South Korea faces fears of a new outbreak of Covid-19 contamination. On Sunday May 10, South Korean President Moon Jae-in urged the public to be extremely vigilant: more than twenty new cases were detected in Seoul.

All are linked to a 29-year-old man who tested positive after having attended five clubs and bars the previous weekend in Itaewon, one of the trendy districts of the capital.

The threat of a new wave is causing great concern in the country, which was returning to a normal life with the lifting of the rules of social distancing, the opening of museums and the resumption of the professional baseball and football season . South Korea, which in February was one of the most important centers of contamination in the world, had aroused the admiration of foreign capitals for its effectiveness in fighting the Covid-19.

It is estimated that 7,200 people attended the five establishments in question. "Neglect can lead to an explosion of infections," said Seoul mayor Park Won-soon, adding that the closure would continue until further notice. He also asked those who had visited these establishments to make themselves known.

"We must never let our guard down"

Of the 18 new Covid-19 positive cases identified in South Korea on Saturday, 17 were linked to the Itaewon outbreak, according to the Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).

The new focus of contamination "raises awareness that this kind of situation can arise at any time, even during the stabilization phase," said Moon Jae-in. "It will not be finished before it is really eradicated," the president continued in a speech for the third anniversary of his inauguration. "We must never let our guard down when it comes to preventing the epidemic."

In February, the epidemic had exploded notably from a woman infected with the virus who had contaminated many followers of a religious organization accused by some of being a sect. The authorities had managed to contain the situation by implementing an aggressive strategy of "tracing, testing and treatment" which has received much praise.

Domestically, these successes have earned the President a resurgence in popularity in opinion polls and a triumph in the April legislative elections.

Thirty-four new cases of contamination were recorded on Sunday, a national record for a month, for a total of 10,874 people infected, including 256 deaths. The renewed contaminations aroused anger and concern, however, on Sunday.

With AFP

The France 24 week summary invites you to come back to the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news everywhere with you! Download the France 24 app

google-play-badge_FR