South Korean Ruling Party Pushes Police Reform Legislation Amid Misconduct Scandal

In the wake of a scandal involving the mishandling of a missing person report by a Jeju police officer, South Korea's Democratic Party is vowing to enact significant police reforms. The party declared its intention to pursue legislation aimed at a "metamorphosis" of the police organization, emphasizing that greater police authority must be balanced with heightened accountability.

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We will pursue police organization reform at the level of metamorphosis and legislation to prevent recurrence, while also preparing measures for institutional improvement to block the possibility of inadequate investigations and protect the safety of the people.

Shin Hyun-young, the party's spokesperson, stated that the incident serves as a catalyst for strengthening police discipline and improving systems to protect citizens' fundamental rights and safety. The Democratic Party has already established a task force dedicated to police reform and has conducted site visits and met with Jeju police officials.

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We will do our utmost to enact legislation that strictly upholds police discipline and thoroughly protects the basic rights and safety of the people, taking this incident as an opportunity.

The party urged the National Police Agency to swiftly investigate the truth behind the Jeju incident, identify responsible parties, and hold them accountable. This call for swift action and accountability underscores the urgency felt by the party to restore public trust in law enforcement. The reforms are intended to block possibilities of inadequate investigations and bolster measures for safeguarding public security.

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The Democratic Party has already launched a Police Reform Promotion Task Force and conducted on-site inspections and meetings with Jeju police yesterday.