"Self-Quarantined Individuals Roaming Freely Despite Possible Positive COVID-19 Diagnosis"

137 People Caught Violating Self-Quarantine Guidelines Including Unauthorized Departure... Average 6.4 Cases Per Day
Marking 'Home' on Self-Quarantine App and Leaving Phone in Quarantine Location to Sneak Out
Government Plans to Strengthen Monitoring System and Increase Penalties for Self-Quarantine Violators

On the morning of the 1st, when the mandatory two-week self-quarantine for all arrivals entering the country from abroad began, arrivals at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1 were waiting for the exclusive bus for overseas arrivals. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lim Juhyung] As the government is making every effort to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) by extending the high-intensity 'social distancing' period by two weeks, concerns are rising as some self-quarantined individuals are showing uncooperative attitudes by violating the guidelines.

Self-quarantined individuals who are confirmed COVID-19 patients or suspected of infection are violating regulations by moving around various places. In response, the government plans to strengthen surveillance of self-quarantined individuals and increase the severity of penalties for those who violate quarantine guidelines.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH), as of the 4th, the total number of self-quarantined individuals related to COVID-19 was 37,248, an increase of 13,840 over three days. The number of people caught violating guidelines such as unauthorized departure was 137, averaging 6.4 people per day. Among them, 59 cases (63 people) have been reported for prosecution, and police investigations are underway.

As the number of self-quarantined individuals continues to rise, cases of guideline violations are also increasing.

Earlier, Gunpo City in Gyeonggi Province announced on the 5th that it had reported to the police three people, including a COVID-19 confirmed patient Mr. A, his spouse, and their child, who violated self-quarantine rules by visiting places such as an art gallery and a lottery shop. The couple had been under self-quarantine since the 19th of last month. The husband was confirmed positive on the 1st, a day before the quarantine was to be lifted, and the wife tested positive on the 3rd.

It was confirmed that Mr. A and others set the location on the self-quarantine application installed on their smartphones to 'home' and then went out. According to Gunpo City's epidemiological investigation, during the 14-day self-quarantine period, the husband went out for 7 days and the wife for 6 days.

On the 22nd of last month, soldiers from the Army Capital Corps Special Forces Battalion supporting quarantine at Incheon Airport were checking the health questionnaires of passengers arriving on flights from China. / Photo by Yonhap News

On the 3rd, controversy arose when three Vietnamese international students attending a university in Gunsan, Jeonbuk, left their respective one-room apartments and stayed for about five hours at a nearby lake park before returning. They had entered Korea between the 28th of last month and the 1st of this month and were under self-quarantine for two weeks after testing negative for COVID-19.

It was found that the three had left their quarantine locations secretly, leaving their mobile phones behind to avoid location tracking. They exploited the fact that the self-quarantine app is based on smartphone location information. Gunsan City reported this to the Ministry of Justice and requested deportation procedures for the three individuals.

Given this situation, some citizens raised their voices criticizing those who violated self-quarantine guidelines.

A 32-year-old office worker, Mr. A, said, "Others are staying inside their homes every day to participate in social distancing, so it feels unpleasant that there is no consideration at all." He added, "If people do not voluntarily comply with self-quarantine, the government should use enforcement measures."

A 30-year-old graduate student, Mr. B, expressed, "It is very irresponsible to act like this when you might be a confirmed patient. Also, considering the public officials who work hard to manage self-quarantined individuals, this behavior is even more selfish."

On the afternoon of February 28, employees at the Gyeonggi-do branch of the Korean Red Cross in Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do, are preparing emergency relief kits for individuals under self-quarantine due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). / Photo by Yonhap News

As the controversy continued, a petition calling for strict punishment against these individuals was posted on the Blue House petition board.

In a post titled "Please impose punitive fines on those who ignore self-quarantine recommendations" posted on the Blue House National Petition Board on the 23rd of last month, the petitioner said, "The entire nation is making every effort to minimize community infections, so I cannot understand how grown adults can behave so thoughtlessly." They added, "Please use all legal measures to punish those who violate self-quarantine."

From the 5th, the government strengthened penalties for violations of COVID-19 related self-quarantine measures from the previous 'fines up to 3 million KRW' to 'imprisonment up to 1 year or fines up to 10 million KRW.'

Additionally, the surveillance system for those who leave self-quarantine will be strengthened. The CDCH plans to expand random inspections of self-quarantined individuals and establish dedicated agencies in each local government. They also plan to maintain a 24-hour real-time monitoring system using an integrated geographic information system dashboard.

Furthermore, a resident reporting system for those who leave quarantine will be operated through the Safe Report app and local government reporting centers, enabling public-private cooperation in monitoring violators.

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