[Editorial] Prevention weighs over punishment

The Yoon Suk Yeol administration and the People Power Party are pushing with an extraordinary measure on school bullying and violence. They propose to have school bullying records be reflected in college admissions and job findings.

The stigmatization penalty comes after a candidate to head the National Office of Investigation under the National Police Agency had to withdraw himself over an abrupt controversy about his son’s bullying history at a high school. Chung Sun-sin, a senior prosecutor-turned-lawyer, used his connections and influence to clear his son’s name to get him into elite Seoul National University.

After the controversy erupted, President Yoon ordered the U.S.-style zero-tolerance on bullying. Bullying during schooldays should not be left unattended as it can leave lifetime scars on the victims. Schools, education authorities and parents must make sure that any type of abuses and violence do not take place at schools.

But stigmatizing the bullies for life and depriving those students of chances in adulthood is undesirable. It is the duty of adults and society to help the aggressors repent and convert to become a better person. If the government strips bullies of their chances to get into college or get a job, it can ruin the life of a person for their school-time misdemeanors.

Under the Juvenile Act, the records of juveniles who went through rehabilitating procedure for a delinquent act are supposed to kept sealed and not be revealed so that juvenile offenses do not haunt the rest of their lives. A juvenile crime keeping someone from college or hiring is a “double punishment,” Song Kyung-won, a Justice Party policy researcher, said. Juvenile criminal records cannot be demanded except for special cases. It is not reasonable for the government to impose the stigma on school bullying, which is a juvenile crime.

Quick protection of the victims and intervention to correct the aggressor are more needed than strong punishment once the harm is done. But the government action focuses more on punishment than prevention. In the case of Chung’s son, the damage also worsened due to a lack of repent and corrective actions for the perpetrator from the school. Policymakers must focus more on prevention of abuses and protection of victims. Various surveys show that most of the victims want a “sincere repent and apology” from their aggressors.

The government proposes more arts and sports activities in schools to help prevent violence. But the measures should be practical so that increased school activities do not merely serve to help more students get admitted into colleges. The government must come with more thoughtful outlines than that in the final measure.