Chungnam Extends 'Religious Facility Gathering Ban' Until the 6th of Next Month

On the 28th, a closure notice was posted at Bitgaon Church in Nowon-gu, Seoul, where a cluster infection of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) occurred. The photo is unrelated to the article. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy (Naepo) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Chungnam Province announced on the 31st that it will extend the administrative order banning gatherings at religious facilities, originally set to expire on the 31st of this month, by one week until midnight on the 6th of next month.

The extension of the gathering ban administrative order was decided in consideration of the ongoing cluster infections related to religious facilities nationwide and the implementation of social distancing level 2.5 in the metropolitan area.

Accordingly, all 4,108 religious facilities in Chungnam Province are only allowed to conduct non-face-to-face activities, and all in-person events, meetings, and meal provisions are completely prohibited.

However, up to 20 people are permitted to gather for video recording and broadcasting for non-face-to-face worship services, provided they comply with quarantine guidelines.

Meanwhile, the province conducted a full inspection of 3,113 churches on the 30th and identified 60 facilities in violation. Among these, 10 facilities will be reported to relevant authorities for forcibly holding in-person worship services despite receiving first warnings, and the province plans to urge the remaining 50 facilities to comply with the administrative order again.

Additionally, if cluster infections occur at facilities that fail to comply with the administrative order, the province plans to claim compensation (subrogation rights) for related costs such as testing fees, investigation fees, treatment fees, and quarantine expenses.

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