Article is from WeChat public account: Earth Knowledge Agency (ID: diqiuzhishiju) , author: Sven Fan seniors, cartography: Sun green, title figure from: cpt.kama / Shutterstock.com
Currently, the new crown pneumonia in China has been curbed to a certain extent. The areas with less epidemic conditions have begun to relax restrictions, encourage companies to resume work gradually, and some scenic spots have been reopened. It is also because the Chinese government has attached great importance to this epidemic since February, and its control measures have also been stricter, which has reduced the burden on the international community in fighting the epidemic.
What’s worsening now is the outbreak in other countries, such as South Korea, where the number of suspected and confirmed cases is increasing daily.
This situation is a little bit serious in Korea
The area with the worst outbreak in Korea is not Seoul, which is the most densely populated, but Daegu. The type of patient population is also very Korean. It can be said that through the epidemic situation, you can take a closer look at all aspects of this country.
The role of metropolitan cities is similar to that of Chinese municipalities, but the population of these metropolitan cities is totally incomparable to Seoul.
Inevitable epidemic
China and South Korea are not only neighboring countries geographically across the sea, but also the trade and personnel flow between them are very frequent. This time, the spread of the new crown pneumonia epidemic to Korea is almost inevitable.
Northeast Asian countries are really “exotic mountains and rivers, the same wind and moon”, your problem is my problem (picture from shutterstock) / p>
China is South Korea ’s largest importer and exporter, and South Korea is China ’s third-largest trading partner. In recent years, China-Korea trade has continued to show growth. As of 2018, China has accumulatively invested US $ 7.64 billion in South Korea, and South Korea has accumulated actual investment in China of US $ 77.04 billion. South Korea is China ’s second largest source of foreign investment, China is South Korea ’s second largest investment target country, and China and South Korea. There are also often contracted projects between them.
The Korean economy is highly dependent on foreign trade, and most of its exports come from Asian countries and regions. Mainland China accounts for a quarter (picture from: OEC)
Behind these figures are a considerable number of joint ventures and even industrial parks, so there will be a large number of staff between China and South Korea. As the number of Koreans living in China has gradually increased, there have been areas such as Beijing Wangjing, Wudaokou, Shanghai Gubei, Longbai New Village, and Qingdao Li Village. At present, the number of Koreans in China has reached one million.
The number of Chinese people living in South Korea is also huge. As early as 2016, statistics released by the Ministry of Justice ’s Entry and Exit Foreigners Policy Headquarters show that the number of Chinese people living in South Korea is close to one million, many of which are Chinese. Koreans often relocate with their families; it is also common for them to work alone in South Korea.
In all aspects, Chinese people who have come to Korea in South Korea can still see familiar dramas (Picture @ 猫 斯图)
The number of international students traveling between the two countries is relatively frequent. It is normal to return to China during the winter and summer vacations. The number of Korean students studying in China is as high as 50,000, while the number of Chinese students studying in Korea is more than 70,000.
Chinese New Year is the most important statutory holiday in China. Many Chinese people will seize the opportunity to travel during the Chinese New Year holiday. South Korea, which is closer and lower in cost, is a popular route for Chinese people. Although the number of Chinese tourists to South Korea has decreased in recent years, the number of tourists to South Korea during the Spring Festival holiday in 2018 still exceeded 100,000.
Chinese characters that can be seen everywhere, do not speak Korean and do not affect shopping in Korea (picture from Mohd Hafizan bin Ilias / Shutterstock.com)
Similarly, the Spring Festival is also a traditional festival in South Korea. The holiday customs are similar to those in China. They pay attention to family reunion. Koreans who have been floating in China for a year are also going home. In other words, On the eve of the Spring Festival, many Koreans living in various parts of China will return to China.
There will also be a lot of people gathering (picture from: MILKXT2 / Shutterstock.com)
Therefore, it is entirely reasonable that the outbreak in China affected South Korea. In fact, the earliest confirmed cases in South Korea are even earlier than in many provinces in China, with most Chinese from Wuhan. But overall, the number of patients from Wuhan is limited, and South Korea also began to restrict entry in early February in an attempt to stop the spread of the virus. However, the epidemic eventually broke out in South Korea.
