"Why on earth is Daegu like this?" Impact of COVID-19... Serious Daegu Disparagement

Increase in COVID-19 Cases After Daegu Church Shincheonji Member Tests Positive
Teen Male from Daegu Tests Positive After Visiting Busan Club
Daegu City Faces Controversy Over Punishment for Not Wearing Masks
Open Mockery and Hate Speech Against Daegu by Some

Kwon Young-jin, Mayor of Daegu. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] Hate speech targeting Daegu is pouring in. Earlier, after a Shincheonji Daegu Church member was confirmed positive for the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), the number of confirmed cases began to surge. Some blamed Daegu for the spread of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, a man from Daegu about to enlist in the military visited a club in Busan and was confirmed positive, leading to criticism that Busan might become like Daegu.

Additionally, Daegu City announced that it would punish those who do not wear masks, sparking another controversy. As a result, some have openly made derogatory remarks about the Daegu region.

Summarizing the situation, the increase in COVID-19 cases after the confirmation of Shincheonji church members in Daegu, the violation of 'social distancing' by visiting clubs and subsequent positive cases, and the punishment for not wearing masks have all combined to fuel voices belittling Daegu.

◆ Kwon Young-jin: "We will issue an administrative order mandating mask-wearing"…Strong protests from citizens

On the 5th, Daegu Mayor Kwon Young-jin announced in a statement, "Daegu strongly recommends all citizens to make mask-wearing a daily habit and will issue an administrative order mandating mask-wearing on public transportation such as buses, subways, taxis, and in public facilities."

He added, "After a one-week period of promotion and guidance, the order will be strictly enforced starting May 13, when the third-year high school students return to school," emphasizing this repeatedly.

Those who violate this will be reported under the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act and face fines up to 3 million won.

Citizens immediately expressed dissatisfaction. Harsh criticism such as "Are they threatening us with masks?" poured in. A 30-year-old office worker from Daegu, Mr. A, said, "I cannot agree with the idea of forcing mask-wearing and imposing fines," and added, "Above all, I don't understand why such a policy is being implemented now."

Another 30-year-old office worker, Mr. B, said, "They are threatening us with masks," and pointed out, "Punishing people for not wearing masks will inevitably cause unfair cases."

Daegu Jung-gu Kyungpook National University Hospital Emergency Room
[Image source=Yonhap News]

◆ Citizens mock and criticize the series of situations in Daegu…Government says "Criticism is unjustified"

Meanwhile, incomprehensible reactions targeting Daegu continue. Some expressions are close to hate speech.

A 40-year-old office worker living in Seoul, Mr. C, said, "Again Daegu? I don't understand why Daegu keeps causing problems in this COVID-19 situation."

Another 30-year-old, Mr. D, said, "Looking at Daegu during this COVID crisis is really frustrating," adding, "The mask punishment controversy is the same."

One netizen openly disparaged Daegu, saying, "What exactly is wrong with Daegu? If it weren't for Daegu, the COVID-19 situation would have been over long ago."

This remark is interpreted as blaming Daegu for the rapid increase in COVID-19 cases from Shincheonji church members and holding Daegu responsible for the outbreak.

Criticism targeting Daegu had occurred earlier as well. When the so-called 'Shincheonji Jesus Church of the Testimony of the Kingdom of God Daegu Church cluster infection' occurred, disparaging remarks about Daegu flooded various online communities.

Personal attacks against Mayor Kwon also followed. One netizen mocked, "Isn't Mayor Kwon a Shincheonji member, so he can't strongly block the COVID-19 situation?" However, Mayor Kwon's religion is Christianity, and he is a Presbyterian deacon.

At that time, when suspicions about him being a Shincheonji member arose, Mayor Kwon posted on his Facebook on March 11, saying, "The battlefield is a furnace. Come at me as much as you want." He added, "It's been 22 days since I started fighting while sleeping on a field bed. Yes, come at me as much as you want. I will face it boldly... I am already prepared to die," and "Even if I die, I will see this war through to the end. I will definitely protect Daegu."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, on the 26th of last month, when a teenage male from Daegu who was about to enlist visited clubs and pubs in Busan and was confirmed positive for COVID-19, hate speech intensified.

At that time, more than 500 people gathered at the club the man visited. Criticism arose that people from Daegu were spreading COVID-19. Some even suggested that Busan might soon become like Daegu.

One netizen said, "Why always Daegu? What does Daegu really have to do with COVID-19?" and continued baseless accusations, "If confirmed cases surge in Busan, know it's because of Daegu." Another netizen said, "They should just quarantine Daegu completely," adding, "That's the only way to stop COVID-19," spewing abusive language.

Amid the flood of critical remarks toward Daegu, the government urged people to stop discrimination and hate against regions with many COVID-19 cases.

Son Young-rae, head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters' Strategic Planning Division, said at a regular briefing on the 2nd, "Recently, there have been unfortunate incidents such as discrimination against recovered patients or those from regions with many cases, and hate against outsiders visiting tourist spots."

He added, "The virus infects people randomly; it does not distinguish by origin or region, and anyone can be infected," emphasizing, "Assigning moral responsibility or blaming others for infection is unjustified."

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