Retinal Damage from School Violence in Asan, Chungnam
'Class Separation' Implemented but Provocation and Insults Persist
An incident occurred in Asan, Chungnam, where a student's retina was damaged due to school violence, leading to the separation of the perpetrator and victim students into different classes. However, claims have arisen that secondary victimization is still ongoing. According to Yonhap News on the 26th, A (13), a first-year middle school student, was surrounded by five classmates and assaulted by B (13), a classmate, after school on March 7 in an unspecified location in Asan.
B climbed on top of A and repeatedly punched his face. A was diagnosed with a four-week recovery period and suffered damage to the inner retina of his left eye, putting him at risk of blindness.
A’s side revealed that after moving to Asan in November last year, B, who had no prior acquaintance with A, continuously threatened him with abusive language through social networking services (SNS). B was found to have made threats such as "I will find you at the graduation ceremony and beat you up," "Where do you live?" and "Ssa-ji-tteu-ja" (a dialect term meaning "let's fight").
Later, both were assigned to the same class at the same middle school, and after B openly bullied A, a school violence incident occurred within less than a week of enrollment. As a result of the School Violence Deliberation Committee’s review, B was subjected to a class transfer, one step below forced transfer, and a restraining order. A, who acted in self-defense, was ordered to submit a written apology.
However, A’s side claims that B moved to the adjacent class and they still had to face each other at school, with secondary victimization continuing. A’s mother appealed, "The perpetrator student comes to my child’s class to provoke him and continuously commits secondary victimization acts such as cursing and lightly tapping his shoulder whenever they pass by." She added, "My child is still undergoing psychological treatment and has not been able to go out for two months."
She continued, "The committee members proceeded with the deliberation without prior knowledge of the school violence incident, which led to inappropriate questions being asked by the members. The meeting minutes even stated that I, the victim’s parent, refused an apology, although the perpetrator’s parent never actually apologized." A’s mother also said, "Despite the pain, the reality is that my child has to face the perpetrator every day, who shows no sign of guilt or remorse." She stated, "We plan to file an objection and continue to fight."
In response, the Asan Office of Education told Yonhap News, "It seems that conversations on SNS escalated into a fight. The school violence-related disciplinary actions are the result of the committee members’ judgment, so the education office cannot interfere, but objections can be made through administrative procedures." They added, "We will request the school to provide more careful guidance regarding the perpetrator violating the restraining order."
School violence experts advise that the School Violence Deliberation Committee system must function well to prevent recurrence. Lee Hae-jun, director of the School Violence Research Institute, said, "The committee usually meets for about 30 minutes, but when multiple perpetrators are involved or the case is complex, the committee members cannot review all written statements and video evidence one by one." He pointed out, "The committee is absolutely necessary, but systemic problems in the deliberation process must be resolved."
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