The Covid-19 Threat In North Korea: The Regime Can Still Benefit By Using It Propaganda

Kaesong City, North Korea (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

JAKARTA - North Korea (North Korea) is facing the threat of the spread of the new corona virus. It is the first time a COVID-19 case has been made public in the country's most reclusive country. It is known that the case was brought by a defector who returned to Kaesong City. Even though it was a threat, the Kim Jong-un regime could still use the plague as their propaganda.

The North Korean leader Kim Jong-un held an emergency meeting after it was reported that a defector who fled the country three years ago returned to the city of Kaesong, North Korea. According to state media KCNA, it is estimated that this person has contracted COVID-19.

KCNA said the defector had symptoms of COVID-19, but did not confirm whether he had been tested or not. Now the defector is being questioned and quarantined. KCNA warned about a "dangerous situation" developing in Kaesong City which could lead to a "deadly and destructive disaster."

Meanwhile, authorities in South Korea (South Korea) confirmed that the defector crossed the heavily militarized border to return to North Korea. South Korean authorities said the man was not a COVID-19 patient or had close contact with COVID-19, but rather a man who was being investigated for a sex crime.

Some experts believe that North Korea, a country of nearly 25 million people bordering China, can escape the effects of a pandemic that has infected more than 16 million people worldwide and killed nearly 650,000.

Perhaps North Korea has not identified existing cases due to a lack of testing or has successfully isolated a small group of cases and not reported them. But if these defectors prove positive and cause a major outbreak, COVID-19 could turn out to be one of the biggest threats Kim Jong-un has faced in his nearly ten years in power.

Health System Constraints

Experts say that North Korea's dilapidated health care infrastructure is unlikely to be suitable for treating the large numbers of patients stricken with the new virus, which even the global health care community does not fully understand. This may also be one reason why Kim Jong-un's regime has been so proactive in its efforts to keep the virus from entering the country.

North Korea closed its borders in January after reports of COVID-19 emerged, although such a move was a painful decision given how heavily it relies on China to keep its economy stable. But North Korea is also in a unique position to control transmission of the virus.

The travel of foreigners to North Korea was severely restricted, even before the pandemic. Now that the COVID-19 pandemic is rampant, now the trips of foreigners to North Korea are close to zero, with mostly only diplomats and foreign workers entering the country. Those who enter North Korea are also required to undergo strict quarantine on arrival.

The average North Korean citizen is not allowed to travel far from home without government approval, even during normal times. Pyongyang-based diplomatic sources said that on the streets, everyone wears a mask and practices physical distancing.

But those steps may not be enough. Upon hearing of the Kaesong City case, Kim Jong-un responded quickly. He immediately ordered Kaesong City to shut down. Every district and region in Kaesong was also isolated.

Regime Advantages

Kim Jong-un is the third member of his family to rule in North Korea. Various propaganda has long been built, claiming the Kim family as protectors and saviors of the North Korean people. But propaganda capabilities give the regime an advantage if an outbreak does occur in North Korea.

North Koreans who fled the country and settled in South Korea often have difficulty adjusting. They often face discrimination and often find it difficult to find work in a capitalist society that is cruel and foreign to them. All of this can lead to despair and depression and a desire to return home.

Returnees are sometimes used as propaganda tools to convince North Koreans that the North's socialist system is superior to the South's capitalist system. Those who run away will risk their lives and limbs to return.

Escaping from North Korea and living in South Korea is often referred to as "human trash" and an enemy of the state. If a defector brings the virus to Kaesong City, the Kim Jong-un regime could spread the same argument: The North Korean government is able to protect its citizens from the virus, but South Korean capitalists have not been able to protect society from the virus.