Yeongam 'Foreigners' Voluntary Crime Prevention Patrol' Plays Key Role as Community Safety Partner

Yeongam Police Enacts First "Public Safety Initiative" Ordinance in South Jeolla
11 Members from 8 Countries... Laying the Foundation for Multicultural Crime Prevention

Members of the Foreigners' Volunteer Crime Prevention Unit at Yeongam Police Station, established as safety partners in the local community, are conducting crime prevention patrols in areas densely populated by foreigners. Photo by Yeongam Police Station

The Yeongam Police Station in South Jeolla Province, led by Chief Yang Junghwan, has established an institutional foundation for foreign residents to participate as key players in local public safety. For the first time in South Jeolla Province, it has enacted the "Support Ordinance for the Foreigners' Voluntary Crime Prevention Patrol."

On July 31, the Yeongam Police Station announced that, in cooperation with Yeongam County, it enacted the ordinance on July 24 to systematically support the autonomous public safety activities of the Foreigners' Voluntary Crime Prevention Patrol.

This ordinance addresses the previous difficulties in operating the patrol due to the lack of official support for expenses such as snacks, fuel, and uniforms. It is significant in that it establishes a legal and administrative basis to support the activities of the voluntary patrol.

In particular, the enactment of this ordinance is being recognized as a turning point that institutionally acknowledges the participation of foreign residents in public safety and enables them to become "safety partners" within the local community.

On May 23, the Yeongam Police launched the Foreigners' Voluntary Crime Prevention Patrol?comprising 11 members from 8 countries?for the first time in South Jeolla Province. Since then, the patrol has carried out various public safety activities, including crime prevention patrols and campaigns in areas with high concentrations of foreign residents.

Chief Yang Junghwan stated, "We will continue our cooperation and support so that foreigners can stand not as passive subjects of public safety, but as partners who help create a safer local community together."