Native English teacher fired for alleged sexual molestation
An English teacher has been fired over molestation allegations. / Yonhap
By Oh Young-jin
Amid the spreading #MeToo movement, a native English-speaking teacher at a girls’ high school was recently fired over allegations of sexually molesting students and calling the East Sea the “Japan Sea.” It was the victimized students who told the school of his misbehavior.
According to Yonhap News, the instructor, who worked at the school in Cheongju, was booked without physical detention on suspicion of sexually molesting students. The school also terminated his contract.
The former instructor is from Western Europe and worked at the school for seven years.
The school became aware of his misbehavior in May last year and asked police to investigate.
The school confronted him with its findings and he admitted making unwanted physical contact with the students, and racial and sexually offensive remarks.
He had allegedly forced his face into the students’ faces despite their objections and linked arms with them at random in the school hall.
He was quoted as telling students that kissing a woman with dental braces would make Western men horny.
He also allegedly told the students that Korea and Japan should share Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo rather than fighting over them.
The school said there had been discrepancies in accounts by the fired instructor and students, so it passed the case to police.
An education office official said the teacher may have not have had ill intentions but the students said they felt offended.