Instructions from Lee Ju-ho, Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs, met at Yonsei University graduation ceremony
Emphasis on eradicating school violence also at Chief Secretary meeting
President Yoon Suk-yeol on the 27th instructed the Ministry of Education to collaborate with local education offices and related agencies to devise measures to eradicate school violence. This directive appears to emphasize the preparation of follow-up measures in response to public criticism following the controversy over the school violence issue involving the son of Attorney Jeong Soon-shin, who was appointed as head of the National Police Agency's National Investigation Headquarters but stepped down just one day after his appointment. However, unlike the opposition parties that are spreading responsibility theories targeting the presidential office for inadequate personnel screening, President Yoon distanced himself from making direct statements, instead emphasizing the eradication of school violence.
At Yonsei University’s graduation ceremony that day, President Yoon told Lee Ju-ho, Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs and Minister of Education, "Just as the rule of law is established in industrial sites, it is important to firmly establish order and compliance spirit among students, parents, teachers, and schools in the educational field," according to a briefing by presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon.
He further instructed, "In particular, one-sided and continuous school violence must be completely eradicated." In response, Deputy Prime Minister Lee said, "We will prepare comprehensive measures and report back."
President Yoon also ordered the preparation and reporting of measures to eradicate school violence during the senior secretaries meeting presided over by him at the Yongsan Presidential Office that morning, as revealed by Chief of Public Relations Kim Eun-hye in a written briefing.
Attorney Jeong Soon-shin (57), who was appointed as the second head of the National Investigation Headquarters on the 24th, resigned on the 25th after reports surfaced that his son had continuously bullied classmates in 2017 while attending a prestigious autonomous private high school as a first-year student, resulting in a forced transfer. It was also reported that he filed a lawsuit to cancel the disciplinary action but ultimately lost in the first, second trials, and the Supreme Court.
However, neither Chief Kim’s written briefing nor spokesperson Lee’s briefing included mentions of criticism over the personnel screening failure or President Yoon’s instructions to strengthen the personnel screening system.
When a presidential office official was asked by reporters, "The opposition parties, including the Ministry of Justice, are calling for accountability. Did the President issue any criticism toward the personnel screening line?" the official replied, "There are issues regarding how accurately public office candidates respond to pre-screening questionnaires, whether their responses can be verified, and to what extent verification can be conducted. For example, while candidates themselves must be thoroughly screened, during the process of verifying their children or collecting information, there are concerns about excessively infringing on personal privacy or conflicts with laws prohibiting guilt by association. There are many technical and practical aspects to review. We think it would be best to start here and proceed step by step," thus avoiding a direct answer.
Regarding the question, "It seems President Yoon’s awareness of the issue is focused only on school violence," the official responded, "School violence is a long-standing problem in our society, not only highlighted by this incident but also by some recent dramas. While it is not that the reality has been ignored, efforts for direct resolution have been insufficient. Therefore, the President intends to face and resolve this issue head-on."
The official self-assessed the resignation of Attorney Jeong following the exposure of his son’s school violence and the lawsuit to cancel the forced transfer, as well as President Yoon’s cancellation of the appointment, as an "effort to correct the situation."
When reporters asked, "Aside from the pre-screening questionnaire, the school violence involving Attorney Jeong’s son was reported by the media several years ago. Did the Ministry of Justice know about this school violence incident and receive reports? Also, there was a report that President Yoon criticized Attorney Jeong for filing a lawsuit to cancel the disciplinary action that went to the Supreme Court. Is this true?" the official replied, "It is not appropriate to disclose the specific verification process, and what matters is the final disposition taken."
He continued, "A public office candidate was appointed, but concerns and suspicions that the public might have were raised. These suspicions seemed valid, and the candidate himself resigned, and the appointing authority canceled the appointment. This process took less than 24 hours. We believe that if there is a problem, acknowledging it cleanly and making efforts to correct it is something we have done. We think the media and the public will appreciate such efforts."
However, no comments were made regarding whether President Yoon criticized Attorney Jeong or made any disciplinary remarks toward the personnel screening line.
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