韩国在新冠疫情期间的选举为保护选民提供了一个路线图 (South Korea's coronavirus election may offer a road map for protecting voters) 作者: Amy Gunia
韩国在4月15号的选举标志着自瘟疫大流行以来全球第一个在有着严重的新冠病毒爆发的国家举行的全国范围的大选。韩国有10,500多例确诊的新冠病例，但政府官员们已经通过很积极的跟踪接触者，大量的测试和旅行限制压平了曲线。为了保护前往投票站的选民，政府制定了同样严格的计划。如果行的通的话，韩国可以为其他国家包括美国提供一个可遵循的样板。(South Korea's elections on April 15 marked the first nationwide vote in a country with a major coronavirus outbreak since the pandemic began. South Korea has more than 10,500 confirmed COVID-19 cases, but officials have flattened the curve through aggressive contact tracing, prolific testing and travel restrictions. To protect people heading to the polls, the government enacted a similarly rigorous plan. If it works, South Korea may offer other countries, including the U.S., a model to follow.)
保护选民 遍布韩国的投票站都会定期消毒，戴口罩是强制性的，给选民们提供消毒液和塑料手套。选民在排队等的时候被要求至少保持3尺以上的距离 。那些新冠患者可以邮寄他们的选票，或者是可以前往特别投票站提早投票。(PROTECTING VOTERS Across South Korea, polling stations were disinfected regularly, wearing a mask was mandatory, and voters were given hand sanitizer and plastic gloves. People waiting in line were asked to stand at least 3 ft. apart. Those with COVID-19 could send in ballots by mail or vote early at special polling stations.)
民主延迟 新冠病毒延迟了世界各地的选举，包括英国的地方选举和埃塞俄比亚的议会选举。在美国有16个州推迟了总统初选。(DEMOCRACY DELAYED COVID-19 has pushed back elections around the world, including local polls in the U.K. and parliamentary elections in Ethiopia. In the U.S., 16 states have postponed presidential primaries.)
学到的教训 在韩国，军法统治还活在人们的记忆中，几乎没有关于延迟选举的辩论。尽管疫情爆发，选民的投票率看来比上次选举还要高。需要几周的时间才能知道采取的预防措施是否能成功的阻止新病例的激增，但有一个结果已经很明显: 文在寅总统的政党联盟有望赢得多数的席位，尽管在疫情爆发前他的政党在民意调查中处于劣势。还有，待定的是其他国家的选民们会如何根据疫情中的表现来评判现任者以及现任者们为应对疫情所做的努力。(LESSONS LEARNED In South Korea, where military rule is a living memory, there was little debate about postponing elections. Despite the outbreak, voter turnout appeared to be even higher than in the previous election. It will take weeks to know if the precautions successfully prevented a spike in new cases, but already one consequence is clear: President Moon Jae-in's coalition is expected to win a majority of seats, despite his party's flagging in the polls before the outbreak. Also pending is how voters in other nations judge incumbents in light of the pandemic, and their efforts to handle it.)
以上是这篇文章主要内容的翻译。文章来自<时代>杂志4月27号/5月4号那一期，在第13页上。韩国在这次抗疫中的取得的成效是有目共睹的。笔者在博文<西方人的固执是这场全球疫情的助燃剂>中对比过韩国和意大利的抗疫。两个国家人口差不太多，韩国的人口密度还更高，是意大利的2.52倍。到4月21号，韩国的新冠死亡人数是237，而意大利是24,648，差104倍。
不到半年美国就要大选了，韩国提供的保护选民的路线图对美国来说，最难做到的是跟踪接触者，邮寄选票，和强制戴口罩。跟踪接触者牵涉到西方的人权和个人隐私。邮寄选票的事还在两党的斗争之中。戴口罩已经有了很大的进步，参议院两党的议员们有不少都戴起了口罩，起了很好的表率作用。就在前几天，美国三大最顶级的抗疫医药领导机构的头几乎同时开始居家隔离14天，包括NIAID的福奇博士，还有CDC和FDA的头。之前每次看到福奇博士在白宫疫情记者会上，即不戴口罩，也基本上没在意社交距离，都替他捏把汗。俗话说: 常在河边走，哪能不湿鞋。再说作为美国传染病最高级别的的专家领导，如果自己都不能以身作则的话，那怎么让美国选民们都戴上口罩去投票站，都保持好社交距离呢？福奇博士是被两党都基本认可的专家，这次疫情也为他增加了很多的粉丝。衷心希望福奇博士这次一切平安无事，过完居家隔离后，能以身作则，继续指导美国人民抗疫，为疫情期间的美国大选保驾护航。
西方人的固执是这场全球瘟疫的助燃剂
