Woman from Taiwan becomes 1st foreigner deported from S. Korea for refusing to pay for quarantine
Taiwan News
Date: 2020/04/06
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer
Workers disinfecting market in Daegu, South Korea. (AP photo)
In order to prevent the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), South Korea on April 1 imposed a new rule requiring all foreign visitors to undergo a 14-day quarantine. A Taiwanese woman in her 30s was deported to Taiwan at 7:45 p.m. on Sunday because she refused to cooperate with the terms of her quarantine, reported Yonhap News.
According to the report, the woman arrived at South Korea's Incheon Airport for sightseeing on April 2 and agreed to pay the 14-day quarantine fee. However, when she arrived at the designated quarantine facilities the next day, she said she could not afford to pay the bill and asked to check out.
The quarantine fee was based on a two-week stay and amounted to about 1.4 million won (US$1,140). According to South Korea's Ministry of Justice, the woman refused to stay in the quarantine facility because she said she could not afford the expense. [FULL STORY]