On the afternoon of the 22nd, Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, held an online briefing on COVID-19 response at the city hall briefing room and announced special measures to strengthen quarantine. Photo by Gwangju Metropolitan City
[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Gwangju Metropolitan City will implement significantly strengthened quarantine measures from the 24th of this month until January 3rd of next year.
On the 22nd at 2 p.m., Gwangju Mayor Lee Yong-seop announced this through an online briefing regarding COVID-19 response.
As a special measure to strengthen quarantine, all nursing hospitals, nursing facilities, and psychiatric hospitals will continue to prohibit visits to completely block infections from outside, and access by outsiders will also be controlled. In addition, workers are prohibited from visiting other facilities or attending private gatherings except for commuting.
Regarding religious facilities, the nationwide Level 2.5 measures will be applied, making regular worship services, masses, and Buddhist ceremonies primarily non-face-to-face, and gatherings and meals will continue to be prohibited.
The five types of entertainment facilities (entertainment bars, colateks, danran bars, emotional bars, hunting pochas) will be banned from gathering.
Restaurants and cafes will only be allowed takeout and delivery after 9 p.m., and reservations or entry with five or more people are prohibited. Violations will result in fines under infectious disease-related laws.
Furthermore, the city strongly recommends refraining from private gatherings of five or more people.
Party rooms, frequently used as party venues, will be banned from gathering, and for movie theaters and performance halls, nationwide Level 2.5 measures will be applied, suspending operations after 9 p.m. and strengthening restrictions on the number of users through seat spacing.
Karaoke rooms, indoor standing concert halls, indoor sports facilities, bathhouses, and game rooms/multi-rooms will have their operating hours restricted from the current 10 p.m. to 9 p.m.
For department stores and large marts, which see dense crowds during the year-end and New Year period, quarantine rules such as temperature checks, prohibition of tasting/sampling and use of samples, prohibition of crowd-gathering events, and prohibition of customer rest area use will be mandatory.
Accommodation facilities will limit reservations to within 50% of rooms and prohibit occupancy exceeding room capacity. Winter sports facilities such as sledding hills and skating rinks, where the risk of infection spread is increasing, will also be banned from gathering.
All events related to New Year's sunrise and sunset scheduled for the year-end and New Year period are prohibited. The government has decided to close major tourist attractions and national/public parks, and Gwangju City will fully cancel events such as the ringing of the Democracy Bell at midnight on January 1 and the Mudeungsan rice cake soup event.
Mayor Lee Yong-seop said, "Due to these quarantine measures, facility use will be restricted and accommodation reservations canceled, causing increased inconvenience to citizens and significant economic damage is expected," adding, "We will actively consult with the central government on measures to exempt cancellation fees for accommodation reservations and support plans for facilities restricted by these quarantine measures."
He continued, "I ask all citizens to maintain the highest level of vigilance and strictly follow quarantine rules," adding, "Please keep in mind that any gathering or meeting, even with family, can be risky at this time. We strongly recommend stopping activities after 9 p.m. and gatherings of five or more people."
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