S. Korean police to wear new uniforms starting in June

SEOUL, May 29 (Yonhap) -- South Korean police will start wearing new uniforms starting in June, the government said Sunday.

The new uniforms are to be worn by all officers starting on Wednesday and will come in two different versions, one for ordinary police and another for those tasked with traffic control, the National Police Agency (NPA) said.

The shirt of the ordinary police officer uniform will be bluish green in color with navy blue trousers. Traffic police uniform shirts will be ivory white, to make them more noticeable on the street, with a stripe running down the sides of the navy blue trousers to distinguish them from ordinary police officers.

The current uniform is made up of a white shirt and dark blue pants. This uniform was first introduced 10 years ago, and there have been calls for a change for some time.

The NPA said the switch aims to instill confidence among the general public in its officers while at the same time helping to make the officers more approachable.

The uniforms will also incorporate symbols found on the Korean flag such as the Taeguk and the four trigram that represents the four classical elements. These symbols will be used on the badge, sleeves and epaulets.

"The new design is more modern, functional and easily recognizable," an NPA official said.

He then said new dress and tactical uniforms for officers will reach front line police units in stages, with all uniforms to be changed by 2019.

yonngong@yna.co.kr
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