Seoul: North Korea said on Friday (August 5, 2022) that all of its fever patients had recovered, marking the end of its first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, but the deepening economic difficulties and future There are challenges with an unincorporated population exposed to resurgence.
While the state media said that the “anti-epidemic situation …
The reclusive country never confirmed how many people caught COVID-19, apparently lacking testing supplies. But it said about 4.77 million fever patients have made a full recovery and 74 have died since late April. It has not reported any new case of fever since July 30.
South Korean officials and medical experts have cast doubt on those figures, especially the number of deaths.
Shin Young-jin, a professor at Hanyang University’s medical school in Seoul, said the peak of the first COVID wave may have passed, with perceived fatalities being “almost impossible” and there could have been up to 50,000 deaths.
“Their success, if any, must lie in the fact that the outbreak did not lead to political or social chaos. Whether their COVID response was successful was another problem.”
Kwon Young-se, South Korea’s unification minister responsible for inter-Korean affairs, said this week that there were “credibility issues” with the North’s data, but the COVID situation was “somewhat under control.”
game return
In a sign of easing the outbreak, the ruling Workers’ Party hosted a large, mask-free event in late July, inviting hundreds of Korean War veterans.
The national football league began its season this week after a three-year stagnation, state media reported, as did swimming, sailing and bowling competitions.
Most of the games were held without spectators, but a photo from a Taekwondo match carried on Monday by the official Rodong Sinmun newspaper showed spectators wearing masks and separate seating.
Some analysts say challenges remain around the economy, food security and public health and that infections could return if seen in Asian neighbors amid the spread of the Omicron sub-variant.
Still, leader Kim Jong Un has yet to lift strict movement restrictions, and the Chinese border remains closed, with no officials traveling abroad and diplomatic missions in Pyongyang empty.
“Despite the weak medical infrastructure, each North Korean community has a designated doctor, and the socialist system’s strict controls and concerted responses can help detect and isolate potential cases,” said North Korean studies professor Lim. Il-chul said. Kyungnam University in South Korea.
Cheong Seong-chang, a senior fellow at the Sejong Institute, said the north’s outbreak was probably less severe than expected, because the disseminated fever cases could include a large number of other seasonal epidemics.
South Korea’s spy agency said in May that some waterborne diseases, such as typhoid or cholera, were already widespread in the north before COVID hit.
Cho Han-bum, a senior fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul, said Kim may have decided to get herd immunity because of the deteriorating public sentiment due to food shortages and sanctions.
Experts said the pandemic and a nationwide lockdown would deepen the north’s already dire food situation, and the World Health Organization said in June that the COVID situation could worsen.
“The north may try to ease restrictions by allowing people to go out and feed themselves, as food shortages become severe and there will be more outbreaks,” Cho said.