Ha Tae-kyung: "Will Teenagers Use Gyms and Pilates? Industry Deceived by Wordplay"

Ha Tae-kyung, member of the People Power Party./Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] As the government announced a relaxation guideline allowing indoor sports facilities to be used only by children and adolescents starting from the 8th, Ha Tae-kyung, a member of the People Power Party, strongly criticized it, saying, "They are killing the fitness industry twice with ineffective wordplay."

On the 7th, Ha posted on his Facebook, "They are lifting restrictions on gym operations for children. Do kindergarteners come to gyms or Pilates studios to shape their bodies?" and pointed out, "They are mocking the entire industry with wordplay."

He continued, "(The government) announced that restrictions on operations for the general public would be eased from the 17th, but the original government-imposed restrictions were until the 17th anyway. This is nothing more than repeating a promise already made, a meaningless statement," and criticized, "Even so, the government is boasting about 'lifting sanctions.'"

Ha said, "The gym industry promised to voluntarily implement basic quarantine measures such as wearing masks, hand sanitizers, social distancing, as well as closing shower rooms and limiting the number of people in connection with quarantine safety distancing," and pointed out, "Ignoring these voices from the field and escaping the crisis with wordplay measures could ultimately put both public safety and livelihoods at risk."

He added, "Instead of always watching public opinion and hoping to barely get through the day with wordplay, I hope the government listens to and reflects the voices from the field and secures public safety and livelihoods with sincere measures."

The government announced on the 7th that, considering fairness with Taekwondo academies, all indoor sports facilities providing lessons to children and students will also be allowed to operate with up to 9 people during the same time slot starting from the 8th.

Previously, the government banned the operation of indoor sports facilities under social distancing level 2.5 in the metropolitan area and level 2 in non-metropolitan areas, but allowed small facilities registered as academies such as Taekwondo and ballet to operate, which caused strong opposition from the fitness industry including gyms and Pilates studios.

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