The public was also awakened by the recent spy scandal.
People recognized that they should not give any loopholes to the enemy as much as the soldiers and police.
Perhaps that was why they seemed to accept the revival of the police intelligence service without much objection.
The reason why the government failed to detect the spy civic activists early was because of such loopholes.
Many people started to autonomously report suspicious acts to the police or public offices. It was quite unusual as Kazakh people naturally did not like to be involved in other people’s affairs. They now began to take an interest in their surroundings.
It was proof that the Kazakh people’s view of the country was firmly in place.
After his visit to the National Police Agency, Youngho visited the temporary palace of the Royal Armored Division on the outskirts of Astana.
Shortly after his arrival, Prime Minister Kasim and several other Cabinet members came to see him. They were too curious about the result of today’s event to wait until tomorrow.
Prime Minister Kasim greeted Youngho.
“Your Highness, I hope we are not interrupting your rest. I heard that the event went well today.”
“I should have visited the National Police Agency early. I regret coming alone without the queen. It was nice to see the spirits of the police alive. I could read the determined willingness of the police officers in their eyes.”
“Your visit itself must have been a morale booster for them. I’m sure they wanted to show you something.”
“They should be recognized by the people, not me. I hope their determination stays that way.”
“The police have no choice but to look at the power. The key is how we control and use the organization.”
“I told Kaliyev to stand by the people, and he said he would be loyal to the royal family.”
“Well, it is the basic position of a government official to support the will of the authority. It’s only natural to say that.”
“I’m also worried that Kaliyev seems too power-oriented.”
“Your Highness, what’s the matter when he wants to be loyal to the royal family? It’s inspiring. Kazakhstan and Central Asia are still in a transitional period, and it’s a great force to have an organization willing to be loyal to the royal family. The more loyal the royal family, the more stable Kazakhstan will become.”
“Aren’t you afraid that too much power is concentrated in the royal family?”
“If the regime stabilizes, the people will be relieved. It’s rather fortunate. The military and police are double-edged swords, and I think it’s encouraging if both organizations are loyal to the royal family. If we can only control the two organizations effectively, then there’s no more worry about it.”
“It was a great decision to visit the National Police Agency this time. You gave the police a sense of pride. Your Highness, why don’t you give the police a small gift?”
“You’re asking me to reward them for nothing in particular?”
“I’m saying we could give the police a mark with a royal pattern, like the Royal Armored Division or the Navy, to give them a sense of pride as the Royal Police. It would be a great honor to be given the title of the royal police officer at this time.”
Kasim meant to give the police a boost of encouragement by renaming the organization as Royal Police.
Since it was not a difficult thing, Youngho gladly agreed.
“Well, that’s a good idea. I’ll talk to the queen.”
***
The task of changing the name of the police, one of the government-affiliated organizations, as the Royal Police was easily done by revising related laws.
The police would still be funded by the people’s taxes and a government’s organization.
“Would it make any difference if its name is changed to the Royal Police?”
It was Kim Chun’s words.
He had deep distrust in the police organization as it had been worse than backstreet bullies since the Soviet era.
“It’s not going to be the same as before because it’s been reformed.”
“Only the leadership has changed, but the working-level officers are the same. Some people worry that they will start to be arrogant again with the royal family on their backs.”
The public view was that it was possible to change the police that had been committing irregularities.
“It’ll do well because of the weight of carrying the name of the royal family. Let’s keep an eye on it.”
“I hope so. The police have been a pure embarrassment of Kazakhstan.”
The former regime had more than 100,000 police officers for a population of less than 20 million.
The reason for the large number of police officers was to maintain its authority as it worked under the former regime.
So as soon as he took power, Youngho started with reforming and shuffling the police organization.
Except for 40,000 officers, the minimum number needed for security, the government had deployed the rest of the officers to the Russian border to protect the border.
***
The atmosphere of the police organization had changed drastically since they were named royal police officers.
The police were starting to take pride in themselves.
There was nothing to say about the public security as it was known to be great already, and law and order naturally took their place when the police worked in a strict manner.
It was a change in just a few weeks, and the public could feel it.
Previously, police officers were busy nitpicking people’s petty affairs, but simple violations of the basic order were handled only by a warning or a simple reprimand.
Although it was only a small change, the impact on the whole of society was huge.
As the basic order was slowly being taken care of, the sense of citizenship was also becoming more sophisticated.
“Look, it only changed its name, but it feels like the world has changed. Now I’m relieved.”
Youngho’s voice was brighter than ever at the royal conference room.
Despite concerns surrounding the area, the police organization proved its worth to Kazakhstan.
“I think the Police Chief Kaliyev is determined.”
Kaliyev visited the royal territory every single day to report on the police’s work and progress.
The reason why he visited the royal family was that although it was a government-affiliated institution, it was now called the Royal Police.
The fact that the police chief could hold an exclusive meeting with the Duke frequently meant that he would report domestic information. It was strengthening the royal family as well because the duties of the police were endless.
In addition to domestic intelligence service, police engaged in all sorts of things, such as policing, preventing crimes, guarding major facilities, and maintaining social order.
“Your Highness, there is a lot of talk about the police chief pressing too aggressively because of your support. Why don’t you keep a little distance?”
“The intelligence chief seems to be keeping the police chief in check too much these days. The police organization is like a young seedling. Let’s help it grow. If the police are cooperative with the royal family, it’ll be convenient for the Intelligence Service, too.”
Park Jong-il was worried that too much power was being given to the police organization.
It felt like leaving a knife to a child.
“It’s so bad that the intelligence officers at each agency are in trouble. The police aren’t even an inspector, but I think they went too far.”
“I guess it’s because it hasn’t found its place yet. Intelligence Chief, you should coach the police organization. The Intelligence Service is superior in the governmental system.”
Youngho was going to let it pass if it was not causing harm.
It was because the Prime Minister was in charge of the organization.
“The police are independent, so the Intelligence Service can’t be involved… I think it’ll work faster if Your Highness gives a warning message to the police. If there’s a problem, it’s better to fix it right away than to wait.”
“Let’s leave it up to the government since the Prime Minister is in charge. If the intelligence service has any problems with the police, please let him know.”
“I’m afraid there will be a word that says the Intelligence Service is wary of the police.”
These days, Park Jong-il had a lot of problems with the police intelligence department.
This was because the status of the Intelligence Service had shrunk since the police intelligence department was activated.
Since there were overlapping tasks and police officers were overwhelmingly involved in handling information, causing both organizations to clash with each other.
Although the Intelligence Service was said to be solely responsible for external affairs, there was no external issue that was not linked to domestic affairs.
“Do you have any information exchange between the two agencies?”
“The police intelligence agency is a new institution, and the police agents are not well-trained enough. It is desirable for the national interest not to disclose information that may be leaked to the outside world.”
“You don’t believe in police intelligence.”
“To be honest, yes. It doesn’t have elite intelligence agents, and we know that their system is not organized.”
“Then how about training the police intelligence department at the Intelligence Service? If both organizations work together, it will be more efficient.”
“I’ll meet with Kaliyev to find a way.”
It was only then that Park Jong-il’s expression was slightly relaxed.
This was because he was told his Intelligence Service could train the police intelligence department.
