[Reporter’s Notebook] No Perpetrators, Only Victims... Quarantine Measures in Total Crisis

On the 19th, when the sweltering heat continued, medical staff at the temporary COVID-19 screening clinic in front of Seoul City Hall were cooling off under the breeze of a cooling fan. According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, as of midnight that day, the number of new confirmed cases increased by 1,252. This is the highest number recorded based on cases occurring on Sunday (as of Monday midnight). Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] ‘It’s hard,’ ‘I’m exhausted,’ ‘I can’t take it anymore.’

These are probably the most frequently spoken words from our mouths over the past year. It has been well over a year since social distancing was implemented amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and repeated waves of outbreaks. The fatigue, once dismissed as just the complaints of self-employed business owners due to the fluctuating social distancing levels, has spread throughout society.

Every time the government announced quarantine measures, loopholes were found, and everyone relentlessly exploited those gaps. The ‘balloon effect’ of vacationers flocking to other regions after the implementation of Level 4 social distancing in the metropolitan area can also be seen as part of this trend. Some criticize the vacationers, saying, ‘Do you really have to travel in this situation?’ The reporter who went on a field report to Ganghwa Island last weekend also had such thoughts when seeing the restaurants and roads filled with people.

However, the expressions of those actually met on site were not those of people simply enjoying their holidays. “I thought things might calm down a bit, but as the highest number of confirmed cases kept coming out day after day, I felt like ‘there’s no end in sight.’ It wasn’t my body but my mind that felt exhausted,” said one citizen, a statement that was truly heartbreaking.

Escaping to Ganghwa Island or Gangneung to avoid Level 4 social distancing is neither illegal nor a loophole. Likewise, those who want to drink past 10 p.m. and travel to non-metropolitan areas are doing nothing wrong. Of course, this can be an obstacle to the government’s quarantine measures. However, even this is a result of the government’s hasty decisions.

When the daily new confirmed cases were still around 500, the government announced complacent measures under the name of ‘vaccine incentives,’ such as allowing no masks outdoors and excluding vaccinated people from capacity limits. Immediately after, the number of confirmed cases increased exponentially as if by magic. The government effectively loosened the public’s vigilance on quarantine.

Inconsistent quarantine measures have driven the public into a dead end. Now, many people think it’s the same whether they die from COVID-19 infection or die from frustration due to a controlled daily life. Yet, the government is once again forcing sacrifices on the people, saying social contact must be reduced. There is no sign of responsibility for the incomplete quarantine measures. Today’s Korea is a place where there are no perpetrators, only victims.

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