COVID-19 Craze, Myanmar Records Daily Infection Case Record Since Military Coup

Ilustrasi COVID-19. (Wikimedia Commons / Mstyslav Chernov)

JAKARTA - Myanmar has experienced a surge in COVID-19 infection cases, after recording a record daily infection case of more than 300 infections on Sunday, June 14.

Launching The Irrawaddy Monday, June 14, Myanmar's Ministry of Health and Sports recorded 373 new cases of COVID-19 infection in Myanmar yesterday, the biggest daily spike since the Myanmar military regime's February 1 coup.

This spike marks a new chapter in the wave of COVID-19 infections in the Land of a Thousand Pagodas, with the increase occurring in the suburbs. Previously, a record spike in daily infections was recorded at 212 cases on June 4.

As of Sunday, Myanmar recorded a total of 145,603 cases of COVID-19 infection, with 3,244 deaths and 132,928 recoveries.

In yesterday's report, the spike in cases of COVID-19 infection occurred near the Indian border, precisely in Kale and Tamu Townships in Sagaing Region. Serata in Tonzang Township and Falam in Chin State.

Since last week, around 20 to 70 cases of coronavirus have been reported daily in the Sagaing Region. Most cases were reported in Kale and Tamu Township, in the western part of the large region.

According to the military-controlled Ministry of Health and Sports, around 15 to 50 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Kale since early June, while Tamu Township has reported between 11 and 40 cases per day.

Zalen news agency said around 32 people had died from COVID-19 in Kale this month. As a result, the municipal government imposed a lockdown and stay-at-home order since June 2.

The lockdown was tightened after two Christian pastors, aged 43 and 53, died of COVID-19 in Kale on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Department of Public Health in Hakha, China State recorded around 480 cases of COVID-19 were reported in the state between May 19 and June 11.

In detail, about 337 cases of COVID-19 and 10 deaths, the highest number in the state, were reported in Tonzang Township. Falam Township reported 128 cases of COVID-19 and one death.

Five of the nine municipalities in the states of Chin, Tonzang, Hakha, Tedim, Falam, and Thantlang, are under orders from the health ministry to stay at home.

"Tonzang is facing a shortage of medicines and ventilators for COVID-19 patients", a municipal health official recently told The Irrawaddy.

The newspaper affiliated with the Myanmar military said on June 12 that the regime had supplied sufficient COVID-19 antigen test kits, oxygen cylinders, protective equipment, and medicines in Kale.

To note, since the coup, the Myanmar military regime has struggled to maintain the prevention, control, and treatment of COVID-19 as thousands of government medical staff and many volunteers refused to work for the regime and joined the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM).

The health ministry under military control is reported to have carried out between 1,500 to 2,000 COVID-19 tests per day. Meanwhile, under the leadership of the ousted civilian government, Myanmar was able to record daily COVID-19 tests of between 16,000 and 18,000 tests.

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