The firefighters who took pictures with their mouths closed...Why?

[Anchor]
After a series of reports of difficulties in treating emergency rooms amid legislative conflicts, the Fire Department issued guidelines restricting individual media contact to front-line firefighters.

In response, some firefighters protested that they were not allowed to speak out by covering their mouths, and launched the so-called "cancellation challenge."

Reporter Yoon Sung-hoon reports.

[Reporter]
Hard-faced men are covering their mouths with one hand.

Some people cover their mouth and eyes with their fingers.

The main characters in the picture are firefighters in the Seoul area.

We went on the so-called 'calling the mouth' challenge.

This is to protest the recent media response restriction guidelines issued by the Fire Department.

On the 12th of last month, the National Fire Agency delivered guidelines to the front line to prohibit confidential leakage learned during video filming and business processing such as transferring emergency patients, and to report to the head of the fire department in case of media contact.

It also added a warning that if inappropriate cases occur, they will take action in accordance with the procedures.

Heo Seok-gon, the head of the fire department, said at a national meeting of commanders before Chuseok that some members expressed their personal opinions in media interviews as if they were official opinions of the fire department, pointing out that it is an act that creates public anxiety.

As the issue of refusal of emergency room treatment was reported through the voices of some firefighters, there were concerns that the damage could increase during the Chuseok holiday.

Firefighters criticized the fire department for violating freedom of expression by blocking media contact rather than efforts to resolve the situation.

[Seo Dong-shin / Secretary-General of the Seoul branch of the Korean Government Employees' Union: The people should know, but they are blocking it, so we started (challenge). The pictures each personally symbolized "covering his mouth."]

They said the voices of firefighters are essential to protect public safety and plan to expand the challenge of withdrawing media response guidelines.

I'm YTN's Yoon Sung Hoon.

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video;Yoon Yong-jun

Design;Lee Wonhee