Teachers across the country gathered in front of the National Assembly on the 2nd, two days before the 49th anniversary of Teacher A, who made an extreme choice in Seoi Elementary School, Seoul, and appealed for the restoration of their teaching rights. They designated the 4th, Teacher A’s 49th birthday, as ‘Public Education Stop Day’ and criticized the Ministry of Education for taking strict action against the plan to start temporary closure.
‘People to Protect Education’, a group formed by teachers in the field, held a memorial rally in front of the National Assembly building in Yeouido, Seoul, starting at 2pm on this day. This is the seventh weekend rally held since Teacher A died in Seoi Elementary School on July 18th. The organizers of the rally estimated the number of participants on this day to be 200,000. At the first rally held on July 22nd, the first weekend after Teacher A’s death, organizers estimated that 5,000 people participated.
The rally on this day attracted the largest number of participants due to the heightened conflict with the Ministry of Education ahead of the ‘Public Education Stop Day’, a type of annual leave strike promoted by teachers across the country. In addition to current teachers, it is reported that prospective teachers, including the National Education Student Association, participated in the rally.
The Ministry of Education has defined participation in the ‘Stop Public Education Day’ as an illegal act and has announced legal action. An official letter was sent to each city/provincial office of education requesting ‘management of teachers related to illegal collective action’, stipulating that “temporary closure of schools for collective action, approval of teachers’ collective annual or sick leave, and participation in assemblies are all illegal,” and “students.” “We plan to respond strictly in accordance with laws and principles against actions that stop classes and take collective action while ignoring the right to study.”
Teachers who opposed this held signs at the rally that day that read, “Immediate revision of the Mobility Welfare Act” and “Strong response to malicious complaints.” Appeals were made from the podium: “We will be together until the day of normalization of public education,” “Protect teachers pushed to the edge,” and “Please take the lead for the Ministry of Education and the Office of Education to create a safe school environment.”
The 4th of this month, when school opens next week after the weekend, is also Mr. A’s 49th birthday. Teachers plan to participate in the temporary closure through annual leave, sick leave, and discretionary leave, and hold a memorial rally in front of the National Assembly at 4:30 pm on the same day먹튀검증.
On the 31st, ahead of Mr. A’s 49th anniversary, an incident occurred in which Mr. B, a 38-year-old woman who was a 6th grade teacher at an elementary school belonging to the Gangseo Yangcheon Office of Education in Seoul, fell and died from an apartment in Deokyang-gu, Goyang, Gyeonggi-do. Ms. B was taken to the hospital by 119, who was dispatched after receiving the report, but she died while receiving treatment.
Ms. B was an elementary school teacher in her 14th year, and had been on sick leave until the day before her death. Her bereaved family reportedly made a statement to the police to the effect that “Mr. B had a hard time balancing child care and her work life.” The police plan to conduct a forensic analysis of Ms. B’s cell phone and investigate whether parents have complained.
Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon mentioned Mr. B’s death on Facebook that day, saying, “Another heartbreaking incident that cannot be expressed in words has happened and my heart is broken.” He added, “I visited the mortuary the day before and listened to the bereaved family. She was at a loss as to what to say. “Once again, I offer my deepest condolences,” he wrote.
In the teacher community, suspicions were raised that Mr. B suffered from malicious complaints from parents. Regarding this, Superintendent Cho said, “If the connection between the deceased’s death and malicious complaints is confirmed, we will file a complaint with the investigative agency.”