Recently, an attempted arson occurred in the hallway in front of the Minister's office on the 6th floor of Building 11 at the Government Complex Sejong. A man in his 50s, identified as A, was subdued by public officials after he poured a flammable substance on the floor and tried to ignite it with a torch (a flame-generating device).

The incident flashed a "red light" for security at the Sejong complex. Like the presidential office and the National Intelligence Service, this complex is a class A national key facility that requires the highest level of security.

The lobby on the first floor of Building 11 at the Government Complex Sejong's Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL). On the 25th last month, a complainant in his 50s, Mr. A, vaulted this type of glass wall (marked in red) installed next to the security checkpoint and gate, entered the building, and attempted arson. /Courtesy of Park So-jung

◇ Carrying flammable liquid and a torch up to the 6th-floor Minister's office… "Complex security breached multiple times"

It was found that while A entered the Sejong complex from outside on the 25th and went up from the 1st floor to the 6th floor of the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) building, the complex's security was breached multiple times. First, A reportedly faced no restraint when entering inside the complex fence while carrying a flammable substance and a torch.

A then passed through the 1st floor of the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) building without a security check. There was a 1.2-meter-high screen next to the checkpoint, and A is said to have used a delivered box of bottled water as a stepping stone to leap over it.

A then took an elevator straight up to the 6th floor, where the Minister's office of the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) is located. An official at a private security firm said, "Given that A was carrying a flammable substance and a torch, it should have been easy to notice, which suggests a problem with the Sejong complex's security system."

This is not the first time security at the Sejong complex has been breached. In 2021, a person who had taken drugs roamed the Sejong complex for three hours and approached near the Minister's office at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, but was apprehended belatedly after leaving. And in 2023, a man entered the Sejong complex with a gas gun tucked in his waistband and was barely caught on his way out.

Scene of the attempted arson at the Government Complex Sejong's Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL). /Courtesy of Sejong Fire Department Headquarters

◇ A layout that goes straight to ministries' buildings without external civil service offices… Government: "We will build service offices"

The Sejong complex consists of 15 buildings occupied by ministries, all connected to each other. With a total length of 3.5 kilometers, it is listed in the Guinness World Records as the world's longest public complex.

The Government Buildings Management Office has announced measures such as "fence motion detection sensors" and "expanded installation of CCTV" after each past intrusion, but similar incidents have not been eradicated.

After this attempted arson, the management office said it will build more civil service offices. It plans to build separate civil service offices outside each ministry building so that people must pass through them to enter the complex.

A view of the Government Complex Sejong. The low buildings are laid out in a long, winding line so that from the sky they appear in the shape of a dragon. /Courtesy of Government Complex Management Office

This draws on what distinguishes the Sejong complex from the complexes in Seoul, Gwacheon, and Daejeon. At the Seoul, Gwacheon, and Daejeon complexes, identity verification and checkpoint screening are completed in a separate external civil service office building before one can enter each ministry building.

In contrast, the Sejong complex has no separate civil service office building as a first gate apart from the complex. Each ministry building has its own entrance, and anyone can reach the first-floor lobby by simply showing a resident registration card or driver's license to security staff at the main gate. Identity checks and belongings inspections take place after that. It means one can head straight into each ministry building without a security check.

A government official said, "We are reviewing plans such as installing one external civil service office building for every two to three buildings at the Sejong complex," adding, "We have begun drawing up the plan."

An official at a private security firm said, "Simply saying more civil service office buildings will be built seems insufficient to stop trespassing," adding, "It appears necessary to strengthen training and drills for security personnel and to review the duty system."

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