[Editorial] A Gaping Hole in Public Security, the People Are Anxious

As expected, violent crimes have consecutively exploded into the public and various `gates` have colored the year. This is making the people who have already been feeling the burdened even more anxious. Last week, robbers held up a bank in Dae Jeon at gunpoint, killed a bank worker, and stole a large sum of money. The case came as a great shock to the nation. One worries whether there will be school shootings in our country like the U.S. The incident is all the more shocking because it took place during the end of the year special security `emergency duty`. Furthermore, there is a good possibility that the bank robbers stole the guns from the police. Since the police may have unwittingly supplied the crime weapon, how can the people trust the police as trustworthy guardian of the public?

The state`s most basic priority is to protect the life and property of the people, and the safety of the public is the foremost responsibility of the police. One wonders whether the pathetic state of the police disclosed by the successive violent crimes is the consequence of all the strife in the government sector. After the arrest of former chief and head of the police department Lee Moo-young for his connection with the `cover-up of the Suzie Kim murder`, oppositional voices made noise within the police department, and displayed a great amount of antagonism toward government offices such as the National Intelligence Service and the Public Prosecutors Office. This kind of disarray could have brought about the slackening of official discipline and paved the way for a robbery. On top of this, some are saying that the installation of the new head of police has taken up so much time and effort that this has led to neglecting public safety.

The police needs to go into `emergency duty` even at this late point in time. They must especially expand and tighten security for financial organizations, which is becoming the main target for robbers. As seen in the Dae Jeon bank robbing incident, robbers commit the crime after thoroughly studying the bank operation routine, the security in the facility, and other aspects of the site. In contrast, the police do not even make the same effort as the robbers. If the police gave a little more attention, they could have found the weakness in the bank security and found a new solution with the bank. While the robbers were hard at work, the police only yelled `emergency security duty`.

The state must provide a safe environment for the people in order to secure their trust. Not only the police, but all public offices should take the lesson from this case and resolve to fulfill their given duties.