The Prime Minister of South Korea, Kim Boo-kyum, announced this Thursday (16) that the country will re-establish stricter rules of social distance. Although, a month and a half ago, Seoul decided to ease restrictions and opted for the policy of living with the coronavirus, the increase in infections and serious cases justify the retreat.
The measures take effect on Saturday (18) and should last until at least 2 January. Under the new rules, public meetings will be limited to a maximum of four people — as long as they are fully vaccinated. Establishments such as restaurants, cafes and bars will have to close at 9 pm, and cinemas and concert halls at 10 pm.
Those who are not vaccinated against Covid-19 can still have dinner outside, for example, but only if they are alone. Another option is to use the delivery or pick-up service for meals.
Currently, South Korean companies have no limits on their opening hours, and private meetings can have up to six people in Seoul or eight in other regions of the country, regardless of vaccination status. In public places, the meeting is allowed as long as at most one person in the group has not yet received the immunizing agent.
The group of non-immunized people, however, represents a minority of the South Korean population. As of Wednesday (15), 81.6% of South Koreans had completed their vaccination course, according to data from the Our portal World in Data.
The same base shows, however, the growth in the number of new cases of coronavirus in the country. Over the past two months, the moving average of new infections has risen almost uninterruptedly. As of Oct. 15, South Korea had an average of 1,579 daily cases; this Wednesday, the index was 6,790 — an increase of 130%.
In absolute numbers, deaths from Covid-19 are still relatively low, but they have grown at a similar rate. Two months ago, the moving average of deaths was 12 on this Wednesday, it was 63 — an increase of 123.5%.
“We are making every effort to overcome the crisis that is pressing on us, expanding our medical capacity and the vaccination campaign, but we need time,” said the South Korean prime minister. “We can only go beyond this crisis by bringing down [o Ãndice de] current dissemination as quickly as possible through strong social distancing”.
Despite the worrying figures, there are those who oppose the imposition of new restrictions. Associations of small business and restaurant owners issued a series of statements protesting the decision.
Entrepreneurs are also demanding economic support measures, and there are street demonstrations planned for next week. In response, Kim said the government would soon announce its plans to provide “even greater financial support” to businesses.
The President of South Korea, Moon Jae-in, released, through his spokesperson, an apology for not having been able to contain the spread of the coronavirus and guarantee sufficient hospital beds during the easing process.
In late October, the South Korean government had announced a process of gradual resumption of economic and social activities based on the attempt to live with the coronavirus without adopting very strict sanitary measures. Although with the caveat that the fight against the pandemic was not yet over, the announcement, coupled with the advanced pace of immunization, was charged with optimism.
But even at that time, specialists such as those from the Korean Medical Association (KMA) warned that the moment of switching to the new strategy, on the eve of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and when the country was already beginning to register a slight increase in cases, could trigger new outbreaks of Covid-19.
According to data from the South Korean Agency for Disease Control and Prevention (KDCA), the 7,622 cases recorded on Wednesday represent a small drop from the record of daily infections recorded the day before —7,850.
The KDCA also registered a record number of serious cases. There were 989 (almost 13% of the daily total). In the capital, Seoul, 87% of the ICU beds are occupied, a rate that, nationwide, is 81%.
The agency’s director, Jeong Eun-kyeong, predicts that the count of new cases could surpass the 10,000-a-day mark in December if the contagion rate is not curbed. The rate of 5,000 daily infections was surpassed on November 31, and 7,000 last week.
Also according to the KDCA, South Korea counts 148 cases of the omicron variant, potentially more transmissible.
.
