Reported sex crimes among school students in Seoul surged from nine in 2009 to 23 in 2011, leading to calls to strengthen sex education.

According to data released by city councilor Yoon Myung-hwa, of the 53 cases from 2009-2011, 36 were committed by middle school students, the number increasing from two to 18 over the period.

The latest case involved a second grade middle school student who stripped his classmate’s pants, took photos of his genitals and made jokes, according to Yoon. Another case saw a third grade middle school student rape a female student while drunk. A physically disabled middle school student assaulted by a peer was also reported.

“Despite efforts to strengthen sex education by Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, sexual assault cases among students are increasing, getting more violent, collective and organized,” she told The Korea Herald.

Those students who commit sex crimes against their peers are usually transferred to other schools or are put in special education programs, but the follow-up measures are insufficient because sex crimes are likely to occur even after transfer, she said.

Middle and high schools across the country are required to give 10 hours of sex education a year, including one hour on sexual assault and another on prostitution, according to an official at the Seoul education office who declined to be named.

Seoul has about 440 school counselors on sexual and other student problems, less than one for each of the 691 middle and high schools in the city.

“The number of school counselors is increasing, but is still not enough. We plan to secure one counselor per school by 2014,” said Chung Young-chul, a school supervisor at the education responsibility division of the education office.

“Schools alone cannot solve sexual assault problems or heal victims. They need assistance from professional centers run by the city or hospitals,” Chung added.

“Teenage sex crimes can lead to adult crimes and more victims in the future. Therefore, we should improve sex crime prevention programs and measures to deal with both victims and offenders,” said Yoon.

By Lee Woo-young  (wylee@heraldcorp.com)