Fate of Korea's indoor mask mandate to be decided this month

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo speaks during a meeting at the Seoul government complex on Friday. [NEWS1]

The decision on lifting the indoor mask mandate will be made within the month, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said Friday.

“The specific criteria for judgment on the matter will be determined through an open debate during the month after discussion with the advisory committee and after public discussions,” Han said at the Seoul government complex Friday, during a meeting between ministers and the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters.

Han had previously hinted during a press briefing on Dec. 6 that the decision on indoor masks would be reached by January.

“The government will prepare indicators and standards to objectively evaluate the pandemic situation, and when these are met, the indoor mask mandate will be changed to recommended or voluntary,” said Han. “We plan to take into account the number of confirmed cases, serious illnesses and the trend of deaths.”

“Many different views have been raised about this matter within the government, and there have been a lot of discussions,” Han continued. “It is an unchanging principle to put the life and safety of the people as the top priority for quarantine policies.”

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]