NCJ Number
205902
Journal
Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management Volume: 27 Issue: 1 Dated: 2004 Pages: 128-136
Date Published
2004
Length
9 pages
Annotation
After documenting a history of the Korean National Police Agency's (KNPA's) abuse of its power for political purposes, this paper examines why reform measures thus far have failed to ensure the KNPA's political neutrality, followed by recommendations for police reform the author believes will achieve this aim.
Abstract
During the Imperial Japanese occupation of the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945, the police brutally and violently suppressed the Korean people, arresting and torturing numerous Koreans. Police power permeated every aspect of Korean life. After the Republic of Korea was established in 1948 and the Korean War (1950-53) was over, subsequent South Korean governments were undemocratic and authoritarian, albeit to varying degrees. The political system was unstable, and military personnel were heavily involved in politics. Regimes were dependent on the criminal justice system, especially the police, to suppress antigovernment demonstrations and restrain citizens and political opponents. Police abuse of human rights and police use of brutality were pervasive. In attempts to ensure and increase the political neutrality of the KNPA, some external and internal control measures have been implemented since the 1990's; however, the KNPA is still vulnerable to political influence in many respects. More structural reforms are needed. First, the KNPA and the National Police Board should be totally independent from the Ministry of Interior. Second, the National Police Board should be vested with actual authority to administer the KNPA in many areas, especially the power to appoint high-ranking officers in top administrative positions, including the Commissioner General. Third, the structure of the police should be decentralized, so as to avoid the concentration of police power. Fourth, a fixed tenure system for the Commissioner General should be introduced to ensure less political influence on this office. Fifth, the police should reduce intelligence units to a minimum and increase its focus on preventing and controlling crimes. 4 notes and 17 references