Spokesman Report
After the malicious novel coronavirus had infiltrated its territory, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea promptly imposed nationwide blockade, and soon peace and stability gradually set in with the epidemic situation controlled in a stable manner.
What made such a quick recovery possible? The major factor is that the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea has assumed direct responsibility for the anti-epidemic war. On May 12, the Eighth Meeting of the Political Bureau of the Eighth WPK Central Committee was convened. At the meeting Kim Jong Un, General Secretary of the WPK, had the Political Bureau adopt a decision on switching the state epidemic prevention system to the top-level emergency anti-epidemic system.
Then he had a series of measures taken to promptly contain and manage the epidemic situation and to firmly hold the strategic initiative in the anti-epidemic campaign. He presided over the consultative meetings of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee on May 14 and 15. A meeting of the Presidium of the Political Bureau was called on May 17, and consultative meetings of the Political Bureau were held on May 21 and 29 under his guidance.
Within the 18 days after the top-level emergency anti-epidemic system had been put in place, he guided six major meetings to cope with the crisis, an unprecedented fact in the history of the WPK, which clearly shows how prompt and timely his measures were for the lives and safety of the people. Kim Jong Un personally visited the sites of anti-epidemic work in spite of high risk to acquaint himself with the situation and take relevant measures, and had the household medicines from his family sent to those experiencing difficulties. It would also be written on a new page of the world history of anti-epidemic work.
He visited the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters to acquaint himself with the national epidemic situation and had measures taken to implement immediately and thoroughly the items of the decision of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee so as to take up the winning position in the campaign proactively and definitely. On May 15, shortly after the consultative meeting of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee, Kim Jong Un visited some pharmacies in the capital city of Pyongyang. It was not long after the shop assistants recovered from the disease.
Despite personal risk, he approached them and familiarized himself in detail with how medicines were supplied and stored, whether the pharmacies were open round the clock, what kinds of medicines were in highest demand and how much they cost. He also asked them to tell him what they thought the best treatment method was and how they would consult those with fever. Then he saw to it that officials put to rights the faults in the medicine supply system and take powerful measures with regard to the transport of medicines. The DPRK’s recovery of stability through the anti-epidemic campaign can also be attributable to the state’s unified guidance, all the people’s voluntary unity to keep pace with it and their displays of tenderness and human feeling. Since the enforcement of the nationwide blockade, the Korean people have been proactive and responsible in implementing the government’s measures including disinfection and closure.
According to the special order of the Central Military Commission of the WPK, nearly 3 000 medics of the Korean People’s Army were deployed in hundreds of pharmacies in Pyongyang to conduct transport and supply of medicines.
They did not merely wait for the people to come to the pharmacies but visited the families in their charge to provide necessary medicines and actively engage in medical treatment, instilling in them confidence and courage. According to the data, tens of millions of medicines of over 90 kinds were supplied in Pyongyang and other provinces in a single day of May 24, and in early June the number increased to more than 360 million of over 430 kinds.
Throughout the country nearly 500 rapid mobile anti-epidemic groups and rapid diagnosis and treatment groups conducted confirmative diagnosis, transport and treatment of the cases and other anti-epidemic work.
More than a million of medical workers and teachers and students of the medical education institutions and hygiene activists were mobilized for treatment, examination and disinfection. The tenderness and human feeling of helping and leading one another forward can be said to be a major characteristic of the current anti-epidemic campaign in the DPRK.
Many people donated spare medicines, money and grains to help the families in hardship. Some young pupils sent pharmacies medicine envelopes they made with their own hands. Thousands of people who retired from the public health sector and even other ones volunteered to take part in the medical service. The volunteers also participated in the work for stabilizing the people’s living. Nearly 10 000 mobile service groups were organized across the country, and over 160 carts of vegetables, foodstuffs and daily necessities were deployed in each district of Pyongyang alone.
According to mass media of the DPRK, the daily occurrence of cases with fever continued to drop by 6.1 per cent on average from May 15, a few days after the blockade was imposed (May 12), and as of 18:00 hours, June 9, 4 265 860 (98.068 per cent of the total cases with fever) fully recovered and 83 980 (1.93 per cent) are under treatment.