Petition Urging Punishment for Daycare Director Who Abused 3-Year-Old Amid COVID-19 Stress Gains 70,000 Supporters in One Day

On the 7th, a petition was posted on the Blue House National Petition Board requesting punishment for a daycare center director who assaulted a 3-year-old child. / Photo by National Petition Board capture

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lim Juhyung] A petition on the Blue House website demanding punishment for a daycare center director who assaulted a 3-year-old child received tens of thousands of endorsements within a day of being posted.

Earlier, the daycare center director stated during a police investigation that she assaulted the child due to stress caused by the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

On the 7th, a post titled "Daycare Center Director Who Assaulted a 3-Year-Old Child Because of COVID-19" was uploaded on the Blue House petition board.

The petitioner, who identified themselves as the parent of the victimized child, stated, "The child was assaulted by the daycare center director for not taking a nap," adding, "The child has attended the daycare center in Paju for about 16 days including the adjustment period, and we do not know if there were more instances of assault during that time."

They continued, "Upon reviewing the closed-circuit television (CCTV), the director started hitting the child's head with her cellphone, saying the child was not sleeping," explaining the situation at the time. "She hit the head and cheeks, then put down the cellphone and suddenly patted the child to calm them down. Then she immediately slapped the child's cheeks several times with her hand."

They further emphasized, "After the police arrived following a report and listened to the director, she said she assaulted the child because of COVID-19," adding, "She took out her frustration on the young child due to stress from poor enrollment of children."

A child who was assaulted by Director A of a daycare center in Paju, Gyeonggi Province on the 1st / Photo by JTBC

The petitioner urged for strict punishment and related legal reforms, saying, "The child still shows signs of anxiety and cannot easily fall asleep even when very sleepy," and "There are surprisingly many such cases around us, but the punishment is usually mild and ends with a fine."

The petition received more than 71,000 endorsements by the morning of the 8th, just one day after it was posted.

Earlier, JTBC reported on the 1st that Ms. A, the director of a daycare center in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, assaulted a 3-year-old child who had been attending for 18 days.

According to the released CCTV footage, Ms. A hit the victim child's head with her cellphone, then soothed the child, slapped the child's cheeks 5 to 6 times, and soothed the child again in a repeated pattern of assault.

As a result of Ms. A's assault, the victim child's left cheek was swollen red, and there were severe wounds on one side of the head and ear. After assaulting the child, Ms. A instructed the homeroom teacher to apply ice packs and told the parents that the child was injured while alone, offering medicine.

The victim child's parents reported the incident to the police on the 3rd. On the same day, Ms. A sent a text message to other parents stating that "due to daycare center circumstances, an emergency closure of the daycare center has been decided."

During the police investigation, Ms. A testified that she took out her frustration on the child due to stress from poor enrollment caused by COVID-19. Meanwhile, the police are investigating whether Ms. A assaulted other children as well.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.