캐나다 기자, 전면 봉쇄없이 코로나 이겨내는 한국을 배우자

In a recent interview with an American broadcaster, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha drew an important distinction regarding how South Korea is managing incoming international travelers.

"This is not just from the United States. It's from Europe, it's from countries in the Middle East and West Asia,” Kang said of the risk of contagion, adding, “And again, we're not closing the border on them. We are managing them.”

What Kang didn’t explain is how South Korea is uniquely capable of doing this. Her statement projected confidence, as it demonstrates how Korea is not motivated by fear of keeping the virus out, but has the infrastructure to manage risk, and keep the country functioning while keeping the outbreak under control.

South Korea has a public health infrastructure capable of managing the issue -- through widespread testing, quarantine, monitoring and treatment -- that other countries lack.

South Korea has successfully reined in what was once the largest COVID-19 outbreak in the world outside of China, all without enacting a comprehensive lockdown or freezing international travel. Therefore, the rest of the world is eager to hear from Kang and other officials about how the country executed its effective response.

The most important lesson from South Korea’s success in handling the virus -- one that I hope Western countries will heed -- is the wisdom of investing in public institutions, which is something that many Westerners have forgotten. South Korea learned lessons about preparation and transparency from the MERS outbreak in 2015, and has responded more effectively this time.

With exceptions, the South Korean public has responded to the COVID-19 outbreak with discipline and restraint, following directives to step up hygiene and avoid large groups of people. Most public events have been called off, and people are following social distancing guidelines.

Health authorities have clearly communicated every day with the public, announcing the developments in addressing the outbreak and sharing guidelines on how to stay healthy. South Korea also benefits from an educated population with large numbers of healthcare professionals. A culture of sacrifice in times of need has kept them on the job for long hours.

Growing up in Canada, I watched a series of right-wing governments chip away at the public institutions -- schools, healthcare, public transportation -- that much of the country relied on. These politicians and their acolytes argued that government administration was inherently ineffective and inefficient, that the private sector could manage anything better.

The results of this, in Canada, the United States, Britain and elsewhere, has been increased inequality and poorer services. When I travel to these countries, I often look at the dismal state of public institutions and know that South Korean citizens would never tolerate such poor services, that they would demand better management of their public institutions.

When my parents come to visit me in Korea, they marvel at how large and efficient Incheon Airport is. My father, a retired civil servant, is amazed at how every time he visits, the Seoul subway has expanded, how it offers immeasurably better service at a lower price than the subway in his hometown, Toronto.

I explain to my mother, a nurse, that nearly all of South Korea is covered under the national health insurance program, and that while South Koreans pay far lower levels of income tax than Canadians, anyone covered under the plan has access to inexpensive, efficient healthcare.

This is all possible because there is a consensus in South Korea that it makes sense to invest in public institutions, and because as a functioning democracy, South Koreans have channels through which to put pressure on elected officials.

The western world is being forced to confront the blindspots in its own societies and Western countries are now asking if it is possible to replicate South Korea’s success. That will require an evolution in how most westerners think.

To me, the complacency with which some westerners responded to the news of the spread of COVID-19 -- the lack of preparation as the virus spread through East Asia -- was unsurprising. Many westerners have the luxury of living with a sense that things have been pretty good for as long as anyone can remember. Growing up in Canada, I never encountered economic collapse, war, or natural disaster. That can lead to the assumption that things will always be fine.

Many Koreans have at least indirect experience of war and economic downfall; they know how bad things can get and are careful as a result. Many people in western countries, including my home country of Canada, have neither experience with nor historical memory of calamity.

Also, western societies are highly individualistic, leading many to think that they, as individuals, are somehow safe from a general risk, that while an illness may affect the elderly or infirm, they will nevertheless get by. While Korean society is divided in some ways, such as between progressive and conservative or through regional rivalries, the country still has a more collective mindset.

This way of thinking is helpful in times of crisis, as it feels natural to stick to codes of behavior that protect the common good. If anyone in South Korea boasted on social media about defying calls for social distancing, they would be not just ridiculed, but castigated as a public health risk.

As the COVID-19 outbreak has dragged on, I no longer hear from friends or relatives in Canada wondering if I am safe in Korea, and imploring me to escape from here and back to the safety of Canada. The Western world has woken up to the reality that their own failure to invest in public institutions has made Western countries less safe.

I hope the western world, including my own country, learns from Korea that countries manage crises only through consistent investment in the public good.