On Thursday, North Korea declared a “severe national emergency” and a nationwide lockdown after reporting its first case of the highly transmissible BA.2 subvariant of the Omicron strain of COVID-19 in the capital Pyongyang.
State media network Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, “The state’s most serious emergency has occurred: A break was made on our emergency epidemic prevention front that had been firmly defended until now.”
BREAKING: North Korea state media says it has detected its first case of omicron, per Yonhap. North Korea is one of two countries in the world still without covid vaccines. This is the first time North Korea has admitted to a positive case. More to come. https://t.co/J49FXPRXuj
— Michelle Ye Hee Lee (@myhlee) May 12, 2022
The KCNA noted that several samples collected from people with a fever on May 8 for COVID-19 tested positive for the Omicron variant. The size of the outbreak remains unknown, but it could have a catastrophic impact, given the country’s poor health care system and the fact that none of its 26 million citizens are vaccinated. In fact, the rogue state has rejected vaccines offered via the World Health Organization’s COVAX initiative, possibly because it would have resulted in greater monitoring of its secretive regime. It even rejected an offer of three million vaccine doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine last year.
Therefore, the Politburo announced that the government has implemented the “maximum emergency quarantine system.” Details on what this system or the lockdown entail remains unclear.
Big news coming out of North Korea. They’ve finally admitted to COVID-19 having hit their country after claiming zero positive cases since the start of the pandemic.
— Oliver Jia (オリバー・ジア) (@OliverJia1014) May 12, 2022
The DPRK has not introduced vaccines to its population and in general lacks adequate medical facilities. https://t.co/6JfKNzBceJ
In light of the outbreak, Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un has ordered a “strict” nationwide lockdown. During the politburo meeting of the Workers’ Party, Kim called on officials to “stabilise transmissions and eliminate the infection source” as soon as possible while also limiting the public inconvenience caused by restrictions.
He urged the country to remain calm and united, saying, “single-minded public unity is the most powerful guarantee that can win in this anti-pandemic fight.” He vowed to eliminate the virus “within the shortest period of time.”
The politburo also took aim at health officials’ “lack of awareness, slackness, irresponsibility and incompetence.”
Despite the strict lockdown measures, Kim has asked officials to move ahead with “scheduled constructions, agricultural development, and other state projects,” whilst strengthening the country’s defence apparatus, possibly a reference to its continued weapons testing and nuclear programme.
Following news of the outbreak, South Korea’s Unification Ministry offered medical and humanitarian assistance to Kim Jong-un’s regime. However, Pyongyang is yet to respond.
Seoul-based NK News has reported a lockdown in several areas of Pyongyang, panic buying, and supply shortages amid uncertainty over when the lockdown will be lifted.
Edwin Salvador, the WHO’s representative to North Korea, said that the country had not conveyed any confirmed COVID-19 cases to the Organization so far.
According to the WHO, the Omicron strain spreads much faster than previous strains and has high fatality and hospitalisation rates for older people and people with pre-existing health conditions.
I find it difficult to believe that this is the first time the virus has found its way into North Korea. But, if this is true, it appears it's severe enough that the North Korean government has admitted it. And as North Koreans aren't vaccinated, they're in a lot of trouble. https://t.co/MoAQwoZhKA
— John Lee (@koreanforeigner) May 12, 2022
North Korea claims to have remained COVID-19-free since the beginning of the pandemic due to strict controls, a claim that is disputed by most health experts. Before the worldwide spread of the virus, it initiated severe steps such as quarantining individuals with coronavirus-like symptoms and also suspended cross-border traffic and trade.
Kim Sin-gon, a professor at Seoul’s Korea University College of Medicine, said North Korea might be conveying its willingness to receive vaccine shipments from outside with this rare public announcement. He added that the country would also want to procure COVID-19 medicines and medical equipment, which are currently banned by United Nations sanctions over its nuclear programme.