Seoul says it wants to curb excessive spending on tutors and reduce a burgeoning, mostly untaxed, service industry dominated by foreigners. It also seeks to promote egalitarianism among students by disallowing parents a chance to buy their children a superior education. The authorities' move is not entirely without justification. The cost to individual families is staggering. Many families are said to spend up to half their income on private teachers.
Korean banks are reportedly on the lookout for foreigners with unusually large accounts.
Koreans themselves are increasingly opposed to kwawoe. A recent opinion poll found support among nearly half of respondents for a complete ban on the practice. A third of them want to maintain a partial prohibition that has been in place since 1980, restricting private tutoring for primary-school students. That ban, however, has been a near-total failure. The ban's failure is as predictable as it is noteworthy.