Materia Medica Malaysiana

Pyongyang in need of medical aid, says MERCY

The Malaysian Medical Relief Society (MERCY Malaysia) medical relief and humanitarian assessment team to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) returned from their seven-day expedition to Pyongyang, North Korea last Saturday.

The non-profit, non-governmental organisation had established a three-man team comprising team head executive council member Dr Heng Aik Cheng, relief manager Aris Oziar and team photo coordinator Tengku Bahar Idris.

They left Kuala Lumpur on May 7 in response to North Korea’s appeal for international aid following the train explosion at Ryongchon on April 22 of last month.

Some 161 people were killed, 1,300 injured and about 8,000 people rendered homeless.

The MERCY team visited several county, provincial and village hospitals in Ryongchon and Sinuiju in the north-west, and Sunchon just north of Pyongyang, to assess the medical needs in the area.

They were studying the possibility of establishing a longer term humanitarian presence in the country.

Also, RM50,000 worth of medical supplies were sent to aid victims of the explosion which had affected a 10-kilometre radius of Ryongchon.

“From the blast site we saw some 2km worth of flattened land. Buildings from as far as 5km away were destroyed,” said Dr Heng.

Dr Heng also noted that many people at the hospitals suffered from malnutrition and lack of basic health facilities and clean water.

“The hospitals have only minimal medical supplies, much of which are in need of upgrade. In fact, most of the patients in the hospitals suffer greatly from basic health problems like diarrhoea and gastroenteritis due to the lack of clean water supply,” he said.

Some of the blast victims had to have their limbs amputated as there was a lack of medication to treat their infected wounds.

“The medical staff really do their best to keep the hospitals as clean as possible and to provide for their patients. But without the facilities and supplies, there is only so much they can do,” said Dr Heng.

In their quest to establish trust with the DPRK Government, the team met with the DPRK Government officials, United Nations agencies, international NGOs, directors from the Ministry of Public Health and the Flood Disaster Relief Committee.

“We want their trust. With that, we can proceed to working together with the DPRK Government to upgrade their medical facilities and providing for the people of North Korea,” said MERCY Malaysia president Datuk Dr Jemilah Mahmood.

“As the only Asian NGO to give aid in North Korea, we are seeking to open as many doors as possible to help in the health sector. We hope to share our knowledge and work with them in building their capacities, providing basic medical equipment and drugs, infrastructure rehabilitation as well as training of their medical staff,” she said.

MERCY Malaysia appeals to the Malaysian Government, other NGOs and the general public to join hands in their endeavour to provide basic food and health needs to the people of North Korea.