 |
| President Moon bows to staff during a visit to the Daegu Medical Center. Yonhap |
By Do Je-hae
Key officials from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and the Moon Jae-in administration have come under fire for some insensitive remarks related to the COVID-19 epidemic.
Their words have hurt public sentiment rather than soothing the anxiety that has arisen from the rapid spread of the coronavirus, showing the wide gap between politicians and the general public in terms of their views on the issue.
Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo has received angry responses from the opposition and the public with a remark that seemed to blame Koreans for the rapid spread of the virus which originated from the Chinese City of Wuhan.
During a plenary session of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, Wednesday, Park was asked questions regarding the spread of the new coronavirus. "The biggest cause is us Koreans who entered from China," Park said.
The remark came amid mounting frustration against the government for its inability to control the epidemic at the initial stages by implementing a stringent entry ban on people arriving from China as many countries have done since the outbreak of the virus earlier this month.
During a government briefing earlier this week, Park repeatedly made remarks suggesting that the entry of Chinese people is not the root cause of the spread of the virus here and therefore, a complete entry ban from the entire Chinese territory will not be that effective in containing the epidemic. "Banning Chinese entry into the country is not entirely right. In some cases, infections occurred from Chinese tourists. But there were more cases of infections caused by Koreans who have been to China," Park said during a briefing on Feb. 21.
These remarks fanned the public anger especially because in recent days some Chinese local governments have banned the entry of people from Korea as the number of confirmed cases here is rising.
The main opposition United Future Party (UFP) has called on President Moon to dismiss Park. "The minister, who is responsible for the spread of the virus by neglecting quarantine, is blaming the people for the spread of the virus," UFP floor leader Rep. Shim Jae-cheol said during a party meeting at the National Assembly, Thursday. "The incompetence of this administration, which has ignored experts' warnings and has avoided responsibility, is being starkly exposed."
Park has also faced criticism for saying that the Korean Society of Infectious Diseases did not recommend an entry ban on those coming over from China. But the organization, in fact, had advised the government to expand the ban to those coming from other danger zones in China in addition to Wuhan.
Some ruling party members and Cheong Wa Dae officials have been praising their own efforts, stressing that some foreign media outlets have positively reported Korea's response to the virus.
Citing a report by U.S. magazine TIME, Rep. Park Kwang-on of the DPK said, "(The report said) the increase in the number of confirmed cases in Korea rather shows the country's system is working properly." He added Korea's capability for swift and accurate tests and transparent disclosure of relevant information has led to the high number.
Criticism followed that the ruling bloc is not understanding the situation properly. "If Rep. Park's stance is right, the continuously growing number of patients and deaths is a positive signal that the country's system is working properly," UFP vice spokesman Hwang Kyu-hwan said.
These controversial remarks came even after DPK chief spokesperson Rep. Hong Ik-pyo resigned from his post, Wednesday, following public backlash over his call to shut down Daegu and the North Gyeongsang Province, the areas worst affected by the virus in Korea.
![[INTERVIEW] How AmazeVR revolutionizes aespa's LYNK-POP concert](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/4431833759c44bdaa414cb314e90f2fe.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
