Latest news with #civilianleadership
The Independent
14 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
South Korean president names first civilian defence minister in over 60 years
South Korea's new leader has named a civilian defence chief for the first time in over six decades as he seeks to move the country on from his predecessor's disastrous attempt to impose martial law. President Lee Jae Myung nominated five-term liberal lawmaker Ahn Gyu Back as the defence minister, breaking with a tradition of appointing retired military generals. Mr Ahn, a lawmaker from the ruling Democratic Party, has served on the National Assembly's defence committee and chaired a legislative panel that investigated the circumstances surrounding former president Yoon Suk Yeol 's botched martial law declaration. His appointment comes as prominent former defence officials, including former defence minister Kim Yong Hyun, face criminal trials over their roles in imposing martial law last December. Mr Ahn faces a legislative confirmation hearing but the process is likely to be a formality since the Democrats hold a comfortable majority in the National Assembly and legislative consent isn't required for Mr Lee to appoint him. If his nomination is approved, Mr Ahn will become the first civilian defence minister since the military coup of 1961 brought dictator Park Chung Hee to power. All of South Korea 's defence ministers since that coup have come from the military. The trend continued even after the country's democratisation in the late 1980s. "As the first civilian minister of defence in 64 years, he will be responsible for leading and overseeing the transformation of the military after its mobilisation in martial law," Kang Hoon Sik, the president's chief of staff, said, referring to Mr Ahn. The newly elected president also named lawmaker Chung Dong Young as the unification minister and Cho Hyun, the former permanent representative to the UN, as his foreign minister. Mr Cho served as Seoul's point person for relations with North Korea from 2004 to 2005. Kim Young Hoon, a railway driver and former president of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, was nominated as labour minister. Mr Lee named 11 ministers on Monday as he worked to form a cabinet and staff his office. He took office earlier this month without a transition period as Mr Yoon had been ousted for breaching the duties of his office with the martial law decree.
CNA
15 hours ago
- Politics
- CNA
South Korea gets first civilian defence minister in 60 years
SEOUL: South Korea's government on Monday (Jun 23) appointed the country's first civilian defence minister in more than 60 years, after growing calls for stronger oversight of the military. It comes after a failed martial law attempt in December that led to the impeachment of ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol. Veteran lawmaker Ahn Gyu-back is "the first civilian to lead the ministry in 64 years", said presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik at a news conference on Monday. "He is expected to push reforms in the military, particularly in response to its involvement in the martial law," he added. During his election campaign, President Lee Jae Myung had promised to appoint a defence minister from the "civilian circle", responding to widespread public calls for control of the military in the wake of the martial law crisis. South Korea's former president Yoon was impeached and suspended by lawmakers over his Dec 3 attempt to subvert civilian rule, which saw armed soldiers deployed to parliament. Kim Yong-hyun, who served as defence minister under Yoon, has been under arrest since December and is currently on trial for insurrection, accused of recommending martial law to the former president and drafting the decree. Previous liberal administrations have attempted to appoint a "civilian" defence minister, but have failed to do so, many citing the growing threat of North Korea's nuclear programme. Ties between the two Koreas deteriorated under the hardline administration of the hawkish ex-president. They technically remain at war because the 1950-53 conflict ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty. Lee has vowed to improve relations with the North and reduce tensions on the peninsula, halting the loudspeaker broadcasts Seoul had begun last year in response to a barrage of trash-filled balloons flown southward by Pyongyang. In response, a day after, North Korea stopped broadcasting strange and unsettling noises along the border which the ministry hailed as "a meaningful opportunity to ease inter-Korean military tensions and restore mutual trust".
CBS News
19-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Minneapolis police hire civilian bureau chiefs to lead internal affairs, constitutional policing efforts
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara announced Monday that he hired two civilians to lead bureaus within the department in what he said marked a "historic change" within the city's police force. Ayodele Famodu will serve as the chief of the Internal Affairs Bureau and Ganesha Martin as the chief of the Constitutional Policing Bureau. They're the first civilians to hold executive positions within the Minneapolis Police Department. In the past, only sworn officers had taken on the roles. They will lead the department as it navigates a federal consent decree and a court-ordered settlement agreement with the state of Minnesota. Investigations from the U.S. Department of Justice and the Minnesota Department of Human Rights found city police had engaged in a pattern of race-based discrimination. O'Hara said he had personally recruited Famodu and Martin, mirroring moves other large cities such as Los Angeles and Philadelphia have made to include civilians among their executive leadership staff. "These new leaders bring invaluable experience and expertise that will help guide our continued transformation as a forward-thinking, community-focused department," said O'Hara. Famodu previously worked as the assistant attorney general for the State of Minnesota. In her new role she will oversee all internal investigations and guide the internal affairs division, force investigations team and candidate investigations. Chief of the Internal Affairs Bureau Ayodele Famodu (left), Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara (center), Chief of the Constitutional Policing Bureau Ganesha Martin (right) Martin worked as the chief of staff to the Baltimore police commissioner and guided the Baltimore police through federal consent decree compliance from 2015 to 2018. "It's an honor and privilege to join the Minneapolis Police Department, both sworn-in civilians have committed to restructuring, building, transparency and trust within the community," said Famodu. "I really try to focus in this work in centering the voices of both police and community. I think that's the only way that you can have sustainable reform," Martin said. The pair bring a "higher level of expertise than anything the department has had before," O'Hara said.
