By Kim Rahn
Seoul will operate a team to receive reports on human rights violations and investigate such cases, the first of its kind among municipalities, the city government said Tuesday.
A department in charge of making policies to improve human rights will also be formed.
These developments come after the Seoul Metropolitan Council passed a bill to set up an ordinance for human rights a day before.
“So far, filing a petition with the National Human Rights Commission was the only option for those Korean citizens whose human rights were infringed upon by the city. But such citizens will be able to report their grievances to the city government directly, and we expect this to improve or amend related policies,” a city official said.
The team will be comprised of five experts on human rights, and they will get independence in receiving reports about human rights violation cases, giving counseling and investigating the situation. They will recommend the mayor to correct the policies in question.
“It is a kind of ombudsman system. We’ll hire the experts by the end of the year so that they can start work next January,” the official said.
Their investigations will cover human rights violations occurring within the city government, affiliated organizations, district offices and city-sponsored welfare facilities.
Not only the people who directly experience infringement but also those who know about the incidents can file a report.
Besides the team, the city government will establish a separate department that will take charge of evaluating and making policies related to human rights in cooperation with civic groups.
“The ordinance is a very basic rule covering human rights issues for all people including women, children and the disabled,” the official said.
Unlike other regulations, the ordinance doesn’t limit the scope of “citizens” to those whose residence is registered in Seoul, but expands the range to all people whose workplace is in the capital, he said.
Under the ordinance, Seoul City will also form a committee of 15 experts who will review human rights policies and recommend revisions of regulations which they think may go against citizens’ human rights.
All workers at the city government and affiliated organizations also need to receive education on human rights at least once a year.
The ordinance was part of Mayor Park Won-soon’s campaign pledge to ensure citizens’ rights.
Proposed at the council in June, it was passed with the approval of 62 among 66 council members participating in Monday’s session.