Inadequate Follow-up Measures at a Special School in Gwangju Where Sexual Assault Occurred... Only the Victims Are 'Restless'

One of Two Accused Cleared... No School Action, Victim Adjusts School Arrival Time

Victim's Parents: "Even If Forced Transfer Is Not Allowed, Victim Should Not Have to Avoid Others"

School Says Active Measures Difficult Due to Clearance... C

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Jin-hyung] Concerns are rising over the inadequate follow-up measures taken by a special school in Gwangju regarding a sexual assault incident that occurred between students.

The victim has been avoiding a student who was present at the scene but was cleared of charges, and this situation has continued for several months.

The school maintains that since the investigation by authorities concluded with no charges, there are limits to the actions they can take, while the victim’s side argues that if the student was present at the scene, consideration should be given from the victim’s perspective, revealing a gap in viewpoints.

According to the education authorities and police on the 11th, A, a student with severe intellectual disabilities, was sexually assaulted multiple times by B in the school shower room between 2020 and 2021. It was confirmed that C was also present at the scene at the time.

This fact came to light when A’s parents saw her holding a pregnancy test.

A pointed to B as the one who gave her the pregnancy test, but at the first School Violence Countermeasure Committee meeting, B’s perpetration was not recognized.

After A’s parents filed a complaint with the police, the second school violence committee reversed the decision, and B and C were subjected to forced transfer.

B, who is capable of daily living, was forcibly transferred to a general school, but C filed an administrative appeal and was cleared of charges.

It is reported that a medical opinion stating that C’s intellectual capacity was not sufficient to carry out the crime had a decisive influence on this decision.

As a result of this disposition, A ended up attending school with C again, and her parents adjusted her school arrival time by about 20 minutes to avoid encountering C, as the school took no further action. In other words, the victim is forced to avoid the perpetrator.

A had stayed at home for a while due to trauma from the incident but started attending school again in March this year. However, she arrives at school around 9:20 a.m. by a caregiver’s vehicle instead of the shuttle bus to avoid C.

Not only has she missed months of classes, but she is also deprived daily of her “20 minutes of learning time.”

A’s parents said, “Even if one of the two who were at the scene was cleared of charges, from the victim’s perspective, they are both perpetrators,” adding, “Even if forced transfer cannot be imposed due to no charges, at least the victim should not have to avoid someone.”

They also added, “It is extremely unfair and deplorable that the victim has to bear all the suffering.”

In response, the school explained that since A and C live in different areas and do not take the same shuttle bus, they rarely or hardly ever encounter each other during school arrival times.

They also reassigned the two students to opposite ends of the hallway to minimize contact and stated that teachers are paying special attention to ensure neither is left alone during lunch breaks.

A school official said, “If the upcoming audit concludes that there were administrative management errors or faults in student guidance, it is only natural that appropriate responsibility will be taken.”

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