Meeting Tainted With a War Of Words

In an effort to settle conflicts over the implementation of the National Educational Information System (NEIS), Deputy Prime Minister for Education Yoon Deok-hong held the first meeting since his inauguration with the leadership of the Korea Teachers and Educational Workers Union (KTEWU) at a hotel in Seoul in the morning on the 25th. However, they got engaged in a war of words, failing to reach an agreement.

In the 1.5 hour-long meeting, the KTEWU, headed by Won Young-man, called for an apology from the Ministry for Education. It said, “The Ministry tried to virtually kill the KTEWU by purposefully sending materials against the organization to the media in the controversy over the suicide by a principal of the Boseong Elementary School in Yesan, Chungcheong Province.”

The KTEWU kept criticizing Deputy Prime Minister Yoon for enforcing NEIS and distorting its education on anti war and peace.

They pointed out, “Deputy Minister had said that he would take action against the infringement on the rights of teachers by the KETWU. By saying so, he rejected the KETWU that protects socially marginalized people.” They added, “It is not clear whether the Ministry conforms to the policies of the participatory government or not. The Ministry is filled with bureaucrats. Without mutual confidence, we are not able to have a dialogue with them.”

Deputy Minister Yoon refuted, “In the National Assembly, I am even labeled as a minister appointed by the KTEWU and ridiculed for leaning toward it. There are some problems with the content of quizzes in the textbooks for educating anti war. If Korea educates its people on anti-American sentiment, the U.S. will respond in kind.”

The KETWU demanded, “NEIS is a serious problem. 3 items - health, school and educational affairs, which most parents oppose - should be excluded. Before we decide to stage a demonstration in May, the Ministry for Education must announce its countermeasures.”

Deputy Prime Minister Yoon countered, “I asked the KETWU to express its opinions in the meeting of the Information Committee. However, they did not attend the meeting. Without sufficient knowledge, parents would naturally oppose the situation where the school records of their children are posted on the Internet.”

He also said, “The KTEWU should not just insist on its own position, but honestly think about whether NEIS can benefit students.”

When an educational official emphasized the safety of NEIS, the KTEWU said, “The perfect security cannot be expected when online shopping malls are being hacked. It does not reduce the workloads of teachers. There are also serious human rights abuses.”

Deputy Prime Minister Yoon said, “The KTEWU should not direct teachers to stage violent demonstrations. Teachers exist because there are students and their parents. Think one moment about the tragic death of Seo Seung-mok.”

When the KTEWU said it did, he added, “Many principals complain that teachers go to extremes under the protection of the KTEWU. For the sake of education in Korea, the KTEWU needs to listen to the voices saying it should not be radical.”

The KTEWU retorted, “Principals are the ones who are radical. Look at the newspaper ads.” In response to that, Deputy Prime Minister Yoon said, “The KTEWU should reflect on how it says and behaves.”

After the meeting, the Ministry of Education said, “The meeting was helpful in understanding the position of the KTEWU but it is regretful that the Union criticized Deputy Prime Minister too much….” On the other hand, the KTEWU said, “The meeting was meaningful in that all concerned parties tried to solve problems through dialogue. We are planning to have working level meetings with officials of the Ministry of Education.”

In-Chul Lee inchul@donga.com