DPRK on High Vigilance Against SARS

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, May 11, 2003

DPRK on High Vigilance Against SARS

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea DPRK is doing everything it can, including strengthening cooperation with the international community, to keep out Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).

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The Democratic People's Republic of Korea DPRK is doing everything it can, including strengthening cooperation with the international community, to keep out Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).

The European Union is considering a 250,000-Euro fund to the DPRK to support its anti-SARS campaign, including the updating of medical equipment for two DPRK-designated isolation hospitals, a source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has appropriated some 30,000 US dollars to the DPRK for medical training for DPRK health workers and supplies of medical equipment, said Eigil Sorensen, the WHO representative to the DPRK.

A total of 5,000 masks will be sent to the country, as well as some antibiotic drugs and medical facilities, he said.

The medical conditions in the DPRK are far from satisfactory due to the country's economic difficulties from the mid-1990s. Lack of medicine is common for all hospitals throughout the country.

The DPRK government has, at the same time, tightened surveillance over SARS since April, including compulsory medical check-ups at all its customs.

Passengers with SARS symptoms will be sent to two isolation hospitals in Anju and Sinuiju for further treatment, and others are obliged to receive a 10-day quarantine.

Choi Su Hon, a vice foreign minister of the DPRK, who returned on Thursday from a visit to Britain, is among those under quarantine in Anju, along with seven international staff workers of the World Food Program (WFP) and foreign diplomats, sources from the WFP disclosed.

The DPRK's media also give their due attention to SARS.

Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the Workers' Party of Korea, has come out with daily reports on worldwide anti-SARS campaigns as well as informative articles on preventing the disease.

The Korean Central Television told the audience that Kimchi, a traditional Korean-style pickled vegetable, has an anti-SARS effect.

��The DPRK National Emergency Prevention Committee said on Wednesday that, thanks to the joint efforts at all levels, the DPRK has no SARS-infected patients or suspected cases up to now.

��The DPRK's economy, however, has been affected due to the drop in tourist arrivals in the country.

��Pyongyang-Beijing international trains are temporarily suspended except for goods downloaded at Sinuiju.

��Foreign businessmen here say their business was hit with a severe blow due to the interrupted transportation of goods at Nampo, one of the harbors of the DPRK.

��Pyongyang-based foreigners must receive a medical examination at Pyongyang Friendship Hospital before their scheduled visit or travel to other provinces.

��Koryo Airlines, a state-run company of the DPRK, however, is set to resume its international flight to Beijing.

��The Pyongyang-Beijing flights, which were suspended in early May to avoid possible import of the SARS virus from SARS-affected regions, will be resumed on a regular basis from next Thursday, said a customs officer at Pyongyang's Sun An International Airport.

��Analysts interpret the resumption of international flights as the DPRK government's efforts to make up for the losses to its economy.

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