[앵커]
Thailand, which has opened its doors to foreign tourists, has returned to pre-COVID-19 in the summer vacation season.
However, as it is analyzed that the actual spread of COVID-19 will be steeper than the Thai government’s announcement, concerns regarding the influx of foreign tourists are growing.
Reporter Chang-hee Han delivers.
[기자]
A splendid night view of Bangkok spreads along a cruise ship full of tourists.
As the Thai government lifts all entry restrictions and revitalizes the tourism industry, the city center is crowded with domestic and foreign tourists day and night.
Thanks to this, the Korean business district has regained its vitality to a level similar to pre-COVID-19.
[박효희 / 한식당 사장 : 봉쇄 전과 비교해서는 60% 정도 매출이 증진되었고 저녁 시간대는 거의 매일 꽉 차는 수준입니다.]
[정명덕 / 한인 여행사 대표 : 6월보단 7월이 (매출이) 30% 이상 성장했고요. 7월 20일 이후에는 회복되면 (코로나19 이전의) 70%까지 회복될 거라고 예상합니다.]
Although the BA.5 mutation, known to have strong contagious power, became the dominant species, accounting for 70% of all confirmed cases,
The number of new confirmed cases in Thailand is regarding 2,000 per day, which is stable compared to the beginning of this year.
However, there is controversy among experts over the reliability of this statistic.
The quarantine authorities counted only hospitalized COVID-19 patients as confirmed cases, so the scale of the spread is not reflected properly.
In fact, it was also analyzed that the number of new confirmed cases per day would reach 25 times the government announced.
[니티팟 치아라쿤/ 마히돌대학교 시리랏병원 교수 : 사회는 병원에 입원한 사람들의 숫자만 알고 있습니다. 총 확진자 통계는 공식적으로 발표되지 않습니다. 실제로 현재 입원 환자와 확진자들을 모두 합하면 하루 평균 5만 명씩 발생하고 있을 거로 생각됩니다.]
For this reason, among the citizens who have felt the rapid spread of the virus, there are voices that are concerned regarding the risk of re-proliferation caused by the influx of foreign tourists.
[마니따 / 태국 방콕 : 확진자가 아주 많이 늘어나고 있다고 생각합니다. 해외 관광객들을 관리하는 데 엄중한 정책이 만들어져야 할 것 같습니다.]
[타몰완·차녹간 / 태국 방콕 : 타일랜드 패스(외국인 사전 등록 플랫폼)가 없어졌잖아요. 이후 현지 분위기가 별로 좋지 않습니다.]
Thailand is spurring the fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to prevent the spread of new mutations.
However, it is constantly pointed out that the priority is to raise awareness of society as a whole by publishing statistics that reflect reality.
This is Changhee Han from YTN World in Bangkok, Thailand.
YTN Changhee Han (jminlee1012@ytn.co.kr)
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