North Korea reports six deaths after admitting COVID-19 outbreak
The Hindu
The North’s official Korean Central News Agency said of the 3,50,000 people who developed fevers since late April, 1,62,200 have recovered
Six people have died and 3,50,000 have been treated for a fever that has spread “explosively” across North Korea, state media said on May 13, a day after acknowledging a COVID-19 outbreak for the first time in the pandemic.
North Korea likely doesn’t have sufficient COVID-19 tests and other medical equipment and said it didn’t know the cause of the mass fevers. But a big COVID-19 outbreak could be devastating in a country with a broken healthcare system and an unvaccinated, malnourished population.
The North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said of the 3,50,000 people who developed fevers since late April, 1,62,200 have recovered. It said 18,000 people were newly found with fever symptoms on Thursday alone, and 1,87,800 people are being isolated for treatment.
One of the six people who died was confirmed infected with the omicron variant, KCNA said, but it wasn’t immediately clear how many of the total illnesses were COVID-19. North Korea imposed a nationwide lockdown on Thursday after acknowledging its first COVID-19 cases. Those reports said tests from an unspecified number of people came back positive for the omicron variant.
It’s unusual for isolated North Korea to admit to the outbreak of any infectious disease, let alone COVID-19, as the country is intensely proud and sensitive to outside perception about its self-described “socialist utopia.”
While North Korean leader Kim Jong Un had occasionally been candid about his worsening economy and other problems in recent years, he had repeatedly expressed confidence about North Korea’s pandemic response and wasn’t seen wearing a mask in public until a ruling party meeting on Thursday where the North announced the COVID-19 infections.
It’s possible that the spread of the virus was accelerated by a massive military parade in Pyongyang on April 25, where Kim Jong Un took centre stage and showcased the most powerful missiles of his military nuclear programme in front of tens of thousands.