Teacher Suspended for Trading Certificates for Kisses

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A middle school teacher in northwest China's Gansu Province has been suspended and is under investigation for allegedly making his girl students kiss him on the cheek in exchange for their graduation certificates. On August 20, 2013, a netizen posted a set of photos on his micro-blog of a male teacher being kissed on the cheek by several young girls. The media follow-up confirmed that the man in the photos was a middle school teacher called Zhang Runhua, who was in charge of a senior class at the Tuqiao Senior High School in Linxia County, Gansu Province. The local education authorities have suspended him and he is currently under investigation. While most netizens have condemned Zhang's behavior, a few have pointed out that the kisses may have been a friendly way for the students to bid farewell to a beloved teacher and that it was inappropriate to jump to conclusions. "It looks like this teacher has a really good relationship with his students. It might be a little bit out of line though," netizen 'Guojiabusi' said. Another netizen 'Lvyan985' said that people should consider protecting children's privacy when making online posts or statements.