Ministry of Justice Orders Immediate Appeal Against Ruling Suspending Effectiveness of 'Quarantine Pass'

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] The Ministry of Justice has ordered an immediate appeal against the court's decision to suspend the enforcement of the vaccine pass for academies and study rooms.

On the 5th, the Ministry of Justice stated, "Regarding the request from the Ministry of Health and Welfare to direct an immediate appeal against the Seoul Administrative Court's decision to grant a suspension of enforcement in the lawsuit seeking cancellation of the COVID-19 special quarantine measures follow-up orders, we have directed an immediate appeal considering the seriousness of the national quarantine system due to the prolonged COVID-19 situation."

The previous day, the Seoul Administrative Court suspended the effect of the measure that included academies, study rooms, and study cafes as facilities mandatorily subject to the vaccine pass until the main judgment is delivered. The court partially accepted the suspension of enforcement (suspension of effect) application filed by the National Parents' Association Federation against the Director of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency and the Minister of Health and Welfare, stating that "inducing voluntary vaccination to control the rate of severe cases is the minimally invasive measure that the quarantine authorities should prioritize."

However, the government immediately expressed its intention to "file an immediate appeal" against the court ruling. The official government position is that "since the unvaccinated, who account for only 6.2% of the adult population, represent 30% of confirmed cases aged 12 and over and 53% of severe patients and deaths, it is necessary at this point to expand the application of the vaccine pass to protect the health of the unvaccinated and secure the capacity of the severe medical system." The government added, "We will proceed swiftly with the main lawsuit and promptly decide on whether to appeal the court's decision to grant the suspension of enforcement in consultation with the Ministry of Justice."

Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye also hinted at an immediate appeal on his way to work that day, saying, "We must respect the judiciary's judgment, but I have some dissatisfaction with the reasoning," and pointed out, "It is somewhat difficult to accept the reasoning regarding the risk part of the unvaccinated when most of the people have been vaccinated."

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