[The Era of Autonomous Police Arrives] Grassroots Security's First Policy: 'Tourism and Child Safety'

<strong>How Far and How Prepared<br><br>Ahead of Full Implementation on the 1st of Next Month<br>Finalizing Formation of Autonomous Police Committee<br>Implementing Measures Tailored to Regional Characteristics<br>Some Local Governments Launching Late</strong>

The Gangwon Provincial Autonomous Police Committee inauguration ceremony held on April 2nd. Gangwon Province was the first among all metropolitan autonomous entities nationwide to hold an inauguration ceremony for the Autonomous Police Committee.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] With the full implementation of the autonomous police system scheduled for the 1st of next month, preparations by local governments are progressing smoothly. Although some noise arose during the enactment process of the autonomous police ordinances, all city and provincial ordinances were finalized after consultations.

According to the National Police Agency on the 29th, the composition of the autonomous police committees in all 18 cities and provinces nationwide (Gyeonggi Province operates two autonomous police committees for its southern and northern regions) has been completed. Among them, 15 places formed their autonomous police committees relatively early. Local governments that have completed the committee formation have immediately started pilot operations of the autonomous police system and revealed their presence by announcing their 'first policy.'

Busan approved its first directives, including the ‘Comprehensive Security Measures in Preparation for the June Opening of Beaches’ and the ‘Traffic Safety Measures for Gijang Osiria Tourism Complex.’ This decision considered the situation of areas with many famous beaches attracting crowds, such as Haeundae and Gwangalli. Since the Gijang Osiria Tourism Complex is scheduled to open sequentially from July, a surge in traffic demand is expected, so the focus was on minimizing traffic inconvenience for tourists. Jung Yong-hwan, Chairman of the Busan Autonomous Police Committee, said after announcing the first policy at the end of last month, "We will enhance the completeness of Busan autonomous police by improving security services that citizens can directly feel."

Daegu selected ‘Establishment of a Citizen-Centered Network Council’ as its first policy to gather citizen opinions. This reflects the meaning that citizens should be positioned not only as the subjects protected by security services but also as the main actors in autonomous police activities. They also announced plans to build governance with members from various sectors such as civic groups, volunteer organizations, children, and youth, and to continue communication for the establishment of autonomous police security policies.

Some local governments announced security measures for the protection of children and youth as their first policies. Gwangju set ‘Comprehensive Traffic Safety Measures for Children’ as its first autonomous police security policy, while Gyeongnam chose ‘Creating Safe School Routes for Children from Home to School.’ Gwangju considered its higher proportion of child population compared to other metropolitan cities, and Gyeongnam explained that most (96%) of traffic accidents involving children under 12 occurred outside designated child protection zones as the background for their initiatives.

Chungnam selected the ‘Opening of an Emergency Medical Center for Intoxicated Persons,’ and Gangwon chose ‘Improvement of Working Conditions at Local Police Stations and Substations’ as their first policies respectively. Chungnam established its policy to alleviate crime anxiety caused by intoxicated persons and to provide systematic protection and treatment for them, while Gangwon determined that improving frontline police officers’ working environments is essential to provide good security services for residents. A police official said, "Since security conditions vary by region, it means focusing budgets and personnel appropriately to provide security services that residents can feel."

However, some local governments must implement the autonomous police system immediately without pilot operations. In Seoul’s case, the autonomous police committee was launched only on the 25th. The inaugural chairman is Kim Hak-bae, a lawyer at the law firm Daeryuk Aju and former chief of the Ulsan Police Agency. The autonomous police committees for southern and northern Gyeonggi Province are also scheduled to officially launch on the 30th. In Gyeonggi Province, the delayed enactment of the amended Police Act, which allows two autonomous police committees if there are two provincial police agencies in one local government, inevitably caused a late launch.

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