Seoul, March 24 North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has unveiled a plan to introduce a police system in what might be a bid to shed its image as a reclusive country, where public security forces have traditionally carried out policing roles.
The Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) will review the introduction of the "police system" at a future session, Kim said Monday on the second and final day of the first session of the newly elected 15th SPA, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
The move is aimed at "further solidifying and developing our legal and social systems by revamping legal regulations and establishing more effective and practical organisational systems to guarantee national security and social stability," Kim noted.
He called a police system "essential" to state operations, emphasising the need to advance the maintenance of public order to a higher level, reports Yonhap news agency, quoting KCNA.
The leader called for thorough preparations to transform social security forces into police forces once a police system is formally established, signalling that the Ministry of Social Security, which oversees public order, might be converted into a police body.
An official at Seoul's unification ministry assessed that the move may be intended to establish a police system commonly adopted by other countries, suggesting the country is making efforts to shed its image as a reclusive nation.
In what might be a similar move, the Ministry of State Security, which monitors and suppresses dissidents, has recently been renamed the state information bureau.
The recent SPA session also renamed its Constitution from the Socialist Constitution to simply the Constitution.
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