Police Says Civic Groups will Have Their Say, But the Decision Could Backfire

The National Police Agency has decided to include civic organizations in the process of deciding key public security tasks. It will also bump up the status of the Public Security Administration Council from an advisors` group to a policy review panel.

The decision is seen as an effort to accommodate public opinions, but it might turn into populism by resorting too much to public reactions.

˝We are seeking a way to promote public participation in the security administration area through such arrangements as a civic inspection system, so as to boost transparency and openness of the police,˝ said NPS on April 15.

The agency is devising a plan to invite `Civic Organization-Police Cooperation Committee` and `Administration Development Committee,` which include civic organizations, to the process of deciding key tasks. The committees are also expected to play a role of reviewing operations of public security administration.

The agency also plans to introduce a civil inspection system, allowing civil inspectors to investigate suspected cases. The inspection team will comprise teachers and lawyers, who will be hired as temporary civil servants. They will, then, inspect cases filed by civic organizations or local residents. NPS is also considering assigning them a role of addressing public complaints.

The agency has decided to hold the public security administration council, an organization aimed at coordinating tasks between local administration and public security administration, on a regular base. Once the plan is implemented, civic organizations are expected to further increase their influence on police operations.

˝The plan is aimed at revamping the pubic security system in line with government emphasis on public participation,˝ said the police agency.

Some, however, point to that the agency might have a hidden agenda of winning public support for its key initiatives such as independency of investigations.

˝Independency of investigational activities is not a subject of political negotiations or tit-for-tat deals,˝ emphatically said Park Beom-gye, presidential aide of public affairs, at a workshop attended by high-ranking police officers. “Independency comes as the agency wins public hearts.”

Participants at the meeting later said that they understood Park meant the police should win public support for independency of investigations.

Some, however, raise concern that the plan to embrace civic organizations to win their support could backfire by exposing the agency too much pubic pressure.

˝Police activities are different from those of local governments that tend to rely on public sentiment,˝ said a high-ranking official from NPS. ˝Public participation sound just fine, but it might undermine the law-enforcement authority and the principle of fairness.˝

If people file a complaint after another against police cases via civic inspectors, it will impair public confidence in the agency and cause controversy on fairness. ˝Before opening up the process to civic organizations, the police must seek a society-wide consent on the level of participation,˝ he pointed out.

˝In the society where diverse interests compete against each other, a government agency need to be free from public pressure to some extent,˝ another official said. ˝Participation can be music to ears, but what is important is to maintain integrity of the law-enforcement authority.˝

Jin-Goo Lee sys1201@donga.com