Public Officials' Union: "A Criminal Act... Strong Response Needed"
"A Deplorable Act of Violence... Obstruction of Official Duties"
An incident occurred in Buyeo County, South Chungcheong Province, where the county governor was assaulted by a resident while visiting a flood site. The county is currently considering filing criminal charges.
According to Buyeo County on July 18, Park Junghyun, the county governor, was getting out of his vehicle to inspect a flood site in Guyang-myeon the previous day when a man in his 60s, identified as Mr. A, approached and swung his fist at him.
Governor Park narrowly avoided the blow, which only grazed his cheek, but Mr. A continued to hurl verbal abuse and profanity at him. It was reported that Mr. A acted out of anger after his commercial property was flooded due to the extreme rainfall the previous day.
The county explained that officials had been on site since early morning, installing flood barriers and taking other measures to block the water, but Mr. A filed a complaint after rainwater eventually entered his property. Governor Park was reportedly so shocked by the verbal abuse that he was unable to speak for some time.
The public officials' union strongly condemned the incident, stating that verbal and physical assaults occurring during official duties constitute serious crimes and called for a strong response.
The Buyeo County branch of the Sejong-Chungnam Regional Headquarters of the Korean Government Employees' Union issued a statement on the same day, saying, "The Buyeo County Governor was at the site as a public official to assess the situation and understand the extent of the damage. However, a resident slapped the governor and hurled severe insults in a deplorable act of violence." The statement continued, "The officials present at the scene felt as if they themselves had been attacked, experiencing deep shock, humiliation, and anger. The reality that the efforts of public officials for residents are met with violence undermines the morale and self-esteem of public servants." The union further urged, "This is clearly a serious crime constituting obstruction of official duties and assault, and should be met with a zero-tolerance response."
A county official stated that the incident happened so quickly that there was no time to intervene, adding, "While the governor is hesitant about filing a complaint against the resident, the executive branch is considering filing criminal charges for obstruction of official duties."
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