A CHILD witness told the Coroner’s Court in Kota Kinabalu that she volunteered to help several female teachers search for the diary of the late Zara Qairina Mahathir in the teenager’s dormitory room after no other student dared to do so.
The testimony was given by the 28th child witness, a student of Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Agama Tun Datu Mustapha in Papar, during the 32nd day of the inquest into Zara Qairina’s death before Coroner Amir Shah Amir Hassan today.
Sharing details of the witness’s statement, lawyer Mohd Syarulnizam Mohd Salleh, who represents Zara Qairina’s mother, said the witness recounted that at about 11.15am on 16 July, she and several senior and junior students, together with some teachers, had gathered at the school surau.
“At that time, the witness heard some students telling the teachers that Zara Qairina had written and kept a diary. However, when they were asked to search for it, none of the students dared to volunteer,” said Mohd Syarulnizam.
He said the witness and a female teacher then went to the dormitory block where Zara Qairina stayed. Only the witness went up to the teenager’s room while the teacher waited downstairs.
“When inside the room, the witness tried to open several lockers, but all were locked except one, which was believed to belong to Zara Qairina. She opened it and recognised some hanging clothes bearing Zara’s name tag,” the lawyer told reporters after proceedings.
The witness reportedly found two diaries in a black bag — one green with the words ‘Love & Peace’ and another purple with *‘Simple Style’* written on it.
Mohd Syarulnizam said the witness confirmed she was alone in the room and briefly leafed through both diaries without reading them in detail. She later handed them to a female teacher upon returning to the surau and saw the teacher read parts of the diary’s contents in front of other students before putting it away.
“The witness stated she did not know the real reason they were asked to look for the diary, nor could she recall whether Zara Qairina had written any specific notes in it,” said Mohd Syarulnizam, adding that the witness was a member of the student group Circle Nineteen and had no conflict with Zara Qairina.
Meanwhile, lawyer Datuk Ram Singh, representing a child involved in the alleged bullying case linked to Zara Qairina, said the same witness also testified that she did not witness any incident on the night of 16 July and only woke up around 4.50am to prepare for school.
Zara Qairina, 13, was pronounced dead at Queen Elizabeth Hospital on 17 July after being found unconscious in a drain near her school dormitory at about 4am on 16 July. - November 6, 2025
The inquest proceedings continue today.
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