N.Korean leader Kim slams officials’ ‘immature’ response amid COVID outbreak
10:17 JST, May 18, 2022
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un slammed his country’s response to its first officially confirmed COVID-19 outbreak as “immature,” accusing government officials of inadequacies and inertia as fever cases swept the country, state media reported on Wednesday.
North Korea reported 232,880 more people with fever symptoms, and six more deaths after the country’s first admission of the COVID outbreak last week. It did not say how many people had tested positive for COVID-19.
Presiding over a politburo meeting of the ruling Workers’ Party on Tuesday, Kim said the “immaturity in the state capacity for coping with the crisis” increased the “complexity and hardships” in fighting the pandemic when “time is the life”, according to the KCNA.
Since its first acknowledgement of the COVID-19 outbreak, the North has reported 1.72 million patients with fever symptoms, including 62 deaths as of Tuesday evening.
Amid concerns over the isolated country’s lack of vaccines and adequate medical infrastructure, the KCNA said health officials have developed a COVID-19 treatment guide aimed at preventing drug overdoses and other mistreatments that have led to many of the reported deaths.
The guide includes treatments individualised for different types of patients, but state media did not elaborate on which drugs are involved in the treatment plans.
"News Services" POPULAR ARTICLE
-
Dollar Edges Lower, Yen at 34-year Trough
-
A Strong Earthquake Shakes Taiwan, Damaging Buildings and Causing a Tsunami
-
Taiwan’s Strongest Earthquake in 25 Years Kills Seven, Traps 77 (UPDATE 2)
-
Iranian Consulate in Damascus Flattened in Suspected Israeli Air Strike
-
Japan’s Nikkei Climbs 1.5% as Investors Scoop Up Beaten-Down Stocks (Update 1)
JN ACCESS RANKING
- M6.0 Earthquake Hits Japan’s Tohoku Region; Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi Prefectures Observe 4 on Japanese Scale With No Risk of Tsunami
- Cherry Blossoms Draw Crowd to Tokyo’s Ueno Park; Viewing Season Kicks Off to Slow Start
- China Mutes Memorialization of Reformer Hu Yaobang; Memories Could Spark Critique of Xi Administration
- Shinkansen Services Suspended After Man ‘Searches for Phone’ on Tracks; Disruption Affects About 14,000 Passengers
- Whaling Mother Ship Built in Japan for 1st Time in 73 Years