Special circumstances in Korea
The outbreak in South Korea has not been serious before, and seems to be under control. After all, the number of patients imported from Wuhan and their close contacts is limited. However, since February 18, the number of confirmed diagnoses in South Korea has doubled, reaching 1,146 by 9:00 on the 26th.
Data report by the Ministry of Health and Welfare of Korea and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (picture from: KCDC)
The particularity of South Korea has led to an outbreak.
Daegu is the most severely affected area of new crown pneumonia in South Korea. According to the current statistics, none of Daegu’s 710 confirmed patients came from abroad. More than 400 of them are believers in the Xintiandi Church. The Xintiandi Church regards itself as a branch of Christianity, but is regarded as a heresy or heresy by the religious circles in many countries, including China and South Korea.
710 cases in Daegu … (picture from: MOHW)
Korean Christianity was introduced from China in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. It has less communication with Western churches and has a high degree of localization. Because Korea is a product of the Cold War, its government also used a method of encouraging Christianity to express its position during the Cold War Has promoted the rapid spread of various types of local Christianity.
Christ sculpture in Busan, South Korea (picture from: shutterstock / nami chwang)
The Xintiandi Church, founded in 1984, has caught up with the last train. The founder, Li Wanxi, claimed that Jesus was reincarnated. His church organization was more rigorous than that of ordinary churches. He quickly expanded his influence through the teaching of scripture classes, and won the favor of middle-aged and elderly people. There are hundreds of thousands of believers.
Li Wanxi, 89 years old, does not know if he is blessing himself at this moment (picture from Wikipedia / LeeSunHo)
Because of the large number of believers, churches often hold various types of intensive rituals. The result of ordinary rituals is nothing more than the believers’ hard-earned money for peace of mind. When the epidemic breaks out, such occasions often become viruses. The hotbed of transmission, especially among the believers, is the higher proportion of older people who are less resistant and often do not trust medicine more.
Xintiandi Olympic Games (picture from: Wikipedia @ Junganghansik)
On February 18, a 59-year-old female patient became the first confirmed case of new coronary pneumonia in Daegu. At this time, the epidemic situation has already appeared in South Korea.It has been nearly a month in the past, this is only the 31st case in the country, and it can be seen that the epidemic prevention and control in South Korea is still relatively tight before this.
However, the old man developed symptoms on the 7th and did not go to the hospital for examination. She was ill and attended several worship services at Xintiandi Church in Daegu Church. The leader who claimed to be the reincarnation of Jesus apparently did not bless believers-since then, the number of confirmed diagnoses in Daegu has skyrocketed.
Goed to the church several times and infected some fellow teachers (picture from: MOHW)
The leader failed to bless his brother. His brother held a funeral in February, and many believers came to the funeral. The funeral was considered by analysts to have caused another public health catastrophe—the outbreak at the Donan Psychiatric Hospital in Cheongdo-gun, near Daegu. People-intensive and easily overlooked prisons and psychiatric hospitals are very susceptible to the spread of infectious diseases. There are already 109 people in the Taonan psychiatric hospital. In addition, there are 49 Xintiandi believers in the Gyeongbuk area where the hospital is located.
(picture from: Gyeongbuk Province Office)
Xintendo is just a microcosm. Korea has similar anti-intellectual tendencies. There are still many organizations wandering between religions and cults. They have influence on their followers, which undoubtedly increases the popularization of the Korean government. With difficulty of epidemic prevention.
The hidden dangers don’t end with cults and mental hospitals. Nearly a week after the outbreak broke out, former President Lee Myung-bak was sentenced to 17 years in prison and his supporters were concentrated in Daegu and Gyeongbuk. I do n’t know if the incubation period for the epidemic has passed, will people attending the rally become the next wave Confirmed.
Measures taken in South Korea
As a medium-developed country, the medical level in South Korea is not bad. At present, the average life expectancy of Koreans is 82 years, and the number of beds per capita is relatively high. Negative pressure ward is a better choice for the treatment of infectious diseases. At present, there are more than 1,000 beds in negative pressure ward in South Korea. The per capita is also at a high level, which is higher than that of Japan, which has a more developed economy.
