"Two Tables, Please" Self-Employed and Citizens Exhausted by Prolonged Social Distancing

4 Months of Ban on Gatherings of 5 or More and Business Restrictions After 10 PM
Fatigue from Prolonged Social Distancing... Difficult to Maintain Vigilance in Quarantine Measures

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] "Eight people? Please split into two tables with four people each."

This was the response when inquiring about a reservation at a pork belly specialty restaurant in Dongjak-gu, Seoul. The core of the COVID-19 social distancing rule banning groups of five or more is becoming ineffective. Restaurant owners who used to refuse groups of five or more are now simply seating customers separately. On the 28th, Asia Economy randomly contacted 11 restaurants?5 in Seoul, 3 in Suwon, and 3 in Incheon?to ask if an 8-person reservation was possible. Only 2 places refused the reservation. The other 9 said, "You need to make separate reservations for four people each," and added, "We will seat you at adjacent tables."

Citizens leaving restaurants or cafes have been gathering for second rounds at parks, plazas, convenience stores, and other places, rendering the after-10 PM business restrictions ineffective. Although health authorities have restricted the installation of tables in front of convenience stores, places with seating space are crowded with people. Around 11 PM at the plaza in front of Exit 1 of Magoknaru Station in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, dozens of citizens were gathered in small groups drinking alcohol. Most appeared to be office workers who sat anywhere and started drinking parties. When a seat became vacant, it was taken by others in less than a minute. The drinking continued past midnight.

Around 11 p.m., dozens of citizens were gathered in small groups drinking in the plaza in front of Exit 1 of Magoknaru Station in Gangseo-gu, Seoul. Photo by Byungdon Yoo tamond@

Citizen Seo Jae-guk (31) said, "I don't know if the 10 PM business restriction or the ban on gatherings of five or more is very effective," and questioned, "Hasn't the recent daily average number of confirmed cases actually increased compared to before?" Another citizen, Hong Hye-ri (27), said, "The quarantine measures have been ongoing for several months, so people have become numb to them," adding, "Even people around me are no longer very cautious about drinking gatherings like before."

Meanwhile, the government has decided to extend the current social distancing measures (Level 2 in the metropolitan area, Level 1.5 in non-metropolitan areas) and the ban on gatherings of five or more for another three weeks. Accordingly, restrictions on business hours (until 10 PM) for multi-use facilities such as restaurants, cafes, indoor sports facilities, and karaoke rooms in the metropolitan area will remain in place. The current measures, implemented since February 15, have been extended six times and have continued for four months.

This is because infections continue to occur in various daily settings. Although the number of new daily confirmed cases has stagnated in the 400 to 700 range for a prolonged period, cluster outbreaks linked to daily spaces and multi-use facilities have not ceased. Moreover, concerns are rising that the scale of confirmed cases could increase at any time due to the spread of imported variant viruses known to have higher transmissibility.

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