Keelung to revoke preschool's license over child abuse case

Taipei, July 6 (CNA) The Keelung City government will review on Tuesday the second stage of its administrative investigation into child abuse allegations at a quasi-public preschool, with the school's license expected to be revoked as early as Wednesday.

The announcement came as the city disclosed the identities of two educators found responsible for child abuse -- Lin Chia-ching (林佳靜) and Liu Ke-chieh (劉可婕) -- in accordance with the Preschool Educators' Act.

Last week, the city filed a criminal complaint and launched an administrative investigation after several children were found with bruises allegedly caused by abuse at the preschool, located in Keelung's Qidu District.

At the same time, the city ordered that the two educators be suspended from teaching and fined the person in charge of the preschool NT$30,000 (US$935) for failing to promptly report the incident.

On Friday, Keelung announced the results of the first stage of its investigation, concluding that the two educators had violated the Preschool Educators' Act. Each was fined NT$400,000 and permanently banned from working in early childhood education.

The person in charge of the preschool was also fined the maximum NT$60,000, while the school was barred from enrolling new students for one year and had its quasi-public preschool contract with the city terminated.

The city said at the time that additional educators who acted as substitute teachers for the class are also suspected of mistreating children, prompting a second round of investigations.

On Saturday, several parents gathered outside the preschool to protest what they viewed as insufficient punishment, throwing eggs at the preschool.

One parent told reporters that surveillance footage covering nine days allegedly documented at least 500 instances of abuse, saying the penalties imposed so far did not reflect the severity of the case.

Responding later that day in a Facebook post, Keelung Mayor Hsieh Kuo-liang (謝國樑) said he agreed with parents calling for the preschool to be shut down, but noted that some parents of children in unaffected classes hoped to minimize disruption to their children's education.

Hsieh said the city therefore decided to proceed in two stages -- first imposing immediate administrative penalties while conducting a comprehensive review of all surveillance footage to establish a legally sound basis for revoking the school's license.

The city will also assist families who choose to transfer their children to other preschools, he said.

Education Department Director Hsu Yen-li (徐嬿立) was deeply saddened after meeting with parents and had offered her resignation, Hsieh said.

Meanwhile, the Keelung District Prosecutors Office said it has launched a criminal investigation after receiving the case from the Keelung City Police Bureau and will work to clarify the facts as soon as possible.