Foreign Teachers in China Detained in Drugs Crackdown

Foreign Teachers in China Detained in Drugs Crackdown
Jul 11, 2019 By eChinacities.com

More than a dozen foreign teachers and students in China have been detained after a police narcotics raid at an education center. The Quanshan branch of the Xuzhou public security bureau in Jiangsu province released a statement yesterday confirming that 16 foreign teachers and students were among 19 suspects under investigation.

Authorities did not reveal the nationalities of the accused or the drugs detected, but it has been reported that several teachers who were working at Education First (EF) in Xuzhou have been implicated. EF has since released a statement on its Weibo account insisting that all teachers involved will see their contracts terminated.

“Education First expresses its deepest regret that some teachers from the Xuzhou centre abused drugs in non-working hours,” the statement read. “We are cooperating with the relevant authorities in their investigation and also conducting our own internal investigation. We show zero tolerance for any illegal behavior and absolutely forbid employees to possess or use narcotics or controlled drugs.”

Police revealed that seven teachers and nine students tested positive for drugs after officers were tipped off about a case “involving narcotics”. One foreigner is in criminal detention, which is likely to come with a formal charge and prosecution, while the rest are under administrative detention for a maximum of 15 days.

ThePaper.cn reports that Xuzhou’s education bureau will now investigate all extracurricular training centers in the city.

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Keywords: foreign teachers in China drugs foreign teachers in China

15 Comments

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Jd100984

People should respect Chinese culture and laws. It is a low quality human being that would come to a foreign country and break their rules and laws. Drug taking is a serious offence it also indicates a low quality person. Teachers should know that you are dealing with children what kind of example do you want to set for children.

Aug 30, 2019 01:25 Report Abuse

Redoctober1905

There is a great saying in China describing law enforcement: The mountains are high and the emperor is far. We must not underestimate the emperor no matter how far he is, nor how high we sit on our mountain fortress. If there is a will, then there is a way. Another great saying: do not beat the grass and scare the snake. If threatened with any investigation, simply cooperate. Notice how the article says 19 foreigners were detained, 15 were held in administrative detention and one in criminal detention. How about the other three who were investigated, eventually being set free? Were they guilty? Perhaps they were at the wrong place at the wrong time. Maybe they ratted out their narco-comrades... Most likely, they were left out to warn other foreigners of the consequences of using drugs in China. Which leads me to my final, most ominous law enforcement strategy: kill a chicken to scare the monkeys. Make examples of the worst offenders and force everyone to pay attention. I remember the good old days, nearly 10 years ago, when one could walk down the streets of WanFuJing in Beijing, finding a shady looking African at every corner offering Hash, Pills or Ganja, oftentimes with police only seconds away at their posts, serving as watchman and guarantor all at once. Ah, the good old days when one could get trashed in broad daylight, blazing at TianAnMen square... Cannot say that I didn't toast the Chairman with hazy smokerings... The moral of this story: don't do drugs in China. Eventually, inevitably, you will be caught, and an example shall be made of you!

Aug 15, 2019 22:17 Report Abuse

Guest14513038

@senseiSteve, they don't have teaching licenses. If they did, they wouldn't be working for EF...dumbass. @j13772, schools in China have always been hiring based on gender, and it's actually a bit better than it used to be, the only difference is that there are way more foreign teachers now than there were 10 years ago, and of course the requirements for getting Visas is way more strict now too, so it's proven more difficult but not impossible for those who "came here to party" especially.... In regards to the crime, drug use is not a severe crime. Not nearly as bad as dealing. They don't even go to prison but just do 15 days at the detention center is all, although the detention center is much worse than prison. Drug users cases don't even go to prosecution. Nobody is getting the death penalty for this. I'd say nearly all foreigners in detention centers in China are there for drugs. Also, who said they go soft on foreigners. China is a sovereign country and foreigners get treated/punished the same and get the same punishment as the Chinese. Nobody can help once you get arrested. There are billionaires sitting there for years, waiting for sentencing, investigation etc. You're guilty in China until proven innocent. EF is so full of shit. I laughed reading the "statement" they came out with, but then again, I laughed at any news in China in English. They won't pass up a chance to use the word foreigner and single them out no matter the topic or the contents of the story. As if if one thing is true for one foreigner, then it's true about all. There's so much prejudice for those who aren't from China. Even people for example in Shanghai, who are non local Chinese are thought to be below the Shanghainese, by the Shanghainese (not all of course of course) having less rights and priveleges. EF will hire anyone, just like most similar companies. Wall Street English, WEB, etc., as long as you got the documents to get the Visa. Now many people who first get to China for work work for such companies for below average wages, with noo experience or knowledge of other much more lucrative opportunities, and of course such big companies will have much more teachers and therefore in turn will have more people "breaking the law".

Jul 16, 2019 10:33 Report Abuse

j13772

The types of people who are coming to Asia the last 10 years or so are a different breed from the ones that used to come. Schools now hire people based on their youthful age and on gender rather than on professionalism. EF is a poster child for this mentality. If you hire young people who are here for a party, the companies shouldn't be surprised when bad behavior happens. China can kick them out, but dont be surprised if this is not the last time, as long as the focus remains on hiring "young looking" teachers.

Jul 15, 2019 13:33 Report Abuse

Englteachted

SenseiSteve: they were jailed and their contracts were terminated, that means deportation and 5 year ban

Jul 15, 2019 09:30 Report Abuse

SenseiSteve

Thanks man. At least someone has got their head screwed on the right way.

Jul 14, 2019 16:15 Report Abuse

SenseiSteve

Make an example of the foreigners. Deport them from the country and have their teaching licenses revoked. I don't understand why they go soft on the foreigners who break the rules here. Come to China, follow the rules and behave yourself. Why is that so hard for some foreigners to comprehend?

Jul 13, 2019 16:43 Report Abuse

Nikwestside

How are they supposed to revoke something that isn't there to begin with?

Jul 14, 2019 09:49 Report Abuse

Monkey1

They were supposed to be teachers. Students look up to them. The rules are very clear in China when it comes to doing drugs or dealing in drugs. Whether its a Chinese national or a "foreign devil" should be completely irrelevant. I am a very staunch supporter of the death penalty when it comes to drugs.

Jul 16, 2019 09:08 Report Abuse

Monkey1

I hope they all get the death penalty. Hang all of them.

Jul 12, 2019 10:16 Report Abuse