About 20,000 teachers gathered in front of the National Assembly. At the rally, led by teachers' organizations, participants demanded that educational activities be protected and that education policies centered on schools be drawn up and carried out. Rep. Seo Young-kyo of the ruling party pledged to amend the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes, saying, "I will protect teachers from false complaints and accusations."
The rally brought one teacher's case to light. The teacher encouraged a student to come to school and, on weekends, suggested over a messenger app that the student try studying. What came back was six complaints alleging child abuse. A case in which a child abuse report was filed because a teacher had a student pick up trash was also mentioned.
The organizations taking part, including the Korean Federation of Teachers' Associations (KFTA) and the Korea Federation of Teachers' Unions, put an immediate amendment of the Child Welfare Act on their list of demands. The list also included guaranteeing teachers' basic political rights and opposing changes that would weaken education funding. They also called for examining how each change in education policy affects schools and for reflecting the views of teachers, parents and others involved in education in policy.
Rep. Seo also said, "I will create conditions for happy schools."
The law the organizations asked to have amended is the Child Welfare Act, and the law Rep. Seo brought up is the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes. The scope of the amendment debate will differ greatly depending on which provisions the complaints against teachers rely on and whether the two laws are revised together. Once discussion begins in the National Assembly, this difference will need to be sorted out first.
The words 20,000 people shouted in one voice were "centered on schools." In classrooms where telling a student to come to school can come back as a criminal complaint, teachers choose and choose again even a single word to say to a child.
What the teacher who was sued six times said to the student was to come to school and to try studying. With a ruling party lawmaker having pledged to amend the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes, how to revise the law so that such educational activities do not lead to complaints has become a task for the National Assembly to resolve.
