viewers of Lawyer Extraordinary Woo You may remember the character Bang Guppong.
Bang Guppong, played by the actor Koo Kyo Hwanwas a character in the drama’s ninth episode who was put on trial for kidnapping students from his mother’s academy.
In the episode, it was revealed that Bang Guppong took the kids, with their permission, so they could play instead of study.
Netizens praised the episode for highlighting the immense stress Korean children are under. In the episode, the kids were shown going to school after school until 10 p.m., which is common in the hyper-competitive country. From the age of six, children study up to 15 hours a day.
THIS SCENE HURT ME SO 😭 there is no need to constantly repeat the message they need to get good grades. Instead, be there to support your children when they face a problem and let them know they should be proud of their best efforts. #LawyerExtraordinaryWooEp9 pic.twitter.com/0VMPA2eaGh
— uh ⁺⁺⁺ 🐳 (@crinolineruffle) July 27, 2022
For those who grew up successful but then became unhappy in life, tonight’s episode of Extraordinary Attorney Woo is both very relatable and sad. frantic hugs 🥲#LawyerExtraordinaryWooEp9 #LawyerExtraordinaryWoo pic.twitter.com/tkuHjvnzU5
— ~♡ Joy (@Multistan_26) July 27, 2022
In the episode, Bang Guppong called himself a member of the Children’s Liberation Party and explained that the party only has three rules.
Children must play immediately. Children should be healthy immediately. Children should be happy immediately.
—Bang Guppong
Today, adults in Korea are taking over to fight for the country’s overworked children, and they are using Bang Guppong’s teachings to guide them.
Protests erupted in Korea when on July 29, the Minister of Education park soon ae informed the president Yoon Suk-yeol that his ministry would start discussing lowering the primary school entry age to five.
Currently, Koreans enter primary school at the age of six (Korean age). Although children can enter early if they wish, early entry is incredibly unpopular in Korea, with only 537 students choosing early admission in 2021.
Koreans have expressed outrage at the new law that could come into effect in 2025. Korean children are already suffering from hyper-competitive academic stress and rank last among other OECD countries for the happiness of childhood. Many Koreans held up banners with the words of Bang Guppong, who in the drama lamented the current state of Korean children.
The enemies of Korean children are schools, academies and their parents. They are afraid of healthy, happy children. They manipulate the laws to make children busier and naughtier so that they turn their backs on the world as adults.
—Bang Guppong
It seems that government officials see how unpopular the new proposal is. Due to the backlash, the education minister backtracked on her efforts, saying she will postpone any formal discussion of the proposed new law.
Stay tuned for updates.