Golf limited to 4 people including caddies... Refrain from visiting parents' homes during year-end and New Year holidays

Seo Jeong-hyeop, Acting Mayor of Seoul, Urges Voluntary Compliance with Ban on Gatherings of Five or More People

Seo Jeong-hyeop, Acting Mayor of Seoul, is holding a press conference on the 21st at the Seoul City Hall press room regarding the ban on gatherings of five or more people from midnight on the 23rd until the 3rd of next month. Photo by Kang Jin-hyeong aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] Starting from the 23rd, private gatherings of five or more people will be banned in Seoul and the metropolitan area. On the 21st alone, 317 people in Seoul were confirmed to have contracted the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

Seo Jeong-hyeop, Acting Mayor of Seoul, appeared on CBS Radio’s ‘Kim Hyun-jung’s News Show’ on the morning of the 22nd and stated, "As of midnight today, the number of new COVID-19 cases in Seoul is 317, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 15,356."

Acting Mayor Seo explained, "The daily number of confirmed cases in Seoul has increased to the 200s since February, then surpassed 300, and last weekend reached 473. The increase in cases is a crisis, but the speed is also very fast, with the cumulative number of confirmed cases explosively rising from 10,000 to 15,000 in just two weeks."

He continued, "Despite various efforts, community infections are widespread around daily life, and sporadic infections continue to spread, which is problematic. To prevent this, we have implemented a strict ban on private gatherings of five or more people."

The day before, Seoul, Gyeonggi Province, and Incheon announced that from midnight on the 23rd until midnight on January 3rd of next year, private gatherings of five or more people will be completely banned. This includes alumni meetings, club gatherings, picnics, year-end parties, company dinners or workshops, as well as personal social gatherings such as savings clubs, housewarmings, first birthday parties, and 60th or 70th birthday celebrations.

Regarding questions about the nature or size of private gatherings, Acting Mayor Seo said, "In the case of golf gatherings, playing without a caddy or with up to four people including the caddy is allowed, and office workers can have lunch together with up to four people. This applies both when residents from other regions travel to Seoul to gather and when Seoul citizens gather in other regions. During this year-end and New Year period, we also ask people to refrain from visiting their parents’ homes."

He added, "If violations are found, administrative sanctions such as fines and penalties will be imposed on both business operators and facility users, but realistically, enforcement alone cannot ensure effectiveness. We ask citizens to understand the purpose of this gathering ban and voluntarily participate."

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