Abstract
The burden of addressing the damage and financial losses caused by disaster events falls primarily on local governments. Given this reality, preparing for disasters and assessing the effects of disaster management would be more effective if both were carried out at the local level. However, disaster management in South Korea is realized at the national level, revolving around the central government. The Ministry of Public Safety and Security, which was newly established after the sinking of MV Sewol, was criticized for failing to carrying out its role as a "disaster control tower" in dealing with the earthquakes near the city of Gyeongju in 2016. The criticism, as well as deep anxiety concerning the ministry's ability to effectively respond to disasters, means that there is a need for a practical alternative plan to the current method of dealing with disasters. As such, there is an increasing call to re-examine the role of the police force, which played an integral part in past disaster response efforts, in future disaster events. Among the various activities the police force performs, this study focused on one particular role and function of the police, namely community policing. Specifically, this study examined community policing within the context of local governments. The primary purpose of community policing is crime prevention. But the police must respond to citizens' expectations and desires that the police expand the scope of its role. Thus, to maximize public safety and order, the police must be actively engaged in conducting disaster response activities. Hence, this study concentrated on the measures, including community policing, that need to be taken to enable the police to respond rapidly and effectively to disaster events, thereby minimizing losses, and to contribute meaningfully to disaster recovery efforts. Because community policing requires public cooperation, community-oriented disaster response and disaster management are closely examined. This study basically seeks to expand the scope of community policing to strengthen disaster safety. Furthermore, this study aims to assert that disaster safety can be promoted by establishing a cooperation system between the police and private security; changing how the role of community policing in disaster response activities is perceived; increasing professional manpower and establishing a comprehensive and independent department dedicated to disaster-related matters; and merging consultative organizations into one organization. Additionally, this study states that an integrated CCTV platform and police cars on disaster prevention patrol duties would enhance the capability of the police to respond to disasters and perform their community policing activities.
재난의 특성상 재난이 발생할 경우 지방정부차원에서 피해와 재정적 부담을 가져가야 하기 때문에 효과적으로 재난을 대비하고 재난관리 성과를 평가하기 위해서는 지역사회 단위로 접근해야 하나, 현재 우리나라는 중앙정부 위주로 재난관리가 이루어지고 있다. 실제로 세월호 사건 이후 재난안전 강화를 위해 신설된 국민안전처가 2016년 경주지진사건 등에서도 재난컨트롤타워로서의 제 기능을 하지 못한다는 비난과 염려가 제기되어 또 다른 실질적 대안이 필요한 시점이다. 이에 따라 재난대응 유관기관인 경찰조직의 재난관리 활동 및 역할에 관심이 대두되고 있어 본 연구에서는 경찰활동 중 특히 지역사회 경찰활동을 중점으로 지방정부차원에서 접근하고자 하였다. 물론 기존 지역사회 경찰활동은 범죄 예방활동이 주 업무이지만 경찰서비스의 확대를 기대하는 사회적 요구에 따라 경찰은 범죄예방에 국한하지 않고 지역주민의 안전과 지역사회의 질서를 위해 재난대응에도 적극적으로 개입하여야 한다. 따라서 재난 발생 시 신속하고 효과적으로 대응하여 피해를 최소화할 수 있도록 지역사회 경찰활동의 역할 및 범위를 재정립하고자 하였다. 또한, 지역사회 경찰활동은 지역주민과의 협조가 필수적이기 때문에 주민밀착형 재난대응 및 안전관리가 이루어지는 것을 중점으로 논의하였다. 연구결과, 본 연구에서는 재난안전 강화를 위한 지역사회 경찰활동 확대방안으로 지역경찰의 재난 활동에 대한 인식전환과 사경비와의 협력 체계 구축, 순찰차의 재난예방 활동과 초동조치, CCTV 통합 플랫폼 구축 등을 제시하여 경찰의 재난 대응 역량을 강화하고자 하였다.
