Ryu Sam-yeong: "The transfer of senior superintendents opposing the Police Bureau to sidelined positions is police discipline"

Police Chief Ryu Sam-yeong Leading Opposition to Police Bureau
KBS Radio Interview "Unreasonable Disciplinary Personnel Changes"
"Appointing Experienced Station Chiefs Below Section Chief Level"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Ju-hee] Regarding the recent mass reassignment of police colonels who attended the meeting opposing the establishment of the Police Bureau under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety last July to undesirable posts, Police Colonel Ryu Sam-yeong, who led the meeting at the time, criticized, "This personnel appointment is a punitive personnel action completely lacking rationality."

Colonel Ryu appeared on KBS Radio's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strongest Current Affairs' on the 7th and said, "Punitive personnel actions were taken against all those who attended the police chief meeting opposing the Police Bureau and those who were in a position to impose disadvantageous personnel actions. It is retaliation and an attempt to discipline the police."

He explained, "Police personnel appointments are made on a yearly basis, but there were several incomprehensible cases, such as sending someone who had been a police chief for six months to a head of an educational institution in another city or province," adding, "Those who have experience as police chiefs at the colonel level have suitable positions, but there were cases where they were assigned below the section chief level who had not been promoted to colonel."

Superintendent Ryu Sam-young, who has publicly opposed the establishment of the Police Bureau under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Colonel Ryu speculated that although the authority for this personnel appointment lies with the Commissioner General of the National Police Agency, there must have been interference from higher-ups outside the police. He said, "The Commissioner General has served in the police for over 30 years and probably never experienced such treatment when he was subject to personnel appointments," adding, "Since it is unlikely that a police officer would make such appointments, I believe there was a judgment made by someone outside the police."

Regarding the current atmosphere within the police, Colonel Ryu said, "It is boiling over," and criticized, "Is it possible to make such absurd and unheard-of personnel appointments just because they opposed the establishment of the Police Bureau?"

He continued, "(This personnel appointment) shakes the police so that they cannot effectively protect the property and lives of the people," and said, "If the criterion for personnel appointments becomes whether they obey or not, the police, who should be looking at the people, will inevitably have to watch the eyes of those in power."

The National Police Agency carried out personnel appointments for 457 police colonels on the 2nd. Among the appointees, 47 who attended the nationwide colonel meeting last July were transferred to so-called 'undesirable posts,' sparking internal backlash calling it 'retaliatory personnel action.'

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