Jeju Provincial Office Press Room Temporarily at Risk of Closure Due to COVID-19 Close Contact Case

Only Reported to Press Corps That Close Contacts of COVID-19 Confirmed Cases Entered Press Room, Creating Quarantine Gap

Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Government Complex

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters (Jeju) Reporter Park Chang-won] The Jeju Provincial Government press room faced a temporary closure crisis due to a COVID-19 positive case of an audio staff member from a broadcasting company.

On the 28th of last month at 3:30 PM, an audio staff member from a broadcasting company who attended the joint press conference held in the Samda Hall online briefing room on the 2nd floor of Jeju Provincial Government?attended by Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong, Provincial Council Chairman Jwa Nam-su, and Jeju Superintendent of Education Lee Seok-moon?was confirmed positive for COVID-19.

As a result, six people including camera reporters who were present at the press conference underwent diagnostic testing. Among them, it was confirmed that one person stayed in the press room on the 3rd floor of the Jeju Provincial Government building, but the duration of their stay after the press conference remains unknown.

In this regard, the Jeju Public Relations Office announced through the press corps group chat that if a positive diagnosis is confirmed on the 2nd, when the camera reporter’s test results are expected, the press room will be closed for a while. They also reportedly advised all reporters who were in the press room at that time and everyone who used the press room afterward to undergo COVID-19 testing and minimize external contact.

Meanwhile, the Jeju Provincial Government Public Relations Office has been criticized for arrogance and discriminatory behavior after it was revealed that, despite this emergency quarantine situation, they only informed the press corps about the close contact information and remained silent toward other media outlets.

A reporter working in Jeju said, “The provincial government press room is operated with the taxpayers’ money and is a facility available to all media outlets for coverage. At the time of the press conference on the 28th, social distancing was at level 1.5, and there were no special controls on the press room. Sharing the fact that a COVID-19 close contact stayed there only with the press corps, before even mentioning a temporary closure of the press room, is discriminatory public relations activity. The Public Relations Office responsible for this should be permanently closed.”

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