[Opinion] On the Policemen’s Day

The movie “Two Cops,” which told a story about the wicked senior cop and the novice cop, was widely received by the public. The police expected that this movie would improve the image of policemen and had supported the movie unsparingly. But when the movie was released, they realized that this movie actually displayed the weaknesses and the private moments of the police. Finally, the police compromised with the movie director, Kang Woo-seok, to insert the words “This movie is not related to the actual police” during the introduction of this movie. However the audience burst out laughing at this part. The movie was a great success, and the police did not say any more.

The Chinese policemen are security police, referring to police who maintain the peace and order of the public. The U.S. policeman (the police) is derived from polis, which is an ancient Greek city. It means the group responsible to maintain the city. The Korean policemen have a profound meaning. It derives its meaning from the Chinese characters: “respecting the words” and “understand.” The meaning of the police is the national power to understand citizen by being polite and with a good attitude.

Once the top brass of the police, Mr. P visited the police academy in Japan. On the desk of the principal, there was an instructive letter written by the administrator of the Police Headquarters: “Dear O O O Police Academy Principal. Your duty is to educate the selected policemen to maintain the public peace and order of Japan. If there exist students who lack such qualification and capability, your duty is to also filter those students.” It was said that the last sentence especially impressed Mr. P because he realized heartily how important the upright policeman was. The Japanese policemen taught kindness towards the public to the newly appointed policemen ahead of investigation skills.

Yesterday was the 58th Policemen’s Day. Without receiving an anniversary celebration, 150,000 police family (90,000 policemen and 60,000 combative and obligatory policemen) spared no pains in the front for the public peace. The Korean police are in charge of more people per capita (523) than the U.S. (319), Britain (468) and Germany (294). In the case of two-shift policemen, they work 84 hours per week, which is twice that of the legal labor hours. In the branch offices, they are afflicted with drunkards and in the streets demonstration they are thrown at with stones. Now our policemen take a meal in the street around embassies of other countries. When the police feel tired, the nations get harmed.

Oh Myung-chul, Editorial Writer, oscar@donga.com