"Police Anger Over New Attempts to Control After 76 Years of Prosecutorial Domination"

Internal Network "Chaining Up with Shackles"
Opposition Grows Against Ministry of the Interior and Safety's Police Bureau Establishment
"Servant of the Regime, Return to Dictatorship" Criticism
"Should Be Seen as a Cooperative Relationship" Supportive Opinions Also Present

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] "After being dominated by the prosecution for 76 years and barely escaping, now the Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety is trying to dominate again."

On the afternoon of the 13th, a post titled "Police, do you need another chain?" was uploaded on the police internal network. The author stated, "The prosecution had tightly shackled the police with double and triple chains, but with the partial loosening through the 'complete prosecution reform,' the Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, who has voluntarily become a servant of the current administration, is stepping forward to put on shackles again." He added, "Even though democracy should be advancing one step further, we are regressing to the dictatorship of 1991 when the Security Headquarters was abolished," and wrote, "Withdraw the Police Bureau that damages police neutrality."

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety’s push to establish a Police Bureau is facing strong opposition within the police. The Police Bureau was abolished in 1991 during the separation of the National Police Agency from the Ministry of Home Affairs to ensure political neutrality. Frontline police officers pointed out, "The revival of the Police Bureau after 31 years means a return to the past," and "A vertical command system from the President to the Minister of the Interior and Safety to the Commissioner General of the National Police Agency will be formed, damaging police neutrality."

Criticism toward the police leadership is even sharper. A police lieutenant from the Gyeongnam Police Agency said, "Even at this point, the leadership across the country remains silent, which is regrettable," and added, "I cannot respect those who remain silent even as the police organization collapses while protecting their own interests." He continued, "The entire 130,000-strong National Police Agency is about to be transferred to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety’s Police Bureau. Who should we trust and follow?" and appealed, "Police leadership nationwide, please speak up." This post received dozens of supportive comments such as, "It is just regrettable that there is no truly just and brave leader among the 130,000 troops," and "Why can’t the six newly promoted Senior Superintendents say a word?" Recently, Commissioner General Kim Chang-ryong and Nam Gu-jun, head of the National Investigation Headquarters, avoided clear positions on the Ministry of the Interior and Safety’s police control moves during press briefings, responding to reporters’ questions with "It is under discussion, so it is difficult to answer," or "A balanced discussion will be held."

There are also voices of support inside and outside the police. A senior police official said, "The National Police Commission was created to perform democratic checks and supervision over the police, but it is true that it has a cooperative nature," and added, "To check the police through the Police Commission, democratic legitimacy must be established, but there are complex issues such as how far to take that level." An anonymous police expert said, "Just as the prosecution is not completely maintained under the Ministry of Justice, which has a Prosecution Bureau, it cannot be concluded that the political neutrality of the independent external agency, the National Police Agency, is compromised just because the Ministry of the Interior and Safety establishes a Police Bureau. This is not an issue to be viewed with prejudice," and added, "It should be seen as a cooperative relationship rather than as being controlled."

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