[Yongsan Era Weekly] Communication Barriers Broken Down but Building Security Tightened

High-Level Officials Sweat Over Reporters' Questions Near Smoking Area Outside Government Building
Building Entry Procedures Tightened

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] As the presidential office is concentrated in one building, scenes that were not seen at the Blue House are now appearing at the Yongsan office. Instead of a separate space like the Blue House Chunghugwan, the Yongsan presidential office has placed the press room in the same space, facilitating smoother communication with aides.

First, the smoking area near the presidential office building has emerged as a place for contact with high-ranking officials. The presidential office building is a non-smoking area, and a separate smoking area has been set up outside the basement level 1, which is the main entrance for employees. No matter how high the rank, if one is a smoker, they inevitably visit this spot. Han Oh-seop, director of the National Situation Room, also came here to smoke and was met with a barrage of questions from reporters about current issues.

However, since it is the building where the president works, the entry procedures have become somewhat strict. Since the 10th, the Presidential Security Service has required not only resident public officials and visiting public officials at the Yongsan presidential office building but also journalists, construction personnel, and other general visitors entering restricted areas to install a mobile phone security application (app).

Especially since the main presidential office on the 2nd floor is still under construction, the Security Service is even more sensitive. Once the security app is installed, tethering, photography, and voice recording are disabled within a 1 km radius of the presidential office. Also, deletion of the app is impossible without a code issued by the presidential office. Above all, the Security Service can identify dozens of apps and location information installed on the phone and can forcibly terminate apps. In the case of iPhones, installation of the app is impossible, and it has been announced that iPhones will not be allowed to be carried during entry going forward.

Starting this week, security authorization for reporters’ laptops has also been requested at the first-floor entrance. Those bringing laptops must submit authorization documents including their name, affiliation, contact information, and laptop model, and must also get confirmation from the Security Service when taking the laptop out later. The Security Service stated, "Since they use the same building as the president, the same security measures must be applied," and added that "this is a safe app applied not only in the presidential office but also in private companies."