President under criticism for five-person dinner

President Moon Jae-in takes off his mask to speak at a Cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa Dae, Tuesday. Yonhap

By Jung Da-min

President Moon Jae-in has come under fire for having a dinner with four of his former aides at Cheong Wa Dae, which critics claim was in violation of the nationwide ban on gatherings of five or more people as a measure to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Two days after the Moon administration's latest Cabinet reshuffle, announced April 17, Moon had drinks and dinner with the four former aides to show his appreciation for their work, at his residence within the presidential office compound. The aides were former senior secretary for social policy Yoon Chang-yul, former senior secretary for political affairs Choi Jae-sung, former spokesman Kang Min-seok and former secretary for legal affairs Kim Young-sik.

However, a person later filed a civil complaint on the website run by the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, saying Moon's gathering with the former aides was against the ban on gatherings of five or more people. They said it was highly inappropriate as the President ought to lead the country's management of the COVID-19 situation by example.

Rep. Jo Myung-hee of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), a member of the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee, sent an inquiry to the Central Disaster Management Headquarters under the Ministry of Health and Welfare to clarify whether the President's gathering with his former aides was in violation of the gathering ban.

The headquarters responded that Moon did not break the rule as the gathering was an official meeting related to state affairs, not a private meeting subject to the ban.

But Jo maintained her position on the President's double standards.

“I wonder if the public will understand that the President, who emphasized observance of the quarantine rules to the public with the principle of zero tolerance, has a drinking party for five people as a public meeting,” Jo said. “The health authorities and the Seoul Metropolitan Government should not be lenient with any violator even when that person is someone in power.”

Many others also voiced criticism on the internet, saying if the President's gathering with his aides was a public affair and not a private one, office workers' gatherings of more than four people over a meal should also be allowed because they were public gatherings, not a meeting among friends.

Regarding this, a health ministry official said meetings over a meal at businesses or public organizations, which are held for purposes of diplomacy, contact or negotiations are not categorized as private gatherings.

The general public showed a mixed response over the effectiveness of the gathering ban.

“The ban prevents private meetings taking place in public spaces such as cafes and restaurants, but private meetings are still being held at private places like home … When seeing recent cases of COVID-19 outbreaks, those infected at private spaces go to public spaces and spread the virus there, and then return to private spaces,” said Lee Seok-hee, 30, from Hanam, Gyeonggi Province.

“With such a cycle being repeated, the ban on gatherings of five or more people seems meaningless unless it is effectively imposed everywhere all of the time.”

Lee Soo-bin, 29, from Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, said the President's dinner with the former aides was inappropriate as they could meet without eating and drinking.