ID :
86901
Fri, 10/30/2009 - 22:55
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/86901
The shortlink copeid
N. Korea on alert over flu pandemic
By Kim Hyun
SEOUL, Oct. 30 (Yonhap) -- North Korea emphasized Friday that no Influenza A
(H1N1) cases have been reported in the country and that thorough quarantine
systems are in place.
Any contact with the H1N1 virus could be particularly dangerous to people in
North Korea, many of whom are undernourished and may have impaired immune
systems, North Korea watchers say.
"Strict anti-epidemic work is now under way in the DPRK where no A/H1N1 flu has
yet occurred," the North's Korean Central News Agency said. DPRK is short for the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the North's official name.
"A more strict quarantine inspection is now conducted at the airport, trade ports
and border posts to cope with the situation where the number of new influenza
cases is on the steady increase in the countries and region geographically close
to the DPRK," it added.
A total of 34 people infected with the new flu virus have died in South Korea. An
average of 4,000 people here were infected with the virus on a daily basis last
week, amid fears that the spread of the virus may accelerate during the
approaching winter.
North Korea said it was stepping up intergovernmental efforts to prevent the
spread of the new influenza virus from other countries. The State Emergency
Epidemic Prevention Committee has set up a well-regulated information system, and
other agencies have organized workshops to educate health workers on dealing with
the new flu, the KCNA said.
"Those suspected of being new influenza cases are sent to health institutions to
undergo tests," it added. The report did not clarify whether the country does
have suspected cases.
Radio Pyongyang, meanwhile, cited data from the World Health Organization that
some 414,000 people have been infected with the virus and that about 5,000 of
them have died around the world. The reports explained in detail flu-like
symptoms, such as fatigue, fever, headache, sore neck, coughing and diarrhea, and
how the virus is transmitted.
North Korea has been conscious of outside skepticism regarding its claims that
the country has seen no cases of the new flu. Earlier this month, the Choson
Sinbo, a pro-Pyongyang newspaper based in Japan, carried an interview with a
senior North Korean quarantine official who dismissed such concerns.
"I'm often asked how North Korea alone can remain insulated, while the number of
new flu patients continues to increase in neighboring countries like China,
Russia, South Korea and Japan," Pak Myong-su, vice chairman of the North's State
Emergency Anti-epidemic Commission, said in the interview.
"Such questions are understandable, but we would have no reason to hide if we
have any patients," he said. North Korea promptly reported a 2005 outbreak of
avian influenza to U.N. agencies, he noted.
In May, the World Health Organization supplied an emergency stockpile of tamiflu
to North Korea and other developing countries.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
SEOUL, Oct. 30 (Yonhap) -- North Korea emphasized Friday that no Influenza A
(H1N1) cases have been reported in the country and that thorough quarantine
systems are in place.
Any contact with the H1N1 virus could be particularly dangerous to people in
North Korea, many of whom are undernourished and may have impaired immune
systems, North Korea watchers say.
"Strict anti-epidemic work is now under way in the DPRK where no A/H1N1 flu has
yet occurred," the North's Korean Central News Agency said. DPRK is short for the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the North's official name.
"A more strict quarantine inspection is now conducted at the airport, trade ports
and border posts to cope with the situation where the number of new influenza
cases is on the steady increase in the countries and region geographically close
to the DPRK," it added.
A total of 34 people infected with the new flu virus have died in South Korea. An
average of 4,000 people here were infected with the virus on a daily basis last
week, amid fears that the spread of the virus may accelerate during the
approaching winter.
North Korea said it was stepping up intergovernmental efforts to prevent the
spread of the new influenza virus from other countries. The State Emergency
Epidemic Prevention Committee has set up a well-regulated information system, and
other agencies have organized workshops to educate health workers on dealing with
the new flu, the KCNA said.
"Those suspected of being new influenza cases are sent to health institutions to
undergo tests," it added. The report did not clarify whether the country does
have suspected cases.
Radio Pyongyang, meanwhile, cited data from the World Health Organization that
some 414,000 people have been infected with the virus and that about 5,000 of
them have died around the world. The reports explained in detail flu-like
symptoms, such as fatigue, fever, headache, sore neck, coughing and diarrhea, and
how the virus is transmitted.
North Korea has been conscious of outside skepticism regarding its claims that
the country has seen no cases of the new flu. Earlier this month, the Choson
Sinbo, a pro-Pyongyang newspaper based in Japan, carried an interview with a
senior North Korean quarantine official who dismissed such concerns.
"I'm often asked how North Korea alone can remain insulated, while the number of
new flu patients continues to increase in neighboring countries like China,
Russia, South Korea and Japan," Pak Myong-su, vice chairman of the North's State
Emergency Anti-epidemic Commission, said in the interview.
"Such questions are understandable, but we would have no reason to hide if we
have any patients," he said. North Korea promptly reported a 2005 outbreak of
avian influenza to U.N. agencies, he noted.
In May, the World Health Organization supplied an emergency stockpile of tamiflu
to North Korea and other developing countries.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
