Investigation Authority Adjustment Approaching... Will Police Reform 'Autonomous Police System' Also Accelerate?

Even the President Warns of '警 Power Overexpansion'
Investigation Authority Gains Momentum if Passed by National Assembly
Focus on Accelerated Legislation

In February last year, Min Gap-ryong, Commissioner of the National Police Agency, attended the ruling party-government-office consultation on the introduction of the autonomous police system. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] As the passage of the prosecution-police investigation authority adjustment bill in the National Assembly approaches, attention is turning to whether other police reform legislations, represented by the autonomous police system, will also accelerate. The introduction of the autonomous police system has been promoted as a kind of 'precondition' for the prosecution to accept the adjustment of investigation authority between the prosecution and the police. The intention is to check the excessive concentration of police power.

The autonomous police system seemed to gain momentum last March when Representative Hong Ik-pyo of the Democratic Party of Korea officially proposed the "Police Act Comprehensive Amendment Bill." This amendment, reflecting the government’s proposal, separates the current police into national police and autonomous police, and stipulates the operation methods and jurisdictional duties of the autonomous police.

However, a month after the bill was proposed, in April of last year, the National Assembly was paralyzed due to the fast-track (rapid processing agenda) conflict incident, and no substantial discussions took place thereafter. As a result, the initial plan to select at least five pilot regions for autonomous police operation by the end of last year fell through. The pilot operation regions currently confirmed include Jeju, where some autonomous police are already operating, as well as Seoul and Sejong, with plans to select at least two more. Gyeonggi, Incheon, and Gyeongnam had also expressed interest in participating in the pilot operation, but due to the stagnation of National Assembly discussions, the plan was delayed beyond the year. The government’s goal to introduce autonomous police nationwide by 2021 has also inevitably faced setbacks.

In this context, if the investigation authority adjustment bill passes the plenary session of the National Assembly on the 13th, it is expected to give momentum to the introduction of the autonomous police system. The adjustment bill stipulates that it will be implemented six months after promulgation at a time determined by presidential decree, so it is expected to be enforced within this year at the latest. Since police reform is as urgent as prosecution reform, active discussions in the National Assembly are inevitable.

So far, the adjustment of investigation authority and the introduction of the autonomous police system have been discussed as a "set." The police have argued that the two issues are unrelated, but it is hard to deny that the autonomous police system has been promoted as a measure to appropriately distribute the expanded police authority resulting from the adjustment of investigation authority. President Moon Jae-in also said at the National Intelligence Service, Prosecution, and Police Reform Strategy Meeting in February last year, "If we prioritize the adjustment of investigation authority, it is true that the police become bloated," and added, "For balance, it is necessary to distribute the bloated police through the autonomous police system to balance police power."

However, regarding the introduction plan for autonomous police, the police, prosecution, and local governments have expressed differing opinions, so further consensus-building is needed. According to a survey disclosed by Representative Kim Young-woo of the Liberty Korea Party during the National Assembly audit last year, 86.8% of active police officers opposed the introduction of autonomous police. The prosecution has repeatedly argued that existing duties such as traffic, community safety, and crimes against women and youth, as well as intelligence police duties, should also be distributed to the autonomous police.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.