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A spat between the government and private schools over a controversial law reform escalated further on Friday, when private high schools in North Jeolla Province decided to refuse new students for the next academic year. Some Jeju Island private high schools rejected their state-assigned lists of new students on Thursday, and other regional private schools have said they will follow suit.
Cheong Wa Dae has vowed to use all executive and legal measures at its disposal to wrestle the private schools into submission as it sees their challenge to the law reform as an attack on the constitutional order.
The North Jeolla Province chapter of the Association of Private School Foundations at an emergency board meeting reaffirmed its decision not to admit new students. Private schools in Seoul, Busan, South Gyeongsang Province, South Jeolla Province, Ulsan, Daegu and North Chungcheong Province have said they will do likewise.
¡°The government will take the opportunity to investigate corruption in the hiring of teachers and all other wrongdoings,¡± Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kim Man-soo warned the same day. ¡°It will instruct the Education Minister to launch an investigation and if necessary, bring in more auditors.¡± The government says the law reform regulating the composition of private school boards and railroaded through late last year is intended to fight corruption.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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