ROK and Inter-Korean relations
May 2020
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2nd Coronavirus Wave Feared After Itaewon Club Infections
By Yang Ji-ho, Ku Bon-woo, Heo Sang-woo
May 11, 2020 09:35
Coronavirus infections are spiking again in Korea after a man in his late 20s, who went to a nightclub and other bars in Seoul's Itaewon district over the long weekend, tested positive for coronavirus on May 6. Four days later new infections apparently linked to clubs in Itaewon had swelled to 75.
The resurgence came amid a gradual easing of lockdown rules after new infections had stayed in single figures for around a week.
According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cases traced to Itaewon clubs stood at 49 in Seoul on Sunday, rising to 75 if cases outside the capital are included -- 16 in Gyeonggi Province, six in Incheon, two in North Chungcheong Province, one in Busan and one on Jeju Island.
[Coronavirus] [Resurgence]
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Coronavirus Infections Resurge as Lockdown Eases
By Bae Jun-yong
May 14, 2020 10:16
Coronavirus infections traced to clubbers in Seoul's party district of Itaewon are being spreading across the country.
One 25-year-old crammer instructor in Incheon who had been to a club in Itaewon is thought to have infected at least 10 other people, including seven teenage students, one parent and one co-worker. He apparently had no or very mild symptoms himself. Two of the students then attended services in churches in Incheon with over 1,000 believers, causing concern of a fresh spike in infections.
The instructor did not inform authorities of his occupation, making it difficult for health officials to respond swiftly.
An official at the Incheon city government said, "The man lied that he was unemployed. We will file charges against him for violating the law on preventing the spread of infectious diseases." The offense carries a maximum prison sentence of two years or a W20 million fine (US$1=W1,225).
[Coronavirus] [Precariat]
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Gov't Must Stop Making Excuses for N.Korean Thuggery
May 06, 2020 13:10
The weapon North Korea fired at a South Korean guard post on Sunday along the heavily-armed border was a 14.5 mm heavy machine gun capable of penetrating an armored vehicle. The lives of troops were at risk. But both Cheong Wa Dade and the military were in a rush to write off the incident as an "accidental discharge" and did not even lodge a formal protest. Experts say North Korean heavy machine guns are not known to misfire, and the story is even less likely given that all four bullets squarely hit a patch of wall 1.5 km away. On Monday, a day after the incident, North Korea lambasted South Korea's procurement of U.S.-made F-35 stealth fighter jets and joint military exercises, which makes it crystal clear that the provocation was planned as usual.
[DMZ] [Clash] [Rightwing]
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JCS misreported effective range of N. Korean artillery fired at S. Korean GP
Posted on : May.8,2020 18:16 KST Modified on : May.8,2020 18:16 KST
The ZPU-4 14.5mm antiaircraft machine gun
Military authorities previously cited the inability of North Korean military firearms’ effective range to cover the distance between the two sides’ guard posts as a reason for not viewing a May 3 incident of gunfire as a “deliberate provocation” -- but this conclusion has now been shown to be contrary to the facts. Critics contended that the failure to give an accurate account of the circumstances behind the misleading report have contributed to the growing controversy over whether the gunfire was accidental or deliberate.
In a press briefing shortly after the gunfire exchange on May 3, a Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) official suggested that the distance of 1.5–1.9 km between the North Korean guard post and the South Korean guard post that was fired upon fell outside of the effective range of the firearms used by the North Korean military in the incident.
[DMZ] [Clash] [Media]
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