Restaurant self-employed at 9:00 p.m. business restrictions pullina… Government concludes today

The government announced on the 6th a plan to mitigate some quarantine measures amid intensifying opposition from self-employed people as the 2.5th step of social distancing in the metropolitan area and the ban on groups of 5 or more people prolonged. It is noteworthy whether the government will accept the demands of self-employed people to lift the restrictions on business after 9 pm.

On the 5th, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (middle script) will discuss social distancing and some quarantine rules and announce the results.

Earlier, the government announced on the 31st of last month that the current metropolitan area 2.5 stage and the non-metropolitan area 2nd stage of social distancing will be extended for two weeks until the 14th.After examining the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19) for one week, whether or not the quarantine regulations are eased, etc. He has stated that he will review the review again.

The day before, Sohn Young-rae, head of the Social Strategy Division, Central Accident Control Headquarters (Heavy Soo-bon), said, “There are many risk factors and points to consider in relation to the COVID-19 quarantine, and the government is also considering it very much.”

The government adjusts the social distancing stage based on the number of confirmed local cases excluding overseas inflows. The average number of confirmed local outbreaks per day for the last week was 362.6, which is less than 400-500, the standard of 2.5 steps for social distancing. However, it is unlikely that any unconventional mitigation measures such as the social distancing stage will be lowered or the ban on groups of five or more will be lifted.

The number of confirmed cases, which once exceeded 1,000, has recently dropped to 300-400, but it is difficult to say that the spread is taking place. The number of confirmed cases in the last week was 469, 456, 355, 305, 336, 467, 451, and 370. The government has repeatedly emphasized that the trend of increase and decrease is more important than the number of confirmed cases itself.

An important variable is that there is a large-scale population movement due to the Lunar New Year holidays next week. This point was also taken into account when making the decision to keep social distancing at the current stage on the 31st. Even during the Lunar New Year holidays, the urgency to stop the ‘4th pandemic’ in March played a greater role in the criticism that the majority of the people would be crowded as criminals unless the ban on gathering of five or more people was lifted. The government’s position is that the government should not miss the reins of quarantine even during the Lunar New Year holiday in order to ensure that there is no disruption in the start of March and vaccination. It is that they will not step on the train that was the start of the second pandemic during the Liberation Day holiday in August last year.

Some quarantine measures are likely to be mitigated. Currently, multi-use facilities such as restaurants, cafes, and gyms across the country have store opening hours until 9:00 pm, and 5 types of entertainment facilities such as entertainment pub, Danran pub, Gamseong pub, Collage, and Hunting Pocha, and’Hold’em Pub’ (alcohol Bars where you can enjoy card games while drinking alcohol) are banned from gathering. Local governments and self-employed people are demanding that the business hours be increased after 10 pm and the group restrictions are also lifted.

In particular, there is a great demand for business restrictions after 9 PM. Recently, through social media such as Facebook, there is a relay campaign saying, “Please extend your business hours even an hour until 10 pm.” 19 small and medium-sized merchants and indoor sports facility groups demanded an extension of the business limit by 1 hour, and have been conducting a ’24-hour indefinite open demonstration’ from the 2nd. Some held a relay demonstration in front of the forum for reorganization of the distance phase on the 2nd. Entertainment facility owners, who were banned from gathering for nearly two months since December of last year, also held rally across the country to urge the right to live.

Seoul Mayor Woo Sang-ho, a preliminary candidate for the election of the mayor of Seoul, said, “I suggest that the government actively consider extending business hours to at least 10 pm. I think this is a way to find a balance between quarantine and self-employed people.” And other politicians are also contributing strength.

People’s fatigue is also accumulating. The 2.5th stage of the metropolitan area and the 2nd stage of the non-metropolitan area have been implemented since December 8, last year, and the ban on groups of 5 or more people has continued for more than a month since December 24, last year. In the `National Perception Survey on the Current Social Distancing System` released by the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Central Accident Control Center on the 2nd, 81.2% of the people said they experienced fatigue from social distancing. .

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