▲ Teachers from the Elementary School Teachers Union and the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union chant slogans during a rally calling for the revision of the Child Welfare Act in front of the Government Complex Seoul in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on July 17, one day before the third anniversary of the death of a teacher at Seoi Elementary School.
One day before the third anniversary of the death of a teacher who passed away while working at Seoi Elementary School, teachers' organizations held a rally to demand the revision of the controversial Child Welfare Act.
The "National Teachers' Solidarity," a group of educators centered around the Elementary School Teachers Union, held a rally in front of the Government Complex Seoul this afternoon (July 17) and demanded, "Immediately revise the Child Welfare Act, which treats teachers as potential criminals."
Dressed in black to commemorate the teacher from Seoi Elementary School, approximately 4,000 people according to unofficial police estimates, and 50,000 according to organizers, gathered at the site.
Kang Seok-jo, head of the Elementary School Teachers Union, appealed, "The Minister of Education only talks about an empty 'educational community,' forcing unilateral sacrifices on teachers by claiming that issues can be solved through 'school culture' rather than legislation." He added, "The structure remains where teachers are branded as criminals after a single malicious complaint or accusation regarding legitimate classroom guidance, which is labeled as 'child abuse'."
An elementary school teacher from the Jeonnam region who took the stage mentioned the recently discussed Netflix drama "True Education" and commented, "It showed the reality of education that only came to light in South Korean society after the Seoi Elementary School incident: malicious complaints from parents, the resulting shrinking of teachers' guidance, disruption of classes, false reports of child abuse, and the absence of mechanisms to protect teachers' rights."
The teacher continued, "It is because of the current Child Welfare Act that even the educational process of teaching rules, mediating conflicts, and correcting wrong behavior becomes a subject of reporting," and condemned, "Why should the educational rights of teachers who want to teach diligently and the learning rights of the majority of students who want to study hard be infringed upon by malicious complaints and lawsuits?"
Lee Na-yeon, a legal advisor for teacher rights at the Elementary School Teachers Union, stated, "While emotional abuse under the Child Welfare Act and the Act on the Punishment of Child Abuse is defined as 'acts that harm the mental health and development of children,' many teachers are still facing difficulties in having to prove the legitimacy of their countless words and actions performed as educators."
She further pointed out, "It is time to seriously consider whether it is the intention of the Child Welfare Act and the legislative purpose of the lawmakers that teachers hesitate, censor themselves, worry, and live in anxiety that they might receive a complaint or notification of the start of an investigation at any moment."
Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education Superintendent An Min-suk and Incheon Metropolitan City Office of Education Superintendent Do Seong-hun also attended the rally to show solidarity.
Superintendent An said, "If teachers across the country are suffering the same pain, fearing that legitimate educational activities will be reported as child abuse, this is not an individual teacher's problem but a structural one," adding, "I urge the National Assembly to process the Child Welfare Act as quickly as possible as soon as the standing committees open in the second half of the year."
The "Seoi Elementary School Incident" refers to the 2023 case in which a new teacher at Seoi Elementary School in Seocho-gu, Seoul, took their own life after suffering from excessive complaints from parents.
This incident sparked public outrage by revealing the reality of the collapse of teachers' authority.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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