Reservation for COVID-19 vaccinations for people aged 18 to 49 began on August 9th. However, according to the COVID-19 Vaccination Response Promotion Team on August 14th, the vaccination reservation rate as of midnight was about 60%, which was less than the government’s minimum expected reservation rate of 70%. About this low reservation rate, Son Young-rae, the head of the social strategy division at the Central Accident Remediation Headquarters, said in the briefing on August 12th, “For your health and the safety of all of us, we ask those who are eligible for reservation to participate actively.” However, people’s eyes on the vaccine are not so positive. In particular, as there are many cases which healthy adults died after vaccination, the avoidance of vaccination is increasing. About this issue, some people say they can fully understand while others say they cannot. This difference of opinion has spread to another conflict, and whether or not to be vaccinated has become a criterion for distinguishing selfish people, instead of an individual’s liberty.
Actually, there is nothing wrong between the opinions of those who encourage vaccination and those who avoid it. However, it is wrong to force one’s opinion to others. In particular, people who refuse to be vaccinated due to concerns about side effects tend to be treated as selfish people these days. This is clearly ignoring the freedom of choice. Of course, you may think that one should be vaccinated not only for oneself, but for others as well. Also, it is true that there is a low probability of vaccine side effects. However, people may hesitate to be vaccinated because of the fear that they may suffer from side effects, and they will not be compensated for the lack of relevance to the vaccine even though side effects occured after the vaccination.
An atmosphere that dismisses the anxiety as useless thing and directly or indirectly compels vaccinations should not exist in a liberal democracy. Rather, it is necessary to explain the efficiency of the vaccine accurately, instill the belief that people will be compensated when they are harmed by side effects of the vaccine, and block fake news about the vaccination. Instead of unconditional coercion, it is necessary to understand what people are afraid of and then deal with it wisely.