Massive rallies on Saturday feared to be another COVID-19 hotbed
Residents wait in line for a COVID-19 test at the National Medical Center in Seoul, Tuesday. / Yonhap
By Jun Ji-hye
The health authorities are bracing for the possibility that massive rallies organized by some progressive groups this Saturday could cause another outbreak of COVID-19 at a time when new daily cases here have risen by triple digits for three consecutive days, officials said Tuesday.
Korea added 100 more infections for Monday, including 71 local cases, raising the total caseload to 27,653, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The daily new cases stood at 126 on Sunday and 143 on Saturday.
Progressive groups including the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) are planning to stage rallies across the country to mark the fifth anniversary of a fateful protest when police water cannons put Baek Nam-gi, a farmer protesting the then-Park Geun-hye government, into a coma, Nov. 14, 2015. He died without reawakening Sept. 25, 2016.
The preparatory committee for the rallies said at least 100,000 protesters are expected to gather at 13 sites including Seoul, Gangwon Province, Daegu, Ulsan, Busan and Jeju Island, noting that five separate rallies are scheduled to take place in the capital.
“Our rallies are aimed at protecting the people's right to live, resolving social inequality, realizing peace on the Korean Peninsula and criticizing the Moon Jae-in government,” the committee said during a news conference in central Seoul, Monday.
The committee vowed to follow antivirus guidelines during the rallies, but concerns are still raised that the events could serve as a catalyst for the creation of COVID-19 infection clusters. The country already experienced a surge in the number of coronavirus cases after massive rallies organized by some conservative groups in central Seoul on Aug. 15 Liberation Day.
According to KDCA data, the rally resulted in 650 infections and led to countless other cases across the country.
Amid growing concerns, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun asked the progressive groups to refrain from holding rallies this Saturday “to protect the safety of the people.”
“We are worried every day as the country's new daily virus cases have not decreased,” Chung said during a Cabinet meeting. “Massive rallies could cause a resurgence of infections that will seriously damage the nation's economy.”
He asked the relevant ministries and local governments to thoroughly carry out antivirus measures during the rallies and respond firmly to any unlawful behavior, if the rallies take place as planned.
Meanwhile, the KDCA is pushing to revise enforcement regulations and ordinances of the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act in a bid to subdivide administrative measures that will be applied to operators of facilities with a high risk of infection.
Under the envisioned revision, the government can order the suspension of the operation of those facilities for up to 20 days if their operators do not comply with antivirus guidelines such as forcing visitors to wear face masks.