"COVID-19 Crisis Ongoing..."… Yoon "Lift 24-Hour Business Hour Restrictions" Lee "Let's Lift Even for 3rd Dose Recipients"

Political circles heed self-employed small business owners' concerns, call for easing quarantine
Experts: "Not the time to say 'it's okay' and fuel the outbreak"

On the 25th, citizens are waiting for tests at the temporary COVID-19 screening site in front of Seoul City Hall. According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, as of midnight on the same day, the number of new confirmed cases increased by 165,890, bringing the total to 2,665,077. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] As daily COVID-19 cases exceed 150,000, presidential candidates are competing to propose 24-hour business hours for self-employed workers, raising concerns among experts. Following the government's announcement to abolish the vaccine pass and ease restrictions starting next month, candidates are being criticized for pandering solely to the self-employed vote.

On the 28th, Kwon Young-se, the head of the People Power Party's general election campaign headquarters, mentioned compensation for losses to self-employed workers related to COVID-19 during a campaign meeting, stating, "Above all, it is necessary to immediately abolish the unreasonable business hour restrictions and the vaccine pass." Candidate Yoon also said on social media the day before, "Many citizens now feel it is time to lift these restrictions," adding, "What self-employed and small business owners want most is to operate freely 24 hours a day as before. The vaccine pass, which has lost its justification, must also be abolished." Earlier, on the 25th, Yoon had posted on social media his stance: "Complete abolition of the 24-hour business hours vaccine pass and substantial compensation for COVID-19 losses."

This position of Candidate Yoon differs from the stance previously expressed by the People Power Party's campaign headquarters. On the 19th, when daily COVID-19 cases exceeded 100,000, Lee Yang-su, the senior spokesperson for the People Power Party's campaign headquarters, stated, "The government should now gather opinions from health experts and reflect them in the quarantine measures." However, health experts maintain a cautious stance, saying the peak has not yet been confirmed. Professor Lee Jae-gap of Hallym University’s Infectious Diseases Department appealed, "There is no need to say everything is fine now and encourage the spread. It is time to seriously discuss measures to reduce the scale of the outbreak."

Prior to Candidate Yoon, Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, advocated for 24-hour quarantine restrictions for those who have received the third vaccine dose. During his campaign the day before, Lee also mentioned that "COVID-19 has now become like the flu."

The remarks by the presidential candidates appear to be significantly influenced by changes in public opinion among small business owners following the passage of the supplementary budget. Kim Bong-shin, CEO of Metavoice, analyzed, "Candidate Lee's mention of easing quarantine measures led to a rise in his approval ratings," adding, "Candidate Yoon also sensed this."

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