South Korean’s top court rules teacher pulling student’s arm not child abuse

SEOUL - A teacher who was accused of child abuse by scolding and pulling a student’s arm has been ruled not guilty, the court announced on Nov 4.

South Korea’s Supreme Court overturned a lower court’s ruling that had imposed a fine of 1 million won (S$957) on the teacher, who was identified by the surname Choi, for child abuse charges.

The case was sent back to a district court for review.

The incident happened on March 14, 2019, when the teacher allegedly shouted at a second grade student by telling the child to “get up”. The teacher later pulled the child’s arm after the student refused to participate in class activities and later ignored instructions to go to the cafeteria for lunch.

Both the trial and appellate courts ruled that Choi’s actions were akin to physical abuse and slapped the teacher with a 1 million won fine, asserting that Choi could have used other disciplinary measures, such as non-physical methods.

But the Supreme Court saw the case differently.

It reversed the lower courts’ verdict and said that Choi’s actions were “within the scope of educational activities”.

“As long as there are no special circumstances, a teacher’s act of educating a child under regulations cannot be assessed as an act of abuse prohibited under the Child Welfare Act,” the court said in its ruling.

“Even if the student experienced physical discomfort in the educational process, it cannot be considered a violation of the Child Welfare Act if it falls within the scope of lawful education.”

The court added that the authority of teachers must be respected and that teachers have a certain degree of discretion when they are guiding their students. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK