Is the Violation of Teacher's Rights Due to the 'Student Human Rights Ordinance'?… Controversy Within the Ruling Party

Jang Ye-chan "Should Have Talked About Student Responsibility Too"
Lee Jun-seok "Regardless of Student Rights Ordinance, You Can't Hit Kids"

The government and the ruling party are pointing to the 'Student Human Rights Ordinance' as the cause of the issue of infringement on teachers' authority, but critical voices are emerging not only from the opposition party but also within the ruling party itself.

Jang Ye-chan, the Youth Supreme Council Member of the People Power Party, said on the 25th on BBS's 'Jeon Young-shin's Morning Journal,' "Progressive superintendents have significantly strengthened various student rights, including the Student Human Rights Ordinance, but at the same time, they should have addressed the authority of teachers and the responsibilities of disciplined students, but those parts were all omitted and excluded," attributing responsibility to the Student Human Rights Ordinance and progressive superintendents.

Former lawmaker Yoon Hee-sook also criticized on the same day on SBS's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show,' "In other countries, the Student Human Rights Ordinance includes the idea that I should be respected and my friends and teachers should also be respected, but here, such discussions are lacking, and some provisions undermine teachers' classroom leadership."

Former lawmaker Yoon said, "The rights of others should also be respected, and it should be taught that my rights end where they infringe on others' rights, but such content is largely missing in the current (Student Human Rights) ordinance."

In this regard, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Lee Ju-ho announced on the 21st at a meeting hosted by the Korea Federation of Teachers' Associations that there is a plan to revise the Student Human Rights Ordinance, and on the same morning, Floor Leader Yoon Jae-ok stated at the party's countermeasure meeting that they will push for revision or abolition of provisions in the Student Human Rights Ordinance that infringe on teachers' authority or interfere with the right to learn.

However, there are also criticisms that blaming the Student Human Rights Ordinance for the infringement on teachers' authority is unfair.

Former People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok said, "At this timing, if you replace the issue with the claim that 'teachers' authority was infringed because they couldn't hit students due to the Student Human Rights Ordinance,' there will be no dialogue."

Former leader Lee argued, "Regardless of the Student Human Rights Ordinance, hitting children is prohibited by higher laws. Rather, improving the system to impose strong penalties on false reports of child abuse is a more effective way to protect frontline teachers."

He also shared an article about a teachers' authority infringement incident in Daegu, saying, "Daegu is a region where the Student Human Rights Ordinance has not been passed and has a superintendent who is a former Saenuri Party member of the National Assembly. If everything is because of the Student Human Rights Ordinance, how should this contradiction be resolved?" expressing doubt.

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