Jeong Geun-sik "Grateful to the National Assembly and Citizens... An Opportunity to Reflect on the Value of Democracy"

"Safe Classes, Focused Parenting"
Nationwide Schools Operating Normally

Jung Geun-sik, Superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, expressed his gratitude by saying, "I bow my head in thanks to the National Assembly and citizens" regarding the president's declaration and lifting of martial law.

On the 4th, Superintendent Jung stated on Facebook, "In the face of a crisis that threatened to regress history by 45 years, the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea and its citizens calmly protected democracy."

He added, "It took six hours for the State Council to pass the resolution to lift martial law, during which Seoul citizens and the educational community had to stay awake," and "The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education held an emergency countermeasure meeting last night to discuss and decide on protecting democracy and ensuring stable educational activities."

He continued, "Teachers and students in Seoul are currently conducting educational activities as usual," emphasizing, "The Seoul educational community will take this incident as an opportunity to deeply reflect on the values of the Constitution and the importance of democracy."

Jung Geun-sik, the newly appointed Superintendent of Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, is being interviewed by Asia Economy at the Jongno-gu Office of Education. Photo by Jo Yong-jun

Superintendent Jung said, "I sincerely thank the teachers who are protecting students and conducting classes with unwavering responsibility," and added, "I also want to assure students and parents to focus on classes and nurturing without worry."

He further stated, "The Seoul educational community will remain steadfast against any confusion or threats outside of schools and will do everything possible to help our students grow into healthy democratic citizens."

With the lifting of martial law on this day, it was confirmed that schools nationwide will operate normally. The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education held an emergency countermeasure meeting in the superintendent's office from 12:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. and decided to maintain the regular academic schedule. On the same day, Lee Ju-ho, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, convened an emergency executive meeting at the Ministry of Education at 8 a.m., urging calm work performance and the best efforts to ensure stable academic operations in educational settings, according to the Ministry of Education.