Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Yu_Bum_suk]

Dear Beyond Borders,

As an EFL teacher working in Asia I read with interest your comments recently given to the National Post re: the Christopher Neil case. I realise of course that journalists don't always quote sources accurately, but if their quotations are an accurate reflection of your organisation's beliefs I'm somewhat disturbed on a few levels. First, you make it sound as if it would be very easy for EFL teachers in Asia to get away with abuse and this itself could work as advertising for those wishing to do so. Secondly, you make my profession sound like one that's riddled with paedophiles. Demeaning this profession in such a way will only make respectable teachers more inclined to leave it, leaving a higher proportion of not-so-respectable teachers behind. This is particularly true in the case of teachers considering it as a career option, at a time when Asia needs more career native-English-speaking teachers, and less short-termers, than ever before. Thirdly, Mr Jamie McIntosh's comment 'It's a dirty secret, if you will, that these individuals will try and go in under that sort of cover to have ready access to children' is simply sensationalistic. There's nothing secret about the fact that teachers in Asia are often put in positions of trust, like in many countries. However, how many documented cases are there of foreign teachers in Asia engaging in sex crimes at work? Neil's case, like most involving Asian children exploited by westerners, involves someone tapping into a child sex tourist market. Based on what evidence has emerged so far, Neil could just as well have engaged in sex crimes were he a businessman or editor. Focusing on expatriates rather than merely English teachers would be a more appropriate way of targetting foreigners who commit the types of crimes that Neil did. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, your comments show you missing an essential aspect of Asian culture that allows for problem cases to be swept under the rug: Asian notions of institutional reputation and libel. To date I have not seen any of the institutions for which Neil worked named in the Korean press. This, I�m sure, is because of feelings of collective shame that Koreans fear such institutions might feel. Overcoming this tendency, existent in many Asian countries, would make abuse victimes less hesitant to come forward and would be more productive than idle speculation about how many paedophiles teach English in Asia.

It is my hope that you would send a very different message to the Canadian and western public: Neil wasn't able to get away with what he did because he was and EFL teacher and too many fellow foreign English teachers knew him and were able to help Interpol track him down. Had he been a company worker who kept to himself and wasn't part of a large community in Korea, his whereabouts may not have become known. As soon as his identity was known, he had no chance of eluding police any further because the vast, vast majority of foreign EFL teachers in Asia will not tolerate such a person walking freely. That is the message that all paedophiles thinking of teaching in Asia should be hearing.

Sincerely, ___________________

[cbclark4]

Who is Beyond Borders?

[The_Eyeball_Kid]

[Yu_Bum_suk]

Sorry - that should be International Justice Mission, not Beyond Borders. BTW, you can write them as well at [email protected] .

Yes, I've heard of paragraphs. Unfortunately I spent so much time at university writing papers that by the time I was done, page-long ones were pretty common.