The Ministry of Education of the Communist Party of China (MOE) released a draft of the “Regulations on the Protection of Minors in Schools” for public comment on April 6, which, in addition to requiring schools to establish mechanisms to prevent and control bullying, prevent sexual assault and harassment among students, also proposes a bizarre provision to prevent and stop staff and other personnel entering schools from having romantic relationships with primary and secondary students.
According to the official website of the Ministry of Education, this draft for comment has 8 chapters and 58 articles, applicable to ordinary primary and secondary schools, secondary vocational schools, schools are required to do the entry review and verification every academic year, found that there are restrictions on the practice of related circumstances, shall not be hired, has been hired should be promptly dismissed.
The draft specifies that schools should establish a system of student bullying prevention and control, prevention of sexual assault and sexual harassment, and establish a zero-tolerance mechanism for dealing with student bullying, sexual assault and sexual harassment, including taking the necessary measures to prevent and stop staff and other people entering the campus from committing the following acts against the physical and mental health of students: having romantic and sexual relationships with students; fondling, intentionally touching specific parts of the student’s body The mechanism includes taking the necessary measures to prevent faculty and other personnel entering the campus from committing the following acts against students’ physical and mental health: having romantic or sexual relationships with students; touching or intentionally touching specific parts of students’ bodies and other indecent acts; making words or actions to students that are flirtatious, provocative or sexually suggestive; showing and disseminating information containing pornographic or obscene content to students. This has sparked discussions on the Internet.
Some people hit the nail on the head when they said, “Fall in love with primary and secondary school students? Are elementary school students, in particular, physically capable of falling in love? Other people entering the campus are not powerful officials? This is the key! Powerless thinking lust! This is after playing with adults enough, treating primary and secondary schools as their harem!”
Others questioned, “So it was always okay before?” “Primary and secondary students fall in love with teachers that is to be criminalized, right?” “The Ministry of Education is a self-contained system and any regulation can be made? The education system is becoming more and more problematic, who will regulate it? Student bullying, sexual assault, sexual harassment this is not a matter for the public security department? Staff and elementary school students in love, public security organs should not intervene? Public security authorities need to go through the Ministry of Education to solve the problem of law and order crimes, fights and brawls, and even rape and murder? The Ministry of Education has too much power! There are too many problems with the education system.”
Of course, there are also netizens lament: “The document to rule the country, there is no use! It’s all words, no action!” “This provision is honestly a bit of bullshit, the staff to stop, who does not know ah, the key is how the staff to stop, how to empower the staff, how to protect their power to stop? And some children are stronger than the teacher, the teacher beat the responsibility in who? Also, most of the bullying is in the dark, how will the staff see and stop it? There are a lot of problems, and you can’t just rely on the school to manage them.”
Even on Weibo, which is heavily monitored and filtered, there were many voices expressing disapproval of the opinion piece. Many netizens mentioned the bullying and sexual assault of a 16-year-old boy at school in Beijing that came to light last month. The incident was officially pulled from Weibo several times and pushed back to the top of the search list several times because of the attention it received.
Netizens said, “So the case of the Beijing boy who was sexually assaulted has been repeatedly suppressed by you, for what purpose? You are wearing a skin of justice to do a false and perfunctory, shirking responsibility!” “Totally just chanting slogans and talking empty words!”
In addition, the draft also proposes that compulsory education schools shall not deprive students of their right to education, expel or disguise the expulsion of students, etc. by means of long-term suspension or dissuasion. The Ministry of Education said the public can submit comments by letter or email, and the deadline for feedback is April 23, 2021.
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