South Korea’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Lee Ju-ho said Friday that the Education Ministry will soon launch an audit of the Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education in response to the recent stabbing death of an elementary school student in Daejeon.
During a parliamentary interpellation session held on Friday, Lee addressed the death of 7-year-old Kim Ha-neul, which occurred Monday.
“We will soon conduct a thorough investigation to uncover the full truth and determine accountability,” he said, adding that “an unthinkable tragedy has occurred in what should be the safest place: school.”
Lee added that the ministry would introduce fundamental measures to prevent similar incidents, pledging to strengthen school safety protocols. These include improving procedures for monitoring students as they leave after-school programs and expanding surveillance camera coverage.
On Wednesday, the government announced plans to introduce the “Ha-neul Act” during a meeting with superintendents of education across the country. The legislation is expected to focus on measures to beef up monitoring of educators who struggle to perform their duties effectively due to mental health issues.
ddd@heraldcorp.com
