Changwon City Cancels Traditional Festival 'Masannalje' Over COVID-19 Spread Concerns

Scenes from the 'Masannamnanje' festival held last year. This year's festival was completely canceled as a measure to prevent COVID-19. (Photo by Changwon City)

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Hwang Choi Hyun-joo] Changwon City in Gyeongnam announced on the 10th that it has canceled the ‘Masannamnanje Festival,’ one of the largest local festivals, to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

The Masannamnanje Festival is a unique festival based on the touching reunion legend between a mother and daughter passed down since the Goryeo Dynasty, sublimating meeting and longing into a place of harmony. The Masannamnanje Festival Organizing Committee made this decision following the government’s designation of the Chuseok holiday period as a special quarantine period.

As the full cancellation of the festival is expected to impact the revitalization of the local economy and cultural and artistic activities, plans are underway to prepare small-scale online traditional cultural and artistic performances under the theme of ‘Online Meeting Week.’

Hwang Gyu-jong, Director of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau, stated, “The Masannamnanje Festival, a major local event, has been canceled due to the spread of COVID-19,” adding, “We are actively reviewing various cultural and artistic support measures, including improving accessibility through online and offline methods, to prevent local cultural and artistic activities from falling into stagnation.”

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