"Entertainment Workers as Priority Group for Vaccination? Residents of Jeju Island Are Outraged"

Inclusion of Entertainment Venues for High-Risk Facility Workers... Website Flooded with Opposition Posts

Health Authorities Explain "Higher Infection Rate Compared to Other Occupations... A Carefully Considered Decision"

On the Jeju Provincial Government website's bulletin board, posts opposing the priority vaccination of entertainment industry workers as the first group continue to be posted.

[Jeju=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Chang-won] Recently, as COVID-19 cases originating from entertainment bars have surged in Jeju, there is strong opposition among residents to the health authorities' plan to prioritize vaccination for workers in entertainment establishments.

This opposition arose after it was revealed that the Jeju vaccination plan includes workers at entertainment bars and karaoke bars as the top priority group among 'high-risk facility workers.'

According to Jeju Special Self-Governing Province on the 14th, Jeju is currently formulating a vaccination plan based on local government autonomous quarantine guidelines recommended by the government, aimed at protecting high-risk groups and blocking transmission.

The known plan so far includes ▲1st priority: 3,000 high-risk facility workers, 1,300 airport and port workers, 160 call center employees, 7,000 academy instructors ▲2nd priority: 878 social welfare facility workers, 22 disability counseling and service support workers, 184 senior center operators and funeral service workers ▲3rd priority: 2,307 public transportation workers, 465 sanitation workers, 352 community leaders and resident autonomy committee members, 367 beach quarantine management workers, 800 cultural and sports-related workers, 2,088 public service workers, 220 volunteer firefighters ▲4th priority: 1,200 20-ton coastal fishermen ▲5th priority: 12,876 tourism industry workers, and 1,781 others (postal workers, funeral and wedding hall workers, livestock quarantine response personnel, meter readers, etc.).

Jeju Province expects the autonomous vaccination priority group to ultimately increase to 38,000 people.

The issue is that among the 3,000 first-priority high-risk facility workers, workers at entertainment bars and karaoke bars are included.

Upon learning this fact, opposition voices have grown mainly on online communities, and the Jeju Provincial Government's online petition board is flooded with posts strongly opposing this.

In fact, on the day, posts such as "Are entertainment establishment workers performing official duties?", "Entertainment establishments are first priority? Are they essential facilities?", and "Is working at an entertainment establishment something to be proud of?" have been posted on the Jeju Provincial Government's petition board.

In response, Jeju Province stated that this was a carefully considered decision.

Im Tae-bong, Controller of the Jeju Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, said at a joint briefing, "Entertainment businesses are close-contact, enclosed facilities that are easy to conceal, and no matter how much we appeal, they are reluctant to get tested, so we have no choice but to prioritize them," adding, "Because the ripple effects are so significant?impacting the local economy, tourism, and causing school shutdowns?we made this decision after careful consideration."

He also said, "In recent days, 58 confirmed cases have occurred in entertainment venues, and through these cases, families and children have been affected, impacting the tourism industry," and added, "We are carefully analyzing which group?other occupations or entertainment workers?would be more effective to vaccinate first and more desirable for residents' health in selecting vaccination targets."

Another quarantine official explained, "Due to the gathering ban on entertainment establishments in the metropolitan area, some mainland entertainment workers have come to work in Jeju, causing many difficulties in quarantine," and said, "People seem very upset by the term 'entertainment establishments,' but vaccination is absolutely necessary for effective quarantine."

Jeju Province is expected to announce an administrative order banning gatherings at entertainment establishments as early as the 15th.

Meanwhile, Jeju Province reportedly secured an autonomous vaccination priority list by implementing documents for 57 sectors (occupations) according to government guidelines to set priorities considering local conditions. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency plans to allocate vaccine supplies based on this list, with vaccinations expected to begin around the 26th.

Jeju=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Chang-won captain@asiae.co.kr

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