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South Korean officials warned of a third wave of coronavirus, as a resurgence of cases continues through the Christmas period.
The Korea Disease Prevention and Control Agency (KDCA) registered 1,132 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, which was the second-highest daily increase in the country after 1,241 on Christmas Day.
South Korea has been seen as one of the countries that has best responded to the pandemic since it began, but has seen important coronavirus outbreaks in prisons, nursing homes and churches recently, prompting officials to ask people to stop year-end meetings.
South Korea has implemented a rigorous coronavirus screening and testing regime
Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol said: “The virus is spreading when and where it wants.”
Warning that the country was standing “at the crossroads of the third wave,” he said people were being infected by friends and family in small gatherings.
KDCA chief Jeong Eun-kyeong has urged that all private gatherings be canceled and that public and religious events be held online.
The government will meet on Sunday to discuss whether social distancing rules should be updated to their strictest levels in the Seoul metropolitan area, where 780 of the latest cases were reported.
This would mean that 1.2 million more stores would have to close and only essential workers could enter the offices.
Under current restrictions, nightclubs, karaoke bars and other nightlife venues have closed. It has also been prohibited to dine after 9:00 p.m.
Before Christmas, tourist spots were closed and gatherings of more than four people were also banned in the Seoul metropolitan area, which is home to 26 million people.
Critics have said the government has become overconfident, unprepared for a third wave.
South Korea has managed to stop major outbreaks early with rigorous testing and contact tracing.
However, authorities have been criticized for being overconfident and failing to prepare for a third wave, which is expected to be the largest.
The country’s largest conglomerate is currently in a prison in eastern Seoul, where 520 inmates, workers and their families have been infected, prompting all 650 people there to be tested.
Overall, South Korea has had 55,902 coronavirus cases and 793 deaths, according to KDCA data.
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What lessons can we learn from South Korea?
In the rest of the Asia-Pacific region, since The world’s first outbreak started in China It has lagged far behind Europe and the US in terms of cases, there are other COVID records being broken.
Tokyo experienced a daily high of 949 cases on Saturday, according to local media, prompting bars to be ordered to close early and residents urged to avoid nonessential outings.
The New Years period often sees an influx of people from the capital stream to the provinces of Japan.
However, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has urged the nation to stay home and avoid mixing with others.
Tokyo has reported its largest daily increase in cases
Looking ahead, Beijing has urged residents not to leave the city during the Lunar New Year holidays in February, implementing new restrictions after a handful of infections last week.
Two cases were reported on Friday, following two other asymptomatic cases earlier in the week.
Beijing is testing on a limited scale in the neighborhoods and workplaces where the cases were found, while large gatherings were banned and capacity limits were imposed in places like cinemas and museums.
