"140,000 General Meeting Voluntarily Withdrawn... May Become Target of Police Criticism" (Comprehensive)

Seodaemun-gu, Seoul Police Agency building / Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] Kim Seongjong, Superintendent of the Gwangjin Police Station in Seoul, voluntarily withdrew his intention to hold a nationwide police meeting of 140,000 officers opposing the establishment of the Police Bureau scheduled for the 30th.

Kim, who initially proposed the meeting, posted on the police internal network on the morning of the 27th, stating, "I am voluntarily withdrawing the nationwide police meeting of 140,000 officers planned to be held at the Police Human Resources Development Institute and resigning from the position of organizer." He explained, "With the establishment of the Police Bureau confirmed at the Cabinet meeting under the law, there is practically no social resolution method left," adding, "Causing social concerns and burdens could potentially make our entire police force a target of social criticism."

Kim said, "I believe that through the efforts of my 140,000 fellow officers, it has become clear that the establishment of the Police Bureau is a retaliatory act and abuse of power that compromises public safety in response to the 'complete investigation prohibition' (Geom-su-wan-bak)." He added, "I trust that the illegal establishment of the Police Bureau will be legislatively corrected." He also expressed sincere gratitude to his fellow officers who shared his intentions and stated, "From now on, I intend to return to my daily duties."

Earlier, on the 24th, Kim proposed holding a nationwide meeting of field team leaders at the rank of inspector and superintendent through the internal network. This was seen as a protest against the suspension of Chief Superintendent Ryu Sam-young, who led the nationwide police chiefs' meeting the day before. When precinct chiefs and police station chiefs also expressed willingness to participate, Kim announced on the 26th, just two days after his initial proposal, that he would expand the meeting to include all 140,000 police officers.

Kim's voluntary withdrawal on this day is interpreted as a judgment based on internal and external circumstances. Previously, Chief Superintendent Ryu discouraged the nationwide meeting on the internal network the previous afternoon, saying, "Police officers pushing for another gathering could cause public concern." The National Police Agency also announced a nationwide tour schedule of provincial police agencies on the same day to collect opinions from field officers at the rank of superintendent and below. In addition, President Yoon Seok-yeol criticized such collective actions as "disruption of national order" during his commute the day before, and Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min likened it to a "coup d'?tat."

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