Prime Minister Jeong Announces "Year-End and New Year Enhanced Quarantine Special Measures... Applied Nationwide" (Update)

"Year-end and New Year Enhanced Quarantine Special Measures Implemented... Definitive Suppression of the 3rd Wave"
"Complete Suspension of Winter Sports Facilities Including Ski Resorts"
"Bold Closure of Major Tourist Attractions Crowded During Year-end and New Year"
"Private Gatherings of 5 or More Restricted... Significantly Strengthened Restaurant Quarantine Rules"
"Restricted Entry of Outsiders to Vulnerable Facilities Such as Nursing Homes... Prohibition of Private Gatherings for Workers"

Prime Minister Jeong Sye-kyun

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said on the 22nd, "The government will implement special measures to strengthen quarantine during the year-end and New Year holidays to practically block the spread of infections in daily life rather than making formal adjustments to the social distancing levels."

Prime Minister Chung stated this during a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) for COVID-19 response held at the Government Seoul Office. He said, "There has been much social discussion about whether to raise the social distancing level as nearly 1,000 confirmed cases have been reported daily for almost a week."

He expressed, "These special measures will be implemented nationwide from the day before Christmas until the end of the New Year holidays, including quarantine measures stronger than social distancing level 3, aiming to firmly suppress the momentum of the third wave."

He continued, "First, to prevent the upcoming two holidays from becoming a trigger for the spread of COVID-19, we will completely suspend the operation of winter sports facilities including ski resorts and boldly close major tourist attractions that attract crowds during the year-end and New Year holidays."

He also emphasized, "We will restrict private gatherings of five or more people and significantly strengthen the quarantine rules applied to restaurants to thoroughly block the chain of infection in daily life."

Furthermore, he added, "Vulnerable facilities such as nursing hospitals, nursing facilities, and psychiatric hospitals, where large-scale group infections continue, will be strictly managed with measures including controlling external visitors, banning private gatherings of workers, and conducting regular proactive testing."

Prime Minister Chung said, "These strengthened quarantine measures will be applied consistently throughout the country, and local governments will not be allowed to relax the standards, preventing the spread of infections from one region to another."

He then urged, "The message the government asks of the people through these special measures is clear: Please cancel or suspend all gatherings and travels during Christmas and the year-end and New Year holidays, and we earnestly request that you stay at home."

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