Often found at theaters and museums, Kwon Mee-yoo has covered a wide range of cultural fields from K-pop and dramas to theater and fine art for over a decade. Now as K-Culture Desk editor, she tries to connect Korean culture with global readers through fresh perspectives.
134 unionized teachers face dismissals in June
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff reporter
The 134 unionized public school teachers, who hold indicted for illegal membership in the Democratic Labor Party(DLP), will be forced to stop teaching from June 1, the education authorities said Thursday.
The education ministry said it has ordered regional education offices to dismiss the teachers, all members of the Korean Teachers and Education Workers’ Union (KTU), for having regularly paid dues to the progressive minor opposition party since 2005.
The related civil servant laws bar public workers and teachers from taking part in political activities. It is the first time that more than 100 public school teachers face dismissal for their political activities since the inception of the teachers’ union in 1999.
The KTU is protesting the government’s decision.
“There is no precedent for dismissing teachers just a week after announcing the punishment,” a KTU official said. “There is political intention behind it ahead of the June 2 local elections.”
The union said it will allow the disciplined teachers to retain their KTU membership.
The ministry said it will also take strong disciplinary measures against 83 civil servants and 35 private school teachers who were DLP members.