Oh Se-hoon "Regrettable Misunderstanding of Seoul-style Coexistence Quarantine and Self-diagnosis Kits"

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon.

[Asia Economy Reporter Jumi Lee] Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon directly clarified what he called a 'regrettable misunderstanding' regarding the Seoul-style cooperative quarantine measures and COVID-19 self-diagnostic kits.

On the 13th, Mayor Oh stated on his Facebook, "There is a regrettable misunderstanding about the Seoul-style cooperative quarantine and self-diagnostic kits, so I would like to cautiously explain," adding, "The reason for using the kits is to quickly identify asymptomatic and mild infections."

He continued, "There are cases where people want to confirm infection but do not have time to go to testing centers and, with anxious hearts, use multi-use facilities thinking 'it should be okay,'" citing examples such as schools and religious facilities.

Mayor Oh argued, "If all children attending school have been confirmed negative through self-diagnostic kits, wouldn't parents feel more reassured?" and "If religious activities allow only those who have confirmed negative results through self-diagnostic kits to participate, wouldn't that be a win-win situation?"

He added, "I regret that I could not explain more carefully to those who might have been provoked by the term 'entertainment facilities' used in public discourse," emphasizing, "However, I firmly believe that self-diagnostic kits will be effective in many places and can provide reassurance to citizens."

Mayor Oh further stated, "Signs of a fourth large wave are appearing," and "Although the majority of the public have faithfully followed social distancing principles, large outbreaks have occurred three times in the past year. It is time to consider quarantine methods comprehensively and transformatively."

Earlier, on the 12th, Mayor Oh announced at an online COVID-19 regular briefing that he would promote the 'Seoul-style cooperative quarantine' containing customized quarantine rules by industry. As part of the 'Seoul-style cooperative quarantine' strategy, he urged the government to approve the use of self-diagnostic kits at business sites.