Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun urges the public to follow social distancing and avoid year-end gatherings to help prevent another wave of COVID-19 in a televised address on Nov. 20, 2020 (Photo: Yonhap News)
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun has urged the public to avoid social gatherings as South Korea braces for another potential wave of COVID-19.
"We ask that you refrain from holding any scheduled year-end gatherings as much as possible and remain at home if not for essential activities," Chung said.
He made the request in a televised address Friday, as health authorities grapple with new surges in sporadic cluster infections nationwide.
In particular, he asked people in their 60s and older to "minimize unnecessary outings and meetings" during the winter season.
Chung also appealed to companies to cooperate with the government's social distancing scheme by facilitating remote work.
Chung noted, "The scope and speed of transmissions among the younger population, who often go about symptom-free, isn't easy to catch up with," pointing to the 52.2 percent positivity rate of those in their 40s who were tested in the past week, up 10 percentage points from the week prior.
The prime minister vowed full efforts to address safety-related anxieties, especially among students preparing for next month's national college entrance exam.
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