[LETTERS TO THE EDITOR]Police university is source of many police problems

The policemen who graduated from the Korea National Police University are having troubles, since there are many opinions that the school is the source of the corruption of the Korean police. That depresses the policemen and the public. Those graduates, however, are not to blame. They are also the victims of a bad system. Koreans do not know the problems of the school, and the police have been also avoiding the problems. But Koreans deserve better service from the police, and they should know about the problem the school has caused to the police system in the country.
Historical issues involving traitors during Japanese rule and human right issues under dictatorships in the past are being discussed. The police university is also a part of the dark past. Under the dictatorship of Park Chung Hee and Chun Doo Hwan in the 1970s and 80s, the school was made to produce special police to oppress democratic activists without any public discussion in society or inside the police force.
All students in the police university have four-year scholarships and are exempted from military service. After they graduate from the school, the have many advantages in promotion, working condition and payments. However, people have been pointing out that the school’s establishment itself is against the constitution. The university has not helped develop the quality of the police, but instead discouraged many policemen who do not get the same advantages as the graduates.
To fix the bad system of the national police academy, the policemen should gather like the British policemen’s union, which renovated its police university system. With the public’s support, the universities should adopt new education methods and start teaching practical skills the police need.

by Mun Seong-ho