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Students hold a press conference, wearing masks.
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School admits to beatings, privacy abuses but calls them necessary for discipline
Six South Korean middle school students joined civic activists in a surprise press conference on December 8 in front of a government education office in Paju, north of Seoul, alleging that their human rights have been violated at school. The press conference was timed just two days ahead of the anniversary marking the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. "Teachers cut students' hair with kitchen scissors just because they think it is too long. They beat students with hockey or pool sticks," a participant said. "It is common place that teachers hit students on their head with fists or rolled-up books.” “They sometimes use very offensive remarks toward us," another student who joined the press conference said. They added that their rights to privacy are frequently compromised when teachers search their bags and other possessions. Bae Kyeong-nae, a human rights activist, said, "Such things should not happen to human beings... Human rights abuses at school have to be stopped right away." The school in question admitted to the students' allegation but added that the acts were "inevitable" punishment. "We cannot say that we did right. However, it is a reality that we sometimes have to use such methods to maintain discipline at school," a teacher said. The school's principal promised that he will make efforts to prevent such things from happening again.But school authorities' prior nonchalance has already served to worsen the situation. Last June, a group of students from the school filed complaints with the Paju office of education. But officials took no action, much less a preliminary investigation. "We will figure out what has really happened starting today, and step up efforts to prevent such things from taking place again," an education official said. Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]
