South Korea is fighting against the spread of the corona virus with all its might. The red alert for infectious diseases changes everyday life drastically. Some Swiss and Germans experience this up close.
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Workers in protective suits disinfect a sports hall in Seoul.
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The snake in the Korean provincial metropolis Daegu grows and grows. In the end, several thousand people line up in front of a supermarket, hoping vaguely to get a face mask. Daegu has been in a state of emergency since the coronavirus broke out in the church of a Christian sect. More than half of the nearly 900 infected people identified in South Korea are members of this church, more than 60 percent of all cases are from the region. But the entire city, indeed the entire country, has been held hostage since then.
Daegu is isolated in the country to slow the spread of the new virus. And other countries are now isolating South Korea. Israel has already sent a plane home from Korea and has banned Koreans from entering the country. Singapore has been asking its people to stop traveling to Korea since Sunday. But also in the rest of the country, far from the virus cluster in Daegu, working and everyday life has changed drastically since the government triggered the highest red alert for infectious diseases on Sunday. This will make Korea a role model of how to live and work with the virus wave. This is shown by reports from eyewitnesses on site.
South Korea’s government wants to act as a model
The Swiss Eduard Meier, who represents Swiss, German and French companies and is a member of an official committee for North Korea issues, believes that President Moon Jae In intentionally does crisis management very actively in order to raise his profile. “He wants to implement prevention in an exemplary manner, and that puts pressure on society.” Elias Peterle, managing director of the consulting firm Nowak & Partner, sees the measures more positively. In his opinion, Moon sets standards in terms of professionalism, consistency and transparency. “Korea is unfortunately tried,” says Peterle. The more dangerous former coronaviruses Sars and Mers had spilled into the country years ago as well as avian flu. The government had always had a good grip on the development.
This does not mean that there are no breakdowns. But it is extensively and extensively tested for viruses. Peterle therefore assumes that the case numbers in Korea are more accurate than in other countries. In addition, the government even publishes movement profiles of individual infected people, which are then converted into online maps by private individuals. This is how you want to strengthen trust and personal responsibility. Younger people who did not experience the Sars epidemic in 2003 nevertheless reacted frightened, say the old Korean hands. But at least in Seoul’s business district, the government’s work seems to be reassuring. “The Koreans appear calm and professional,” says Peterle. “I don’t see that people are overly hysterical.” At least that from Peterle’s milieu.
The population is involved in the prevention policy
The Swiss Daniel Nyffenegger, the head of Korea for the recruiter G&S, is currently not very worried about the viruses. During the Skype interview, he sits in his office in Seoul, behind him a room divider with classic Korean poems. He experiences a country that collectively adheres to the government’s guidelines. The government has ordered Koreans to wear masks, wash their hands often, and avoid crowds to help fight the virus. And the population moves along, Nyffenegger observes: “There is a typical Korean herd instinct, the authorities tell them something, and everyone does it.”
There are spray bottles for disinfecting hands in buses and trains, in offices and bars, in supermarkets and on street lamps, reports the Swiss. The subways are also emptier than usual, because many companies have office staff working from home and the rest of the population refrain from unnecessary travel, visits to restaurants and cinema, and shopping trips for the benefit of national health. “I was at Ikea yesterday and it was almost empty,” says Nyffenegger.
Fever checks across the country
In addition, suddenly not only is frowned upon what used to be good manners – going to work with a fever – but compliance with this rule is also strictly monitored. Nyffenegger experienced this when attending a primary school. At the gate, his family was stopped by guards who measured the temperature of the visitors and gave them fresh masks. Only then were the Nyffeneggers allowed to enter the school.
For many companies, a health check is also carried out at the entrance. A virus case at electronics manufacturer Samsung is likely to have further increased attention. Korea’s largest company closed an entire smartphone factory over the past weekend after a positive finding to disinfect it. Production has been running again since Monday, but without the patient’s colleagues. They now have to sit out the incubation period of the virus in quarantine for 14 days. Clammy small business owners can hardly afford these costs.
In addition, concerts are canceled and school holidays in Korean schools are extended to slow down the spread of viruses. International schools have closed the classes and moved the lessons to the Internet, even in Seoul, where infections have so far hardly been found.
Social pressure also forces foreigners into limbs
By the way, disguise is the order of the day. Almost all people only go outside with a mask. Nobody wants to be out of line, not even Christian Taaks, the office manager of the German Friedrich Naumann Foundation: “The social pressure is quite high.” Like many virologists, he himself does not believe that the masks protect extremely well. “But today, too, I put on a respirator for the first time in the subway – not out of insight, but because I would have been the only passenger who would not have worn one.” Because if you seem to take things too lightly, isolate yourself and risk social ostracism.
Social pressure also affects business behavior. Teleworking is increasing. Many companies also not only restrict business trips, but also internal meetings. Employees are encouraged to meet virtually in Internet meetings whenever possible. In addition, major conferences, symposia and festivals are canceled in rows – also by foreign guests of Korea AG.
Event cancellations in social responsibility
The «Swiss-Korean Business Council» adjourned its General Assembly to an as yet unknown date, the German Chamber of Commerce in Korea canceled the social highlight of the year: the kale meal. “We made it out of social responsibility,” said chamberlain Barbara Zollmann. The turning point had come when the government announced red warning levels on Sunday.
The chamber also reacted in everyday work. The office is practically extinct because the employees work from home – and so does the boss. Many companies would also try out how they would still be able to work during this time, reports the head of the chamber. The large conglomerates will not let their factories rest unless the epidemic in China has not disrupted their supply chain. “Their suppliers are therefore called upon to support the company,” says Zollmann. And that is perhaps the most important message from Korea: Even with the red alert, the economy must continue to run.
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