Civil servant slapped as abuse by aggressive petitioners worsens

Social Affairs

Published: 29 Apr. 2024, 18:06 Updated: 29 Apr. 2024, 19:19

Civil servant slapped as abuse by aggressive petitioners worsens

The Seoul Gangseo Police precinct said Monday they are investigating a woman in her 50s, surnamed Kim, for alleged assault and obstruction of duties. [YONHAP]

A public official in charge of civil petitions was physically assaulted for refusing a person's request for money to pay personal expenses but did not report the incident to police until 12 days later.

The Seoul Gangseo Police Precinct confirmed on Monday they are investigating a woman in her 50s, surnamed Kim, who is accused of assault and obstruction of duties.

Kim, who receives basic livelihood security subsidies, allegedly attacked a civil servant and behaved disruptively at a district office in Hwagok-dong in Gangseo District, western Seoul, on the morning of April 12.

According to the JoongAng Ilbo, the Korea JoongAng Daily's affiliate paper, Kim visited the office and said she was moving soon and owed 1.6 million won ($1,160) for her phone bills. She demanded money for her moving expenses.

When a public official denied her request, Kim became enraged, shouting and using abusive language.

Other workers filmed Kim lashing out, but when they stopped recording, Kim slapped the official in the face and hit him in the head.

Despite the flagrant assault, the civil servant — worried that Kim would cause a further disturbance — eventually told the police who arrived at the scene that he did not wish to press charges. Kim was released with a warning.

More and more public officials are receiving aggressive civil petitions, but many are hesitant to take legal action for fear of retaliation.

Reports of assaults on public workers no longer surprise the public.

A Gimpo City official took his own life on March 5 after his personal information was exposed online. The person who exposed the information was enraged about traffic problems caused by road construction.

The death sparked public outrage, but public servants claim that nothing has changed since then.

Kim reportedly demanded a public official for money to pay her moving expenses. ″I am moving soon and need 1.60 million won to pay for my phone bills,″ Kim said during a conversation held in a private area at the district office.

According to a survey conducted by the Confederation of Korean Government Employees’ Union (KGEU), 84 percent of 7,061 civil servants said they had received aggressive complaints in the last five years, while 76.3 percent said their agency did not take adequate measures to help them handle aggressive visitors.

The KGEU held a rally at 2 p.m. on Monday near Seoul City Hall to advocate for improved treatment of civil servants.

After Kim left the scene without facing charges, the labor union of the Gangseo District Office persuaded the attacked worker to press charges against Kim to prevent similar incidents.

Kim was notorious for her malicious behavior. She frequently threw tantrums whenever her requests for extra funds were denied.

Several coworkers submitted hand-written statements testifying to Kim's disruptive behavior.

"I couldn't perform my duties because Kim would repeatedly call whenever I rejected her request,” one statement read.

"One of the workers had to be put on an IV drip due to the stress caused by her notorious actions.”

The assaulted employee is reportedly receiving treatment for mental trauma and is unable to return to work at the moment.

The police said they plan to summon Kim for questioning.

A Gangseo District official shared an instance when a person brought a deadly weapon to the office, but the person was merely persuaded to leave rather than being reported to the police for fear the legal measures would burden the district office.

While taking legal action can be challenging due to possible retaliation, political factors such as elections and pleasing local government heads sometimes make officials reluctant to report abuse, too.

"We have to be mindful of complaints, especially during the general election period, as they could negatively impact the political party of the local government head,” a KGEU official said.

The official called for security guards in district offices and response teams to deal with aggressive civil petitions and for administrative offices to take legal action on behalf of their employees.

BY LEE CHAN-KYU, WOO JI-WON [woo.jiwon@joongang.co.kr]