Visitors to 'Itaewon Club' Hide for Fear of LGBTQ Stigma... Epidemiological Investigation Faces Difficulties

Seoul City "Only 637 of 1,946 on the list contacted... 1,309 unreachable"
LGBTQ+ Rights Solidarity, Some Media 'Outing' Club Visitors... Extreme Human Rights Violations and Hate Incitement
Korean Gay Rights Organizations "Huge Gap in Quarantine Network to Prevent Secondary Infections"

On the afternoon of the 8th, when additional infections of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) occurred at a club in Itaewon, Seoul, visited by patient number 66 from Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, the government issued an administrative order recommending the suspension of operations for one month at clubs and other entertainment facilities. A temporary closure notice is displayed on the screen in front of a voluntarily closed club in Itaewon, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] The epidemiological investigation into the COVID-19 cluster infection incident that occurred at a club in Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul is facing some difficulties.

As the club is known to be frequented by sexual minorities, there are concerns that visitors to the club may be avoiding voluntary testing and self-reporting due to fear of social criticism, and may have gone into hiding.

A sexual minority rights organization issued a statement expressing strong regret toward media outlets that reported the club as a "gay club."

At a COVID-19 emergency briefing held at Seoul City Hall at 2 p.m. on the 9th, Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon said, "A significant portion of the information on the lists created at the Itaewon clubs was inaccurate," adding, "Out of 1,946 people on the list, only 637 were contacted, and the remaining 1,309 are unreachable."

Mayor Park emphasized, "Seoul City, together with the police, will ensure that the 1,309 unreachable individuals undergo testing," and strongly urged, "We strongly recommend that they voluntarily undergo testing before that."

Seoul City plans to cooperate with the police to investigate credit card usage records and mobile phone usage details.

Given the situation, concerns are growing that confirming the movement paths of club visitors and conducting epidemiological investigations may be difficult.

Moreover, some media reports that the club is frequented by sexual minorities have led to situations of "outing," where sexual orientation or gender identity was disclosed without the consent of the individuals involved, raising further concerns that this may be causing club visitors to avoid testing.

On the 7th, Solidarity for LGBT Human Rights of Korea criticized ’s report, stating, "The report, which exhibited the confirmed patients' movement paths as if it were exclusive coverage, outed them, and almost relayed their records, is a serious human rights violation and extreme hate incitement," and added, "The competitive exposure of confirmed patients' information is not for disease prevention and control."

They continued, "The media's attitude of disclosing confirmed patients' sexual orientation and digging up information unrelated to the disease adds stigma to the disease on top of the widespread minority hatred in Korean society," emphasizing, "Inciting public opinion based on hatred only drives the disease underground and does not help prevention or control in any way."

The Korean gay rights organization 'Chingusai' also pointed out, "In a situation where receiving medical treatment proves that one was at that place on that day and reveals sexual orientation, it has become even more difficult to seek cooperation from contact citizens." They further criticized, "’s report created anxiety and fear about outing, causing those who had contact with confirmed patients to shrink back and hide outside the quarantine network, creating a huge gap in the prevention network for secondary infections."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, as of the 9th, at least 20 confirmed COVID-19 cases have been reported from the cluster infection that spread from the Itaewon-dong club.

Following Seoul and the metropolitan area, confirmed cases classified as infections from the club have also been reported in Busan, raising concerns that the so-called "Itaewon club-originated" COVID-19 may spread nationwide.

Kim Kang-lip, the first chief coordinator of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, said at a regular briefing held at the government Sejong office on the same day, "Among the 18 new confirmed cases yesterday, excluding one imported case, 17 are community infections related to the Yongin confirmed patient," adding, "Including 15 visitors to Itaewon related to the Yongin patient, a total of 20 people have been confirmed as of yesterday."

As of midnight on the day, additional confirmed cases related to patient A (29 years old), the 66th patient in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, include 12 in Seoul, 3 in Gyeonggi Province, 1 in Incheon, and 1 in Busan.

Including patient A himself, one friend who accompanied him to the club, and one coworker, the total reaches 20 people.

Among these, the cluster infection that started at the Itaewon club is spreading not only in Seoul and Gyeonggi, where patient A visited or resides, but also to Incheon and Busan.

Chief Coordinator Kim said, "Confirmed cases are appearing not only in Seoul and Gyeonggi but also in other regions, so we are not considering this as a case limited to the confirmed patients' residences," and added, "The Central Disease Control Headquarters and local governments are jointly operating emergency response teams to conduct epidemiological investigations in each region."

Gyeonggi Province plans to conduct on-site inspections of over 5,500 entertainment facilities such as clubs and bars, and will issue administrative orders to those not complying with quarantine rules.

Seoul City is investigating compliance with quarantine rules such as temperature checks upon entry, mask-wearing, list creation, and social distancing at five establishments visited by patient A.

Seoul City also plans to issue assembly restrictions and quarantine compliance orders to over 2,150 entertainment facilities within the city and conduct on-site inspections.

Incheon City is conducting diagnostic tests on contacts of confirmed patients from the Itaewon club and recommending voluntary suspension of operations at entertainment facilities.

Chief Coordinator Kim said, "To ensure the effectiveness of administrative orders, on-site inspections will be conducted in cooperation with local governments and the National Police Agency," adding, "We will check whether quarantine rules are properly followed on-site, and if violations occur, administrative guidance or fines will be imposed."

He continued, "During the holiday period, those who visited clubs such as King Club, Trunk Club, Queen, and other Itaewon clubs are strongly advised to refrain from going out and to get tested at screening clinics," and requested, "Even if you did not visit a club, if you visited Itaewon during the holiday period, please be cautious."

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