First Birthday Party Industry "Guarantee Minimum Number of Guests for First Birthday Parties... Vaccine Incentives Should Also Be Applied"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] Representatives from the first birthday party (Doljanchi) industry have launched solo protests demanding the easing of quarantine measures to guarantee the livelihood of business owners facing operational restrictions due to COVID-19.

The Safe Family Doljanchi Association, consisting of about 500 Doljanchi business representatives, held a press conference in front of the Government Seoul Office on the morning of the 27th, stating, "Due to the prolonged Level 4 social distancing, the livelihoods of self-employed individuals related to Doljanchi have been cut off, causing severe economic damage, so we have launched solo protests."

The association lamented, "Since December 23 of last year, Doljanchi has been classified as a private gathering by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, resulting in 10 months of damage. Recently, after the Level 4 social distancing in the metropolitan area, even the minimum number of participants for Doljanchi has not been guaranteed, reaching a point where we can no longer endure."

They continued, "Despite being banned and restricted from operating for over 10 months, the Doljanchi industry was excluded from the government-supported small business policy funds because there is no clear business code to separately collect for the industry."

On the day, Kang So-hee, a representative of a Dol table setting company who participated in the solo protest dressed in mourning clothes, said, "Under the current social distancing restrictions, even four grandparents from both sides cannot attend the Doljanchi," emphasizing, "To ensure the industry's survival, vaccine incentives should be expanded and a minimum of eight people, including grandparents from both sides, should be allowed."

They are demanding that Doljanchi be allowed to proceed with a minimum number of attendees even in Level 4 areas and that vaccine incentives be expanded. They also argue that the Ministry of Health and Welfare must keep its promise to introduce vaccine incentives for Doljanchi once vaccination of the elderly is completed.