South Korea passes laws to protect school teachers' rights after protests over abuse from parents

The South Korean government has passed laws to protect the rights of school teachers over abuse from the parents of students. According to a report by The Guardian early Friday (September 22), the laws were passed following weeks of protests sparked by a series of teacher suicides that are set to be linked to malicious complaints from parents.

In July, a 23-year-old primary school teacher was found dead at her school in Seoul. The cause of death was apparent suicide after the teacher reportedly expressed anxiety over complaints from parents. This case triggered protests from teachers and since then, other such cases have come to light.

On Thursday, the teacher rights restoration bills - four in number - were passed in the National Assembly. Passage of one of the bills means that teachers will no longer be automatically suspended if they are accused of child abuse. The report said that this bill prohibits school principals from downplaying or concealing activities that may have violated a teacher’s rights.

Appreciating the move, the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union described the passage of the bills as a first step forward toward normalising public education and guaranteeing teacher authority. However, the Union cautioned that achieving a full might be challenging without sufficient manpower, and budget support among other factors.

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The report also said that last month, the government unveiled a set of guidelines to enhance teachers’ rights which also included measures to address abusive complaints.

Teachers have been protesting nationwide for nine weeks, demanding more rights. They say that they are frequently harassed by parents who often maliciously report them for child abuse, to see them removed from their jobs.

Aome teachers were even reported for restraining a violent child, said reports.

The teachers accused parents of exploiting a child welfare law, passed in 2014, according to which teachers accused of child abuse are automatically suspended.

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