Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Should Sex With Children Over 13 Be Illegal?

A 33-year-old female middle school teacher has been accused of having an inappropriate relationship with one of her pupils. According to police in Gangseo, Seoul, the teacher allegedly had sex with a 15-year-old student in her car at an underground car park last week.

After discovering text messages between the teacher and pupil, the pupil’s mother reported the matter to the police, but they terminated the investigation because the two had sex under mutual consent and there was therefore no legal grounds to punish the teacher. since it is legal to have sex with children over the age of 13 in Korea, as long as the child agrees to it.

Many netizens are furious. While having sex with 13-year-old girls in Korea is a fundamental legal right for Korean men – some even say a responsibility – the idea that women might start having sex with children has offended Confucian sentiments, and once again raised fears that women are becoming more uncontrollable instead of knowing their place, probably due to foreign influences.

But The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology cautioned netizens against overreacting, stating it was an isolated incident. A spokesman told us “This was an isolated incident – teachers don’t usually get caught so easily.” But the Ministry is believed to be fearful that any change in the law banning sex with children could see the the number of male teachers in schools plummet, if one of the biggest fringe benefits of the job is removed. The Ministry of Justice added that it may also cause problems recruiting native-English speaking teachers, since many foreigners who teach English in Korea are convicted pedophiles or want to become pedophiles in future.

The Ministry of Gender and Family Affairs also commented that should the age of consensual sex with children be raised it could make having family affairs more difficult.

Related Links
Female teacher accused of inappropriate relationship
Schools scrambling to prevent sex crimes
Sex Offenders, Victims Keep Getting Younger
Child rape cases in Korea outnumber those in US, UK, Japan, Germany
Female Consensual Sex Outbreak Worsening

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