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| Interior and Safety Minister Chin Young, center, bows to residents of Asan during his trip to the region Thursday./ Yonhap |
By Kim Se-jeong
It is time for residents of Jincheon and Asan to accept the government's decision to house 720 Korean evacuees from Wuhan when they arrive home, conflict resolution experts said Thursday.
"There's nothing wrong with a protest and I understand their anger," Park Su-seon from the Conflict Resolution & Peace Center told The Korea Times. "But a problem appears when their protest only serves their personal interest. It is a time of national crisis. I would advise them to put themselves in the shoes of people who are coming back from China and who are sick."
On Wednesday, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said the 720 evacuees would stay in the National Human Resources Development Institute in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province, and the Police Human Resources Development Institute in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, for the next two weeks, drawing fierce opposition from local residents.
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| Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip gets his jacket pulled by angry Jincheon residents during a visit to the region Wednesday night. / Yonhap |
In Jincheon, people parked tractors in front of the designated site as part of their protest. They threw water bottles at, and grabbed the hair of, Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip who was visiting for talks on Wednesday night.
Health Minister Park Neung-hoo visited Asan, Thursday, only to have eggs thrown at him.
Almost 1,000 police were sent to the sites in a governmental show of force. By Thursday afternoon, the tractors were gone.
In Asan, residents gathered outside the Police Human Resources Development Institute waving placards with messages saying the evacuees were not welcome.
"It's the time for the government to show its leadership, not to negotiate with the residents," Park said. "Also, the government should provide correct information so the residents can understand that they had overreacted."
Seoul City's conflict resolution expert echoed Park's point on the importance of providing accurate information.
"When you hear the residents, they say they are worried about sick people walking around the neighborhood and interacting with children," Hong Soo-jung, director of the conflict resolution division, said. "But that's not true. The returning people will stay only in the building, with no interaction with outsiders, for two weeks. They (the residents) are being fed the wrong information."
Hong also urged the government to keep fake information under control.
On Thursday, Gangnam district in Seoul and Changwon city in South Gyeongsang Province asked police to investigate the spread of fake information on the coronavirus outbreak.
According to one fake KakaoTalk message, a woman, born in 1967 in Changwon, was confirmed to have the virus after family from Wuhan visited during the Lunar New Year holiday.
The local government and public medical clinic declared the information incorrect after verifying the facts and asked police to investigate.
On Thursday, President Moon Jae-in tried to assure residents in Jincheon and Asan of their safety by saying all 720 Korean evacuees are healthy and have no virus symptoms.
The returning Koreans will stay in single rooms with ensuite bathrooms. Contact with outsiders is restricted and quarantine staff will check their temperatures twice daily. Those with virus symptoms will be sent to local hospitals for treatment.
The two designated sites were preparing to receive the evacuees, filling rooms with toiletries and hygiene products. The buildings' gates have been equipped with disinfection sprays.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare said the quarantine for the 720, has involved extensive effort including management of waste from the facilities.
It also said it will consult with airline companies to increase the number of flights to Wuhan temporarily to help the remaining Koreans who wish to return home.
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| Quarantine officials install disinfection devices at the gate of the Police Human Resources Development Institute in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, Thursday. / Yonhap |
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