Jongno-gu Awarded Presidential Citation for 'Korea Crime Prevention Award'

Honored as the First Autonomous District to Receive the Presidential Award at the 5th Korea Crime Prevention Awards Ceremony Held at Hoam Art Hall on the 28th

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Jongno-gu (Mayor Kim Young-jong) was honored as the first autonomous district to receive the Presidential Award at the '5th Korea Crime Prevention Awards' ceremony held on the afternoon of the 28th at Hoam Art Hall.

Hosted by the National Police Agency, the 'Korea Crime Prevention Awards' is a prestigious award that selects and honors public institutions, companies, and social organizations that have shown outstanding achievements in building safe communities from crime in response to the growing public demand for crime prevention.

Jongno-gu, which received the highest evaluation with the Presidential Award, achieved this success by promoting the 'Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) project' targeting the Donui-dong gosiwon area, which had long been stigmatized as a high-crime area isolated from the local community.

Since 2015, Jongno-gu has been implementing various projects in the Donui-dong gosiwon area to support the sustainable self-reliance and independence of gosiwon residents and to enable them to lead humane lives. As part of this, the CPTED project involved installing a total of 19 types of facilities in the area to safely improve the environment.

For example, the alleys in the area were divided into four zones, each assigned a different color, and street name address plates were installed on buildings in each zone. This improved recognition, facilitated crime and fire reporting, and also had the effect of neatly organizing the alleys.

Additionally, window intrusion prevention facilities were installed, designed to prevent various crimes and not obstruct escape in case of fire, contributing to crime prevention.

To improve basic order such as preventing public urination and illegal dumping, special anti-urination paint was applied and nighttime blocking doors were installed, receiving great responses from residents.

Not only physical environment improvements but also efforts to raise residents' awareness stood out, with activities such as 'village painting events' and 'horticulture programs' that encouraged residents to directly care for flower beds and manage facilities, fostering affection for the village.

Moreover, initiatives like 'Day of Clearing' to clean up abandoned household waste and 'smartphone safety education' were conducted, continuously striving for crime prevention and village environment improvement.

The 'Village Butler Hongbanjang' system, which supports Donui-dong gosiwon residents to receive safety-related education so that they can become the main agents in protecting the village and solving local problems, is also noteworthy. The Village Butler Hongbanjang not only instilled a sense of accomplishment among residents but also served as an opportunity for neighbors to harmonize, ultimately contributing to enhancing the community's safety self-sustainability.

Through such dedicated efforts for crime prevention, Jongno-gu succeeded in reducing the occurrence of the five major crimes by 26% over the recent nine months compared to the previous year.

Going forward, the district plans to expand the 'Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design project' throughout the area and complete the 'Jongno-gu Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design Basic Plan and Guidelines' within this year to support all residents in enjoying a safe and happy life evenly.

Kim Young-jong, Mayor of Jongno-gu, said, “I am pleased and honored to be recognized for our efforts in crime prevention as the first autonomous district and to receive the Presidential Award. I want to dedicate the joy of this award to the employees who have worked hard to create a safe community and to the residents who have given unwavering support and encouragement. We will continue to do our best to create a community where everyone can live with peace of mind.”

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