Panel votes Monday on recommendations
A police reform panel has recommended that the government make active use of outside appointments to lead the National Investigation Headquarters, rather than drawing exclusively from within the police force.
The Police Investigation Reform Committee for Restoring Public Trust voted Monday to adopt a set of recommendations titled "Strengthening the Independence and Investigative Capacity of the National Investigation Headquarters."
"To enhance the political neutrality, independence and professionalism of police investigations, there is a need to actively use the system of recruiting the head of the National Investigation Headquarters from outside the force," the committee said. "Recruiting externally can provide a new opportunity to improve the culture and practices of the police investigation organization and raise its investigative capabilities."
The panel also said that even when an internal candidate is appointed to lead the headquarters, qualification requirements should be established to verify investigative expertise.
"Since the head of the National Investigation Headquarters commands and supervises more than 40,000 investigative officers, qualification standards must be put in place — even for internal appointments — so that factors such as experience in investigative work are reflected in personnel decisions," the committee said.
The panel further recommended strengthening the headquarters chief's practical authority over personnel and budget matters related to investigative police.
"While the head of the National Investigation Headquarters bears responsibility for investigation outcomes, authority over personnel and budgets for investigative officers rests with the commissioner general of the Korean National Police Agency and regional police chiefs — limiting the headquarters chief's ability to effectively direct and oversee investigations," the committee said.
The committee also said the headquarters chief's recommendations should be institutionalized so that views are reflected in key personnel decisions for investigative officers, and that consultation rights should be guaranteed in the budget-drafting process.
A committee official explained the rationale behind the recommendations, saying the establishment of the National Investigation Headquarters "was an important institutional step toward strengthening the independence and professionalism of police investigations, and the goal is to fully realize that original intent."
The headquarters was created under the Moon Jae-in administration as part of a realignment of investigative authority between prosecutors and police — which gave police the power to close cases at the first instance — to separate police investigations from general law enforcement and administrative functions. The move was also intended to prevent the expanded police authority from becoming concentrated in the hands of the commissioner general.
Every chief who has served since the headquarters was launched in January 2021 has come from within the police force.
arin@heraldcorp.com
