Preemptive Blocking of the 4th Wave... Announcement of the 'Special Metropolitan Area Quarantine Measures'

On the 1st, citizens visiting The Hyundai Seoul in Yeouido, Seoul, are enjoying shopping. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] The quarantine authorities have announced a 'Special Quarantine Measures for the Seoul Metropolitan Area' to block the ongoing 'third wave' of COVID-19 infections that shows no signs of subsiding easily. Thirty densely populated facilities such as department stores in Seoul have been designated for focused management, and on-site inspections will be conducted twice a week at establishments suspected of violating quarantine rules. Both foreign workers and their employers in Seoul are required to undergo COVID-19 diagnostic testing.

On the morning of the 16th, the government held a Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting chaired by Prime Minister and Headquarters Chief Chung Sye-kyun, attended by all 56 basic local government heads in the metropolitan area, where the special quarantine measures for the metropolitan area were announced.

With daily confirmed cases consistently recording between 300 and 400, the spark of the third wave remains unextinguished. As spring approaches, there is concern that the easing of quarantine vigilance and increased demand for outings could lead to a 'fourth wave.' Therefore, early containment of the spread is being prioritized.

In particular, among the 345 new locally transmitted confirmed cases reported at midnight on the same day, 68.1% were from the metropolitan area?75 in Seoul, 146 in Gyeonggi, and 14 in Incheon. Given that the metropolitan area accounts for 70-80% of all local cases daily, efforts are focused on tightening quarantine measures in this region.

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun also stated at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting, "Several indicators are unfavorable enough to worry about a resurgence," adding, "If we fail to extinguish the spark by next week, the fourth wave could become a reality. The government will mobilize all available resources to focus on practical quarantine measures on the ground." He emphasized, "We will firmly suppress the resurgence starting from the metropolitan area, where over 70% of daily confirmed cases occur."

According to the measures, from the 17th to the 31st, Seoul City will designate 30 densely populated facilities such as parks, amusement facilities, department stores, and shopping malls frequently visited by citizens for focused management, including administrative guidance on compliance with quarantine rules. Additionally, 441 establishments suspected of repeated violations, identified through analysis of previous reports on multi-use facility quarantine breaches, will be subject to twice-weekly on-site inspections for concentrated management.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The measures also include strengthened management of foreigners. This reflects the recent situation where a significant portion of cluster infections have occurred in workplaces with a high proportion of migrant workers. In fact, the proportion of confirmed foreign cases has surged recently. The percentage of foreign confirmed cases rose sharply from around 7% in early February to 14.4% in the first week of March. However, it slightly decreased to 11.7% last week (March 7-13).

Accordingly, from the 17th to the 31st, an administrative order requiring COVID-19 diagnostic testing for foreign workers will be enforced in Seoul. Foreign workers and employers hiring one or more foreign workers must visit nearby temporary screening clinics for testing. In Gyeonggi Province, from the 22nd of this month to the 30th of next month, an administrative order mandating diagnostic testing before hiring foreign workers will be implemented. Only foreign workers who test negative will be allowed to be newly hired. Failure to comply will result in administrative penalties such as fines.

Following the announcement of the special quarantine measures for the metropolitan area, authorities will also announce quarantine measures for non-metropolitan areas on the 17th. Prime Minister Chung emphasized, "We will sequentially discuss measures to break the chain of infection spread in regions outside the metropolitan area," adding, "The government's goal to reduce the number of confirmed cases to the 200s by next weekend remains firm."

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