South Korea’s Coronavirus Battle Faces Homophobia

The “come forward, get tested” strategy that’s helped South Korea contain the coronavirus has run into an obstacle: the country’s longstanding homophobia.

Following an outbreak linked to clubs, several of them frequented by gay customers, health officials are trying to track more than 5,500 people who visited the bars between April 24 and May 6. But more than half remain out of reach, while the infections tied to the bars continue to rise. 

The strategy relied on people’s willingness to get tested and volunteer personal information, and for months, it’s worked. 

But the latest flare-up has emerged among a crowd of people who may not want to be identified. Gay people have few legal protections in South Korea. According to a 2017 Gallup poll, 58% of Koreans are against same-sex marriage, including President Moon Jae-in, who made his opposition a part of his campaign.

After the Korean government revealed in its push alerts the names of the bars that the coronavirus positive patient had visited, anti-gay comments accumulated on the Facebook page of Seoul-based King Club.

“Society-wide hatred against the gay community is getting worse because of the re-emergence of Covid-19 cases,” says Kang Myung-jin, Executive Director of the Seoul Queer Culture Festival.

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