High-end private hospitals account for a large proportion of the medical system in South Korea (picture from: Niyazz / Shutterstock.com)
In addition, South Korea also has its own regulatory system for severe acute respiratory infectious diseases. It uses more than 50 medical institutions across the country to collect samples and send them to 17 city-level research institutions for analysis. It provides information on respiratory infectious diseases that are included in the regulatory system every week. On February 17, new coronary pneumonia was also included in the system, which was slightly dull but still within a reasonable range.
Quick response process for infectious disease crisis (picture from: KCDC)
Compared to Japan, it can be seen that South Korea’s prevention and control measures are more effective. This is probably because South Korea experienced the Middle East respiratory syndrome epidemic in 15 years, exposing the government’s early lack of attention and inadequate publicity. By summing up, South Korea has accumulated a certain amount of experience in epidemic prevention, so that the response speed can be generally quickened.
The fire department also responded quickly and conducted related investigations (picture from: wikipedia)
The bigger problem is that some people do n’t pay enough attention to the epidemic. After all, no matter how much the government attaches importance to it, people who do n’t go to the hospital or go to church have no solution.
The Korean Center for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a multilingual version of the precautionary code (picture from: wikipedia @ Ministry of Health and Welfare)
However, the epidemic situation has intensified, and the panic that once appeared on the streets of China has begun to spread in South Korea. The Korean people, especially the citizens of Daegu, have also started buying masks to reduce going out. The fourth largest city, Daegu, has gradually turned apathy. In addition, everyone is angry at the Xintiandi Church, which has spread the virus. So far, more than 800,000 people have petitioned to ban it.
In the public announcement of Qingwatai, as of February 26, 19:20, more than 800,000 people have participated in the petition (picture from: https: // www1 .president.go.kr / petitions / 585290)
A day later, The Health and Welfare Committee of the Korean Parliament revised three bills in response to the epidemic, requiring masks for susceptible persons, banning the export of disinfectants and masks, and quarantine patients for close contact for 13 days The quarantine can only be lifted after the virus test is negative; Gyeongbuk and the neighboring Gyeongnam area began to disinfect public transportation facilities; President Moon Jae-in soon raised the alert level to the highest level, at which time South Korea had already More than 600 people have been diagnosed.
Spray disinfectant in markets, main streets, and other places with high traffic (picture from cpt.kama / Shutterstock.com)
On the 25th, the Xintiandi Church Examination Project is also long overdue. They will take extra blockade measures against Daegu and Gyeongbuk to find undiagnosed patients as soon as possible and prevent the entry of people from the epidemic area to stop the spread of the epidemic. However, there are more than 210,000 believers, and the cult organization that does not cooperate with the government has been difficult to see with the naked eye.
Government departments received over 210,000 members of the church through Xintiandi’s officers, but the difficulty in troubleshooting is not only in the number of people, but also in the mismatch of the church (picture from https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20200226085151017?input=1195m)
Compared to the death and fear brought about by the epidemic itself, economic impact is a big issue that can be easily overlooked.
As an export-oriented economy, the South Korean economy is likely to become vulnerable in the epidemic. The trade between China and South Korea originally originated from the outbreak of the Chinese epidemic, and the outbreak of the South Korean epidemic will affect its cooperation with other trading partners. All industries in South Korea will be affected. The transportation, tourism, service, and education industries will be particularly hard hit. It may be an astonishing figure when the epidemic ends.
Notification of 2019-nCoV infection prevention in Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul, Korea (picture from Wikipedia / STCK w ^)
In general, From the timeline, the response of the Korean government is not bad, because the sudden outbreak of a small probability event leads to a large outbreak, and it cannot be attributed to the Korean government’s epidemic prevention measures. The prevention and control of the epidemic was destroyed in anthills and exposed to social issues in South Korea in addition to the epidemic prevention and control system. The difficulty and cost of governance may not be covered by a government.