President Moon: "Raising Social Distancing, Another Tough Battle... Apologies for the Hardships on Livelihood Economy"

President Moon Jae-in [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Son Sun-hee] On the 24th, when social distancing in the Seoul metropolitan area was raised to Level 2, President Moon Jae-in said, "We are facing another difficult war against the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), following last spring and summer," adding, "It is very regrettable and I feel sorry that the inconveniences in daily life are increasing again and the livelihood economy is suffering."

President Moon conveyed this message through his social network service (SNS) on the same day, saying, "However, there is no other way to prevent greater damage and more difficulties." He continued, "Now is the time to put more effort into quarantine," and added, "If we fail to break the chain of infection now, the burden and damage will become even greater."

In particular, he emphasized, "Safely conducting the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), which is just 9 days away, is the responsibility of our entire society," and said, "The best way at this moment is to curb the spread of COVID-19 as soon as possible. By achieving rapid quarantine results and shortening the application period of Level 2 social distancing to the maximum extent, we must protect the lives of the people and minimize damage."

President Moon said, "Recent COVID-19 infections are occurring simultaneously in various parts of daily life, with a high proportion among the young population who are very active," and added, "This shows that without greater efforts from the government and the vigilance and cooperation of the people, it is difficult to stop the spread of COVID-19. Only thorough social distancing and compliance with quarantine rules can block the silent transmission and spread."

He also said, "The people have already canceled or refrained from year-end and New Year gatherings and are taking the lead in quarantine efforts," and expressed deep gratitude for "showing mature civic consciousness by enduring inconveniences," adding, "The government will trust the people and further strengthen the quarantine system."

President Moon stated, "We will also do our best to resolve the difficulties of the livelihood economy," and urged, "We can wisely overcome the current crisis as we have done so far. I hope everyone will unite once again to restore stability to the COVID-19 situation as soon as possible."

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