Yoo Deok-yeol, Dongdaemun-gu Mayor, Promotes Social Distancing 'Temporary Pause'

Promotion of refraining from outings and gatherings targeting district residents, local communities, and the public sector... Support for vulnerable groups and emergency childcare to minimize gaps during the temporary pause implementation

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Dongdaemun-gu (Mayor Yoo Deok-yeol) has decided to actively promote the ‘Pause for a Moment’ project, a social distancing initiative targeting residents, the local community, and the public sector, to prevent the spread of COVID-19 within the community.

To encourage participation in the ‘Pause for a Moment’ guidelines?such as refraining from going out, postponing gatherings, avoiding meetings with others, wearing masks, and practicing hand hygiene?extensive promotional activities will be conducted. The initiative aims to share a sense of crisis and encourage cooperation across all social sectors including organizations, businesses, culture, sports, religion, and education.

Measures will also be thoroughly implemented to minimize any gaps caused by the ‘Pause for a Moment’ implementation.

For promotion, campaigns are posted on the Dongdaemun-gu Office website, social networking services (SNS), and local broadcasts. Additionally, 37 IPTV units installed inside and outside the district office are used to broadcast campaign videos an average of 47 times daily.

Moreover, banners and posters have been displayed throughout the district at the district and neighborhood offices, public facilities (libraries, welfare centers, privately commissioned facilities, etc.), public bulletin boards, and electronic display boards. Community leaders, professional organizations, and sports group members have also been informed of the campaign via text messages, social networking services, and Band.

Internally, to maintain distancing, telecommuting is being implemented for pregnant employees, those with childcare responsibilities, and high-risk staff. Flexible working hours are also operated to reduce congestion on public transportation during commuting times.

Unnecessary meetings and business trips are being avoided, and meetings are encouraged to be held via video conferencing whenever possible. Access to the district office cafeteria is restricted to outsiders, and employee meal times are staggered into three sessions.

Support for small and medium-sized enterprises and small business owners to participate in telecommuting is provided in cooperation with Seoul City by establishing telecommuting systems.

To reduce interpersonal contact opportunities as much as possible within the district, self-disinfection is being carried out at dance halls, dance academies, and colatecs, and temporary closures continue to be requested.

In addition, cooperation is sought to refrain from group events by religious organizations, and closures of academies and private tutoring centers are recommended.

The district is taking various measures to minimize inconvenience to residents caused by social distancing.

Operation of private sports and cultural facilities is being recommended to be suspended, and to enable anyone, including the elderly, to exercise at home, the Dongdaemun-gu Sports Council website has posted the Naver TV video ‘Let’s Exercise, Seoul!’

To minimize childcare gaps caused by daycare center closures, emergency childcare services are being provided along with meals and snacks at each facility. For 330 elderly residents who have difficulty securing meals due to the suspension of senior meal services, substitute meals are being distributed. For 212 socially vulnerable elderly living alone, IoT devices are being supplied to monitor their safety in real time.

To minimize damage to small business owners and self-employed individuals, a total of 6 billion KRW in emergency funds is being invested, and the ‘Good Rent’ relay campaign is being expanded.

Yoo Deok-yeol, Mayor of Dongdaemun-gu, stated, “We are mobilizing all administrative resources to implement quarantine and promotional measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 infections in the community, and we continue to suspend operations of multi-use facilities to block interpersonal contact. We ask all residents to participate in the social distancing ‘Pause for a Moment’ campaign for the time being.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.