Seoul: More than 350 disciplinary actions against police officers have been reduced, overturned, or nullified over the past five years through appeals, data showed Sunday. According to Yonhap News Agency, the data was released by Rep. Park Sang-woong of the main opposition People Power Party, based on figures received from the National Police Agency. These cases totaled 354 from 2021 to 2025.

The figures raise concerns that police disciplinary actions carry little weight, given how often the outcomes are reversed through appeal proceedings. Meanwhile, the number of appeals filed rose to 411 last year, marking an increase of 34.3 percent from 2021.

In some instances, officers facing dismissal appealed and retained their positions. Notably, an officer dismissed over a drunk driving offense was reinstated following an appeal. The importance of the disciplinary system has grown, experts say, in light of recent misconduct and negligence cases that have alarmed the public. These include a missing woman incident on Jeju Island, where a police officer quietly dropped the investigation and closed the case. Another high-profile case involves a murder in Gwangju, where the suspect's father, a police officer, is suspected of assisting in covering it up.

Rep. Park has called for stronger monitoring of police misconduct cases and tighter enforcement of discipline within the police force. Conversely, Lee Yung-hyeock, a professor at Konkuk University in Seoul, suggested that the frequent reversals on appeal might indicate that initial investigations could be flawed or based on insufficient evidence against the officers involved.