individual himself or in the other word is we. We are the ones to be blamed for gangsterism because we are the ones who decide on how we want to live our life. We are responsible to manage ourselves. If we discipline ourselves towards the positive behavior, then we will behave well. We are the one to choose how we manage our life. In any decision or action that we made, we have to take full responsibilities of whatever the consequences that we will have to face due to the decision making. For example, if friends offer us a drug and if we have a firm standpoint, then we'll kindly say no to the friend.

Next, we think one of the factors that cause gangsterism among teenagers is the parents. Nowadays, parents are so busy and they focus more on earning more money. They are so busy with their job and rarely have time to be with their children at home. They become workaholic and they are not concerned about their children needs. They assume that providing their children with materialism is more than enough but the fact is their children actually need more attention from their parents. For instance, parents give money and provide cars for their children but the children feel lonely. So, they will do anything to fill in the emptiness they feel inside. They might be involved in gangsterism to overcome the loneliness they felt.

Then, we personally think peer pressure is the one to be blamed for gangsterism among teenagers. The teenagers are easily influenced by their friends. When they mix with the wrong friends, they might be involved in crimes. As friends are among the closest people to the teenagers, they will eventually be influenced by their friends. For example, if their friends are a gangster, soon they'll become one. This is because, their friends might attract them to try something new for them like gang fights. The teenagers are too young and they have a strong instinct of wanting to try something new. So, they will follow their friends.

We strongly suggest that perhaps it is time that parents, teachers and non-government body’s work together to direct and counsel our teenagers. Parents should play their role to educate their children and spend more time communicating with their teenage children. Teachers should try establishing a closer rapport with students. Everyone must work together to find the correct mechanism in order to overcome gangsterism among teenagers.

Who should be responsible for the increase of this problem in the recent years?
We are trying to find who are responsible for the increase of gangsterism cases in the recent years. Here, firstly parents are responsible due to their important role in teenagers’ life. The parents must play their role and provide their children with a good spiritual and moral background. Then, teenagers themselves should be responsible of what they have done in their life. Teenagers have their own brain, so they should be supposed to think carefully before they do something. Besides that, authorities also should be responsible because only they can make the strict enforcement and to punish the teenagers who involved themselves in gangsterism. Finally, the society is also responsible for the increase of this problem in the recent years because we live in a society so, if they do not play their role and cannot be aware of the problem occur in their resident and place, they should be responsible of this increasing of number of the gangsterism cases.

The reasons of gangsterism cases among teenagers
First of all, influences by the peer group can create gangsterism cases. As we all know, peer group plays an important role in moulding one’s characters because they will be able to lead their friends in doing something whether to do good things or bad things. In the fact of teenagers who usually have the urge to do something new, they will slightly done bad things without thinking of the effects of that action in their life. Challenges from their peer group will make them not to feel frightened anymore in doing bad things especially in school, while they are involved themselves in gangsterism. Peer group is the main reason of the gangsterism happened among teenagers because usually teenagers tend to share their problems with their friends rather than discussing it with their family. For them, only their friends will understand better their feelings so, whatever their friends do, they will follow it even though they realize it is a wrong action. Another reason leads to gangsterism is the teenagers nowadays are always lack of parental love from their parents who are busy twenty-four hours to find money until they do not realize that their children are neglected by them. They also do not play their role as parents who are the people that are responsible to provide their children with a good spiritual and moral background. Besides that, the environment of the teenagers will also create gangsterism to be happened. Teenagers who have a good environment such as the conducive environment in their home will be able to keep a distance with this social problem, while teenagers who have bad environment will involved themselves in gangsterism easily because only this way, they will feel more released. Why I’m saying like this? Broken family background always creates a bad environment right? So, it is parents’ responsibilities to prevent their marriage problem become one of the main reasons why their children involved themselves in gangsterism. Furthermore, the fourth reason why teenagers involved themselves in gangsterism is because mass media’s influences. Of course in the television, there are so many advertisements, films or dramas, even cartoons always publish for everyone. The violent action in those things will influence the teenagers to follow whatever action played by the author. Last but not least, the reason of gangsterism cases among teenagers might be also because there are no specific rules and strict enforcement from the authorities. The teenagers seem like do not have any feeling of frighten to do gangsterism because they know the rules and strict enforcement are not exist anymore to punish them when do something wrong especially in gangsterism cases.

Cooperation by the society
When you say ‘society’, what is comes to your mind? Of course society is a group of people who are close to you besides your family and relatives, right? Society also plays an important role in order to solve this crucial problem. As we discussed earlier, peer group, parents, school counselors, authorities and mass media are the people who have responsibility to solve this problem, but society also plays an important role too. The society has to work hand-in-hand to help government combat this problem. In order to do that, the development of positive values in the society through various programs that can be generating long-term benefits must be conducted. Programs like ‘gotong-royong’ and campaign like ‘Belia Benci Dadah’ will generate long term benefits to the teenagers in the sense of responsibility as a citizen and also a future leader for next generation. This will increase their spirit on developing themselves with good personality and try to prepare themselves with many types of knowledge. As a result, they will totally think that gangsterism will cause bad effects to their loving country and also their respective society. To conclude, if society plays their part in solving the gangsterism cases that happen in their society, the gangsterism cases will not occur anymore in their neighborhood.

