Challenge of contagion

The exodus of illegal workers from South Korea, the world’s No.2 hotspot for Covid-19, has given rise to grave concerns that the disease which has claimed more than 3,200 lives worldwide may well become a pandemic. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday chaired a high-level meeting, pledging to streamline and integrate the work of key agencies, namely the Public Health Ministry, Immigration Police, and the Foreign Ministry, to deal with the Covid-19 outbreak.

Such high-level action is significant given the confusion and disarray over the disease that has reigned supreme over the past few days.

Rumours and misinformation have had the country on the verge of panic. It is well known that South Korea, with cases surging over 5,000, is home to several thousand illegal workers, dubbed phi noi, or “little ghosts”.

With one death and 43 infections, Thailand is No.17 in the world for infections, after Australia, and Bahrain, which have 47 and 49 cases respectively.

China, with over 80,000 cases and more than 2,900 deaths, remains the world’s epicentre though the infection rate has slowed down significantly after strict measures were put in place.

South Korea, meanwhile, is still fighting to contain the disease as the number of infections hit thousands in a short time.

This has driven illegal Thai workers — many of whom worked in trouble spots such as Daegu city, which was the epicentre of the outbreak, and North Gyeongsang — to start heading home.

However, this exodus has raised questions about whether Thailand can deal with so many potentially contagious people, and whether it will be able to stop a pandemic if containment fails.

Some prominent scholars are openly against this mass return, and many members of the public have not hesitated to discriminate.

Yesterday’s decision was bold: All Thai workers from the two Korean cities will be kept in quarantine for 14 days, much like those who were brought back from Wuhan and isolated at the naval base in Sattahip.

Workers from other Korean cities will be monitored in their own hometowns, while workers with any sign of illness, such as fever, will be sent to designated hospitals.

Translating all this into practice will require an enormous effort and integration among state authorities.

They also have to ensure there are no

“super spreaders”.

Every official involved should rise to the challenge and pay heed to the fact that tough measures in China paid off.

Taiwan for example has also adopted China’s policy of slapping heavy fines on those who breach quarantine. Thailand should definitely consider taking such steps.

At the same time, the authorities should also launch an awareness campaign to educate not just the returned workers but also the public to act responsibly at a time when the country is fighting this dreadful virus.

Good communication should result in preparedness, not panic.

Knowledge will equip the country better in tackling Covid-19.

The infamous case of an elderly couple who ignored the need for quarantine upon returning from Japan’s Hokkaido, a virus hotspot, and passed the infection on to their grandson and put numerous other people around them at risk, should not be repeated.

This virus poses a major challenge not just for the Prayut government, but for each and every

Thai national.