「비상방역법」 제정을 통해 본 북한의 코로나-19 대응과 향후 협력 방안

Abstract

Following the outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China in February of 2020, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK; North Korea) transformed the national quarantine system into the Central Emergency Anti-epidemic Headquarters and announced a lockdown with border closures in response to COVID-19. The present study illustrates the basic principles of the newly enacted “Emergency Disinfection Law” and its key features in dealing with the national emergency declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study seeks to understand how North Korea has responded to COVID-19 and provide recommendations for possible collaborative strategies between North and South Korea with special attention to the new law. “Emergency Disinfection Law” comprises 5 chapters and 70 articles focusing on the organization of the Central Emergency Anti-epidemic Headquarters, the implementation of alert systems with various levels of disease-related notifications, and the imposition of penalties for violation of the law for which foreigners are no exceptions. The law is not without limitations, however, as evidenced by the lack of clarity in defining an infectious disease, delay in updating COVID-19 knoweldge, the absence of international cooperation regulation, and few hierarchical strategies against infection diseases except a nationwide lockdown. In the post-COVID-19 era, it is indispensable that South Korea and the global society support the mitigation of the lockdown in North Korea, being cognizant of health security in the Korean peninsula. Supportive measures for consideration include open cross-border testing sites for COVID-19, provision and co-production of personal protective equipment supplies, and efficient exchange of updated information regarding the COVID-19 vaccines and treatments. We hope to achieve agreements between North and South Korea pertaining to health care services through robust collaboration as East and West Germany did and build health security in the Korean peninsula as our long-term goals.