Mass media’s responsibility
Mass media always influenced people. Do you all agree with me? Think about it. Especially kids and teenagers who have the urge to learn something new and want to try it, they always being trap with the film they just watched in the television. Influence by mass media should be taken into consideration. Mass media must know their limits in publishing something. They must be aware of whatever programs they want to publish have bad effects or not to the audience especially teenagers who usually like to imitate the violent action in the television. Mass media also can help to solve this gangsterism cases by publishing advertisements on bad effects of gangsterism activities among teenagers. As a result of this action, I’m sure teenagers will keep a far distance from gangsterism activities and they will totally not have any feelings to be involved themselves in that bad activities. They will choose to involve themselves in participating in such a good and beneficial activities like watching a debate or other programs that beneficial for their studies organized by the mass media. In short, we can conclude that mass media’s responsibility is important in order to solve this crucial problem among teenagers nowadays.

Strict enforcement by the authorities
Strict enforcement by the authorities also can solve this gangsterism problem among teenagers. Nowadays, teenagers seem not to have any feeling and are frightened of what they are going to do. So, if the authorities let them know that there are some strict enforcement will be taken towards the guilt of gangsterism cases, teenagers will think twice when they want to be involved in gangsterism because they know if they are caught by the authorities, there will be punishment and strict enforcement waiting for them. In brief, only strict enforcement by the authorities will make the teenagers feel frightened be involved in gangsterism. Thus, authorities must play their role in solving this problem before it gets worse day by day

Advice and guidance by the school's counselors
School counselors also play an important role to solve gangsterism problems among teenagers. As we know, teenagers spend their time almost half of their days in school, so that, if school counselors are playing their role as instructor, facilitator and also counselor to their students by giving and organizing some proper and suitable programs, their students will be more knowledgeable and have views on bad effects in doing gangsterism activities. They will be more aware that gangsterism will make them suffer and life as a student will become worse if they are punished to be expelled from school. In other words, only school counselors have a big role and carry the responsibility in creating a good personality in their students’ characteristics. The school counselors must keep in touch with their students who are involved themselves in disciplinary problems because most probably these students might bring themselves in gangsterism cases too. Besides that, the school counselors must try to find ways to avoid gangsterism activities to be happen in their school. To summarize, if the school counselors are always aware about their students’ activities, the number of teenagers involved in gangsterism will be decrease day by day and gangsterism cases can be solved by the advice and guidance by the school counselors.

Parental love and responsibility given by the parents
Do you all agree that parents play an important role in solving this problem? I want to convince all of you about the truth of this statement. I totally agree with this statement because of some reasons I had discovered .First and foremost, parents play a part in helping their children to choose the right friends. This is due to the fact that friends play the important role in moulding one's characters especially among teenagers. A group of good friends can guide and lead the youth to a better future in their life. Thus, parents should always keep an eye on which their children's friends are. It should be better if parents are close to their children too. Another reason is I agree that parents play an important role as it is because parents nowadays are too occupied with their jobs until they forget to think about their children's needs and feeling. They tend to have no time to spend with their children. For them, finding money is an important thing. But to think it carefully, what is the use of your billions of money if your children are neglected and do not get parental love from you as their parents? Besides that, the third reason why parents play an important role to solve this problem is the family background. Broken family background always gives bad effects to the teenagers nowadays who involve themselves in gangsterism. They love to release their tension by being involved in gangsterism with their friends. They will feel more comfortable and release tension outside with their friends doing gangsterism rather than in the house by looking at their mother and father quarreling all the time because of marriage problems. Last but not least, the reasons I have discovered are parents play an important role to solve this problem, that is parents who are the people that are responsible to provide their children with a good spiritual and moral background. In brief, with enough education of this two aspects, I’m sure this problem can be solved because their children will think twice if they want to involve themselves in gangsterism activities because they know by doing that, their parents will be ashamed to have children like them and their children know that gansterism will bring bad effects to them. I think it is enough of my evidences to convince you all that this problem can be solved if parents play their role in helping their children avoid being involved in the gangsterism.

Conclusion
Based on our research we had done, it can be conclude that there is a great necessity to give more attention towards cases that related with young delinquents who involve themselves in gangsterism. This problem had to be wisely handled to ensure that their future will not be ruined due to their involvement in gangsterism. Thus, parents, government, and society have to play their roles effectively in order to curb the spreading of gangsterism among school student. In addition, need to realize the consequence by each action or behavior which taken by them. They have to aware that each behavior that deviant and forbidden to the law will cause them to be punished. Therefore, government need to strict and regulate the available law, so teenager will be afraid to involve with gangsterism. As for parents, they need to give full attention to their children and guide them to the right path before things getting worst and difficult to handle. Society also is one of the important elements to curb this matter. By providing information to the police, they automatically help the enforcer task to deal with gangsterism. With the cooperation from each member in the country, there is a high possibility that this social illness will finally found its remedy.