Gwanak-gu, the Secret to Becoming a Crime-Free Safe City in 2022?

By 2025, a total budget of 22.4 billion KRW will be invested to realize Gwanak as a crime-free city... Nationwide first autonomous patrol safety service, expansion of crime prevention infrastructure, establishment of a continuous illegal filming inspection system, etc... 5.7 billion KRW invested in 26 detailed projects in 2022

Women's Self-Defense Training

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Junhee) is actively discovering and promoting Gwanak-type safety projects to ensure the safety of vulnerable groups against crime, considering that the proportion of single female households (27.9%) is the highest nationwide.

The district analyzed local characteristics and reflected residents' demands to cooperate with the Gwanak Police Station and, for the first time nationwide last year, established the "Gwanak-gu Crime-Free Safe City 5-Year Plan," a mid- to long-term crime prevention safety project roadmap. From 2021 to 2025, a total budget of 22.4 billion KRW will be invested, focusing administrative power to realize a crime-free city, Gwanak.

In the first year of implementation last year, by comprehensively managing safety-related projects that were previously pursued individually, the average achievement rate of goals per project reached 97%. This year, after evaluating the previous year's project performance, the plan was established by supplementing insufficient areas and reflecting the results of a safety-related public opinion survey.

Accordingly, under the vision of "Gwanak, a crime-free city where safety is realized in daily life," a budget of 5.7 billion KRW will be invested to promote 26 detailed projects under four major policy goals: ‘Expansion of Crime Prevention Infrastructure,’ ‘Creation of Safe Urban Spaces,’ ‘Enhancement of Safety Awareness and Cultural Spread,’ and ‘Strengthening Participation and Cooperation.’

First, by supporting Safe Home Sets for single female households, Safe Bells for single female business owners, operating autonomous patrol services, and expanding CCTV, a dense safety net will be established to create a ‘Safe City Gwanak’ where all residents, beyond just women, can live with peace of mind.

In particular, the autonomous patrol service is a project that, based on opinions from the Gwanak-gu Women’s Safety Resident Planning Group, is the first in the nation to have autonomous driving-based robots patrol residential areas and riversides. This year, after a demonstration operation period, additional services will be explored and expanded.

To respond to digital sex crimes, a constant illegal filming inspection system has been established with 214 members of Safe Keepers and Our Neighborhood Women’s Safety Resident Monitoring Group. For the first time nationwide, a rental service for illegal filming device detectors at community service centers has been implemented to build crime prevention infrastructure.

A safe alley design project applying crime prevention design to selected vulnerable areas was created in Seowon-dong last year and will be established in Sillim-dong this year to improve safe walking environments for residents to walk safely at night.

Additionally, to strengthen women’s autonomous safety capabilities and single-person household networks, the ‘Our Neighborhood Women’s Safety Gathering’ project is being promoted to monitor local women’s safety and provide self-defense training. Visiting violence prevention education and daily safety culture campaigns are conducted to raise safety awareness and promote the spread of a safety culture.

To closely respond to community safety issues, a continuous communication and cooperation system has been established with related organizations such as the Gwanak Police Station, and mutual cooperation systems with schools, hospitals, and other related institutions are being strengthened. Community policing activities involving residents, such as autonomous crime prevention squads and child and women safety regional alliances, are also being expanded.

A district official stated, “In rapidly changing society, broad yet delicate safety policies are required to ensure the safety of socially vulnerable groups such as women, the elderly, foreigners, and low-income groups. We will concentrate all administrative power on implementing the 'Crime-Free Safe City 5-Year Plan' to dramatically improve the safety of vulnerable groups against crime.”

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