Ban on Public Sector Dinners and Gatherings... On-Site Inspections Conducted at Each Ministry

Jungdabon "Restaurant and Cafe Operating Hours May Be Advanced by 1 Hour"
Each Ministry Conducts On-Site Inspections of Relevant Facilities at Least Once Daily

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] As the spread of COVID-19 has intensified recently, the government has designated this week as a ‘Special Quarantine Management Week’ to strengthen quarantine measures.

On the 25th, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (CDSCH) stated in a regular briefing, “Currently, under social distancing, there is no rapid increase in the number of patients, but the outbreak is showing a continuous and gradual increase pattern,” and added, “We will ban gatherings and dinners in the public sector, expand work-from-home and staggered commuting systems, and consider restricting operations and banning gatherings at multi-use facilities if necessary.”

The CDSCH explained, “Although the medical system has capacity, there is a risk of rapid spread if the number of patients increases in the future,” and “Strengthening quarantine measures such as operating hour restrictions and gathering bans, which make it difficult for the ordinary economy, is inevitable.” Previously, the CDSCH had announced that if the situation worsens, the social distancing levels (currently level 2 in the metropolitan area and level 1.5 in non-metropolitan areas) could be raised, and the operating hours of restaurants and cafes could be moved forward by one hour from 10 p.m. to 9 p.m.

From the 26th until the current social distancing ends on the 2nd of next month, gatherings and dinners in the public sector will be banned for one week. This is to curb the increasing trend by designating it as a Special Quarantine Management Week. To this end, the government will ban gatherings and dinners in the public sector and expand work-from-home and staggered commuting systems. Surprise inspections will also be conducted to check for violations of quarantine rules such as gatherings or dinners.

Son Young-rae, head of the Social Strategy Division at the Central Accident Response Headquarters, said, “We plan to recommend these measures to the entire public service through civil servant service guidelines,” adding, “Since these service guidelines are recommendations with considerable enforceability, they are expected to be well observed, and compliance will be managed through on-site inspections across the public service.”

Each ministry will conduct on-site inspections of their respective facilities at least once a day and urge strict compliance with quarantine rules through meetings with related associations and organizations. Additionally, permanent inspection teams in each ministry will inspect multi-use facilities in the metropolitan and Gyeongnam areas, and the National Police Agency will strengthen crackdowns focusing on establishments frequently violating quarantine rules, such as entertainment venues. Metropolitan and Gyeongnam regional governments have prepared and implemented separate special quarantine measures by region.

Meanwhile, COVID-19 confirmed cases have recently shown a rapid increase. According to the CDSCH, the average daily number of locally transmitted confirmed cases increased from 579.3 in the second week of this month to 621.1 in the third week and 659.1 in the fourth week, rising by 30 to 40 cases weekly. By region, the metropolitan area saw an increase from 375.4 in the second week to 419.1 in the third week and 421.6 in the fourth week, while the Gyeongnam area including Busan rose from 78.4 to 93.6 and then 114.4 cases weekly.

By facility, cluster infections related to multi-use facilities are on the rise. In particular, vulnerable industries such as restaurants, cafes, karaoke rooms, indoor sports facilities, bathhouses, and party rooms accounted for 67.1% of all cluster outbreak cases at the end of last month. This was only 13.6% in mid-January.

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