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Police to crack down on ‘brash’ graduation celebrations

By Yoon Min-sik

The National Police Agency said Friday that it will crack down on excessively violent celebrations among students graduating from elementary, middle and high school.

The NPA announced in the recent statement that it plans to conduct an intensive preventive education to deter brash celebrations, while closely monitoring 1,360 schools it has deemed susceptible to such violence.

Anyone who has taken part in such activities, no matter how small, will be punished.

“(Police will) only hand out warnings for minor misdemeanors, but will pursue legal action against anyone who participates in activities deemed punishable by law,” said Bae Gi-myeong of Daegu Metropolitan Police Agency.

Traditionally, many Korean have held playful ceremonies upon graduation, such as pouring flour over each other and taking buttons from a shirt of a person they have a crush on.

Over time however, celebrations have grown more violent, and students were often coerced to go through reckless rituals by their alumni. The new "celebrations" include ripping apart graduating students’ school uniforms, taking off their clothes in public, and taking their money.

An anonymous Seoul citizen said that he once witnessed a group of students running in the streets wearing nothing but underwear. He said the students looked miserable but were egged on by another group of youngsters on motorcycles. (minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)