Establishment of Comprehensive Management System for 'Water Play Safety'... Disaster Safety Act Amendment Passed at Cabinet Meeting

Establishing a 'Cooperation System' for Integrated Inter-Agency Management... Ministry of the Interior and Safety to Oversee and Coordinate Water Play Safety Management

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] A revision to the Disaster and Safety Act, which establishes an integrated cross-ministerial water play safety management system and expands the scope of compliance with the Safety Management Charter, has passed the Cabinet meeting.

On the 27th, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS) announced that it will build a cooperative system among related ministries to integrate the water play safety management tasks, which were previously managed separately by each ministry responsible for different facility types such as rivers and valleys, beaches, swimming pools, water leisure, and national parks. MOIS will take overall charge and coordination of water play safety management.

Previously, each responsible ministry conducted safety inspections and preventive activities individually, causing confusion and workload burdens for local governments and resulting in overlapping promotional activities, limiting efficient task execution.

The revision requires the Minister of the Interior and Safety to establish the highest-level plan, the “Basic Plan for Water Play Safety Management,” which sets the fundamental direction for water play safety management. This basic plan will comprehensively reflect water play safety management measures that were previously pursued individually by different agencies. Heads of related organizations will establish and implement annual safety management plans for their respective water play zones according to the basic plan.

The revision also provides the legal basis for the Minister of the Interior and Safety to form and operate the “Water Play Safety Management Council.” The council will include officials from central administrative agencies and local governments, related experts, and representatives from public-private collaboration systems to strengthen cooperation. It will discuss key initiatives to reduce water play safety accidents, jointly promote publicity and educational activities, and conduct joint inspections on COVID-19 prevention and management practices.

Furthermore, the revision codifies the safety management basis for “inland water play zones.” Special self-governing mayors, mayors, county governors, and district heads will be authorized to designate and revoke “inland water play zones” such as rivers and valleys, and may restrict operating periods and hours if necessary. Additionally, the Minister of the Interior and Safety will set installation and management standards for “inland water play zone facilities” to create a safe water play environment, and the managing authorities will be allowed to carry out “inland water play zone facility projects.”

The revision to the Disaster and Safety Act also includes expanding the scope of compliance with the “Safety Management Charter.” To promote a safety culture in everyday life, the scope of compliance has been changed from “workers” to “the state, local governments, and the public.”

MOIS plans to submit the revision, which was approved at the Cabinet meeting, to the National Assembly in May after receiving the President’s approval. Kim Hee-gyeom, Head of the Disaster and Safety Management Headquarters, said, “This revision to the Disaster and Safety Act is expected to help reduce summer water play safety accidents that occur every year and contribute to creating a safe leisure environment for the public.” He added, “This summer, we will thoroughly implement quarantine measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 while promoting water play safety management in cooperation with related ministries.”

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