Military eases restrictions on off-post travel

A service member watches TV at Seoul Station, Feb. 21. / Korea Times file

By Kang Seung-woo

The military plans to partially lift a travel ban for all service members later this week, the defense ministry said, Wednesday, amid signs of the coronavirus pandemic slowing.

The military has banned all enlisted service personnel from leaving their bases and meeting visitors since Feb. 22 after the Navy reported its first COVID-19 infection on Jeju Island, Feb. 20.

However, considering the improvement in the nation's coronavirus situation, enlisted service members at designated areas will be allowed to leave their bases starting Friday as long as they follow the government's broader social distancing guidance.

“After a prolonged period of intensive restrictions for two months, recruits and junior officers have been complaining of extreme stress, and our assessment is that we have reached a threshold,” the ministry said in a statement.

The military will allow its personnel to visit areas that have not reported any new infections for a week and review whether to additionally lift a ban on other off-installation activities after monitoring developments.

The number of infections in the military has stood at 39 since mid-March and the country has kept the number of new virus cases below 15 for the fourth straight day, detecting 11 new cases on Wednesday. The total number of infections stood at 10,694, including 238 deaths.