By Chung Hyun-chae
Teachers who have committed sexual offenses will be permanently expelled from schools as part of the government effort to protect minors from sex offenders. People convicted of rape and other sex crimes will be barred from teaching at kindergartens, primary schools and universities.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) Friday announced these and other measures to prevent sex criminals from harming students. It plans to strengthen the codes of conducts for teachers and other school employees, and submit a revised bill to the National Assembly for approval.
In case of the crimes committed against minors, the educators will also be deprived of their teachers’ license.
The government has repeatedly vowed to deal sternly with teachers involved in crimes of sexual nature, but about 115 elementary, middle and high school teachers out of 240, who committed sex crimes against minors over the past five years, were found to still be teaching, according to data from the MOE.
That is due to a legal loophole which allows sex offenders to continue getting teaching jobs after being punished.
Under the current law, those who were suspended from their positions for a while, or have their salary reduced for committing sex crimes, can maintain their status as teachers.
They are banned for only 10 years from getting hired at schools or cram schools, but after that they can continue teaching.
Only those who were dismissed or punished with a fine of more than one million won are banned from teaching for life.
Under the revised measure, however, sex offenders will be permanently expelled from schools.
In addition, teachers under investigation for suspicion of committing sex crimes will be relieved of their post, even if he or she has yet to be convicted.
“We will submit a revision bill to the National Assembly before the end of this year,” an education ministry official said.
The ministry said they have been aware of hostile public sentiment toward sex crimes committed by educators.
In January, a professor surnamed Sung from Seoul-based Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (HUFS) was fired for having an affair with a student.
Another professor who was only identified as Shin from a private university forced a teenage student to have sex with him in June.