Sex offenses against students increase

Sex offenses committed by teachers against students have emerged as an issue of concern in Hong Kong, as suggested by the latest statistics about convictions, revocation of licenses and lawsuits against teachers.

Seven Hong Kong teachers lost their teaching licenses because of sex offenses over the past three years, the Chinese-language Ming Pao newspaper reported yesterday. Twenty-five teachers were convicted of offenses, the report said.

The newspaper studied information from the Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union and counted 32 cases of teachers being sued for sex offenses.