On December 6, the government argued that protecting teenagers from the risk of contagion had more value when it came to the vaccine pass and announced that it would implement the policy according to schedule, despite the heated debate on expanding the vaccine pass to teenagers.

When the government included study areas, such as private academies (hagwon), study rooms and libraries, among the facilities where the vaccine pass would be required, more students and parents began opposing the government policy claiming that it was discrimination against people not receiving the vaccine and a violation of their right to learn and that the government was practically forcing vaccination.

Just two months ago, the government left the decision on the vaccination of teenagers as a voluntary choice. But now, it has changed direction and is virtually forcing vaccinations without giving a sufficient explanation. People are criticizing that the government brought on the latest controversy by promoting policies that lacked consistency.

Son Young-rae, director-general of social strategy at the Central Disaster Management Headquarters in the Ministry of Health and Welfare said in a briefing, “Enabling massive gatherings of teenagers centered on those who have been fully vaccinated can protect them from the risk of contagion.” He further said, “We determined that protection from COVID-19 was more necessary in terms of public interest than the teenagers’ right to learn.” He explained that the government would introduce the vaccine pass for teenagers ages 12-18 in restaurants, cafes, private academies, libraries and study rooms beginning February 2022, as scheduled.

Initially, the government had put the decision on the vaccination of teenagers in the hands of the individual. When it came to teenagers, the benefits of vaccination were not significantly greater than the risks, so the government left the choice up to the teenagers and their parents.

Choi Eun-hwa, head of the advisory committee on immunization practices said on September 27, “Whatever decision you make (on the vaccination of minors), it should be respected, and there should be no stigma or discrimination against that decision.” Jung Eun-kyeong, commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency also mentioned the vaccination of teenagers on October 18 and said, “You need to make a decision after consulting your parents,” and had left the decision up to the individual.

But after the government began a phased return to normal, COVID-19 spread among teenagers, a group with a low vaccination rate, forcing the government to change routes, from voluntary vaccination to recommending vaccination and now to a stronger recommendation, practically forcing vaccination, in a period of two months. According to the education ministry, during the one week from November 29 to December 5, 3,948 students contracted the virus nationwide. This means an average of 564 students contracted the virus in a day, a figure higher than the maximum daily average from the previous week. The government has designated the two weeks from December 13 until the 24 as an “intensive vaccination week.” The education ministry explained that finals would end in schools during this period.

The problem is that the government has not sufficiently explained how safe the vaccines are for teenagers and why the vaccine pass is inevitable. You Myoung-soon a professor at the Seoul National University Graduate School of Public Health said, “If the government fails to empathize with the emotional reactions to the risk and simply state that we need to raise the vaccination rate to ease the burden on our medical system, it could end up highlighting the risks of vaccination more than the benefits,” and added, “The government needs to amply listen to the people’s concerns on vaccinating teenagers.”