It is not true that anti-Covid vaccines have caused over 2 thousand deaths in South Korea

On March 25, 2024, a video was posted on Facebook of an Asian woman and man speaking during what appears to be a press conference. According to the English subtitles present in the video, the woman states that anti-Covid vaccines, based on official statistics, would have caused 2,700 deaths and 19,000 serious adverse reactions. Subsequently, the man, who identifies himself as “Kim Doo-kyung, president of the Association of Families of Vaccine Victims”, repeats the same alleged data cited by the woman previously, claiming that anti-Covid vaccinations would have been ineffective.

The video is accompanied by a comment from the author of the post stating that the scene shows a moment of the press conference “of the victims of the Covid19 vaccine” held in South Korea.

This is misleading content, which conveys false news.

The video shows a moment of the press conference held on February 26, 2024 in South Korea, organized by a South Korean group called “Covid-19 Vaccination Victims Council”.

How the fact-checkers reconstructed Afp, the data cited during the press conference appears to come from the February 2024 report on reports of alleged adverse reactions to Covid-19 vaccines prepared by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (Kdca). On page 2 of the document we read that after 140 million anti-Covid vaccines administered in South Korea, as of February 24, 2024, 17,753 serious adverse reactions and 2,137 deaths had been reported. In the same report, the Kdca explains on page 1 that these reports of alleged adverse reactions “do not necessarily have a causal relationship with the vaccine”.

It is therefore unfounded to claim that, based on these official data, anti-Covid vaccinations in South Korea have caused tens of thousands of serious adverse reactions and over two thousand deaths. Finally, always contacted by Afpthe Kdca stated that as of 31 December 2023 in the country, after the analyzes carried out, a causal link with vaccination against Covid-19 was confirmed for 23 deaths.