Prime Minister Jeong Sye-kyun: "Seoul and Gyeonggi Raise Social Distancing to Level 2... Maintained for 2 Weeks (Update)"

Prime Minister Jeong Sye-gyun Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Min-young] Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun announced on the 15th, "We intend to raise social distancing to Level 2 in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province."

In his opening remarks at the Emergency Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (CDSCH) meeting held at the Government Seoul Office on the same day, Prime Minister Chung said, "The spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) is very severe, especially in the metropolitan area."

He emphasized, "If we fail to overcome this critical moment, it will be a life-or-death moment leading to a resurgence experienced by many countries worldwide," adding, "The top priority is to swiftly block the spread of infections in the metropolitan area."

When social distancing is raised to Level 2, operations of high-risk facilities with a high risk of group infections will be suspended, and spectators will be banned from attending sports games. The Level 2 upgrade is scheduled to take effect immediately from midnight on the 16th, the following day, and is expected to be maintained for two weeks initially.