CONTROVERSY OVER N. KOREAN DEFECTOR SCHOOL

[Anchor Lead]

Yeomyung School is an alternative school for children of North Korean defectors. The Seoul city government has found a new site to relocate the school, as the lease with the current landlord is expiring. However, the relocation plan is under threat due to strong opposition from local residents.

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Students from MIT ran a science class with Yeomyung School students for a month.

[Soundbite] (STUDENT AT YEOMYUNG SCHOOL) : "We are growing plants without soil."

Yeomyung School has some 300 graduates since opening in 2004. A large number of them went on to college. The school has to move out from the current building with the lease expiring next February. It has found a suitable site to relocate, which is owned by the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation, a public developer affiliated with the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Located in Eunpyeong-gu District in northwestern Seoul, the new site measures 2,100 square meters and is large enough to house a schoolyard. However, some local residents are opposing the relocation of the school. The opponents claim the school cannot move into the new site, which is reserved for public convenience facilities. However, they are believed to have other hidden reasons.

[Soundbite] (DISTRICT RESIDENT(VOICE MODIFIED)) : "There are some people opposing the relocation. It may be due to prejudice."

A site for public convenience facilities can be used to house a school only after the district office requests the switch. However, the Eunpyeong-gu District Office has put the procedure on hold, citing local residents' opposition. An official at the office has previously said a school for children of North Korean defectors can be regarded as an unwanted facility by local residents and the district office is also not in favor of the relocation.

[Soundbite] (EUNPYEONG-GU DISTRICT OFFICE OFFICIAL(VOICE MODIFIED)) : "Residents' opposition was quite strong. A great deal of complaints were delivered during the district council's public hearing."

As the controversy surfaced, Yeomyung School students have been hurt deeply.

[Soundbite] CHO MYUNG-SOOK(YEOMYUNG SCHOOL) : "Students found the situation very painful. So I am telling them that it's not their fault and we need to wait further."

The Seoul city government is caught in a dilemma. While continuing discussions with the district office, it is also looking for an alternative site. If Yeomyung school is relocated outside of Seoul, its license as a formal educational establishment, granted by the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, will be canceled.