BUSAN — Sexual misconduct cases previously handled individually by schools in Busan will be centralized under the education office starting next month. The move aims to institutionally strengthen fairness and expertise by departing from the existing structure that left sensitive matters to internal school judgment.
The Busan Metropolitan Office of Education announced on the 27th that cases previously processed by school-level "Sexual Grievance Deliberation Committees" will be transferred to the education office's "Gender Awareness Improvement Support Center" for integrated handling starting in March. Accordingly, deliberation functions related to sexual harassment and sexual violence, which had been operated primarily by school principals, will shift to a system directly under the education office.
Schools have long faced structural limitations including inconsistent judgments on identical or similar cases between schools, the burden on internal staff participating in deliberations, complaints and conflicts within school communities during case processing, and concerns about secondary victimization. Smaller schools in particular frequently voiced difficulties in securing objectivity and expertise due to limited human resources.
Reflecting these field concerns, the education office expanded and reorganized the existing "Gender Awareness Improvement Team" into the "Gender Awareness Improvement Support Center," increasing staff from four to seven. The plan is to establish a dedicated system encompassing investigation, deliberation, and victim support in line with the expanded functions.
The center will handle fair and professional investigations through a sexual misconduct case support team, operate the Sexual Harassment and Sexual Violence Grievance Deliberation Committee, provide victim protection along with medical and legal consultation support, and offer advisory and consulting services for schools' return to normalcy.
Additionally, the office will strengthen gender sensitivity training for school staff, customized prevention education for students, and recurrence prevention programs, shifting the focus from reactive responses to prevention-centered policies.
The education office expects this measure will free schools from administrative burdens and internal conflicts associated with operating deliberation committees, allowing them to focus on sexual violence prevention education and normalizing educational activities.
Superintendent Kim Seok-jun said, "Transferring the Sexual Grievance Deliberation Committee operations is an important institutional improvement that reduces the burden on schools while significantly strengthening the fairness and expertise of sexual misconduct case handling. We will continue expanding prevention-centered policies beyond simple case responses to create a healthy school culture."