Gyeonggi-do Appoints Seven 'Ombudsmen' as Civil Rights Protection Investigators for Residents

Gyeonggi-do Ombudsman Appointment Ceremony

Gyeonggi Province appointed seven 'Gyeonggi Province Ombudsmen,' civil complaint investigators for protecting residents' rights, on the 6th.

Among the seven appointees, five ombudsmen were reappointed for two years following the revision of the ordinance. The two newly appointed ombudsmen will serve four years without reappointment, applying the ordinance revised in April.

The reappointed ombudsmen are ▲ Kim Antae, former official of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission ▲ Professor Kim Jeongin ▲ Lawyer Kim Heeran ▲ Ji Youngrim, CEO of Dr. Homin Co., Ltd. ▲ Hwang Jongil, a professional engineer. The newly appointed ombudsmen are Professor Park Hyunggeun and tax accountant An Yeonhwan.

Including the three ombudsmen appointed in January, a total of ten ombudsmen will perform the role of representing the rights of Gyeonggi residents.

The Gyeonggi Province Ombudsmen monitor administration by recommending or expressing opinions to administrative agencies regarding illegal or unfair administrative actions or unreasonable system improvements targeting the province and its affiliated institutions.

Although appointed by the governor with the consent of the provincial council as part of Gyeonggi Province, their job performance is guaranteed independence.

It is a collegial body composed of ten private experts such as lawyers, professors, certified professionals, and social organizations. Through the introduction of a dedicated ombudsman system, they continuously seek ways to strengthen the protection of residents' rights by mediating complaints at the investigation stage to reach agreements.

Oh Byeongkwon, the first deputy governor of administration, said, "The system is at a turning point with the introduction of new methods such as the dedicated ombudsman," adding, "The province and the ombudsmen will work as one team to actively cooperate so that the ombudsmen's proposals lead to system improvements."

Gyeonggi Province plans to implement an ombudsman resident supporters program in the second half of this year to increase direct participation of residents and establish a cooperative system with cities and counties to eliminate blind spots in residents' rights through outreach ombudsman operations.

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