These are the top stories making the front pages of major newspapers from across Southeast Asia today.
Get up to speed with what’s happening in the fastest growing region in the world.
20-year-old nurse is third healthcare worker at Singapore Expo to be infected with Covid-19; 632 new cases, 9 new clusters identified
A 20-year-old nurse at the community care facility at Singapore Expo is among the 632 new coronavirus cases announced on Tuesday (May 5). He is the third healthcare worker from the Singapore Expo facility to be identified as a confirmed case in the past week. In its daily update, Ministry of Health (MOH) said that he has no recent travel history to affected countries or regions and is currently warded at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID). Last Saturday, a 34-year-old Singaporean nurse from the Health Promotion Board who was working at the Singapore Expo community care facility was identified as a confirmed case. Then on Monday, a 52-year-old Singaporean woman working as a healthcare volunteer at the facility was also confirmed to have the virus. She is warded at the NCID. – The Straits Times
Long queues form outside pawn shops
As the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) entered the second day yesterday, several pawn shops reopened their doors. Checks by the New Straits Times found long queues outside several pawn shops as early as 8am. Some customers said they wanted to pawn their gold jewellery because they were unable to make ends meet and pay medical bills, while others said they wanted to pay delayed interests on loans or renew their pawn receipts for valuables. Kavitha Prabagaren, 26, who lined up outside a pawn shop in Sentul Boulevard, said she had to renew the receipt on the valuables that she had pawned last year and put down as collateral as she needed the money to pay for her mother's medical bills. She said her mother had heart problems and she needed money to cover the medical fees, which were about RM40,000. – New Straits Times
Bangkok's millionaires' club enjoys lockdown luxury
Gourmet take-out delivered by a butler in a black sedan – the super-rich have not forgone luxury during a pandemic which has locked the country down, crushed the economy and left millions unemployed. Thailand is one of the most unequal nations in the world and the chasm between rich and poor is widening as the coronavirus eviscerates jobs, leaving 22 million registering for a government cash hand-out. Hundreds line up daily for food donations across Bangkok, a grim sign of an economic contraction forecast at more than 6% this year – the worst since the Asian financial crisis in 1997. For rich Bangkokians the pandemic has brought the inconvenience of restricted movement – with an overnight curfew still in place despite some businesses reopening – but no end to the lifestyle of plenty. – Bangkok Post
Most Indonesians concerned about overcapacity at health facilities during pandemic: Survey
A recent survey conducted by several NGOs suggests that the vast majority of Indonesians are concerned about overcapacity at medical facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The NGOs are Amrta Institute, Lokataru Foundation, Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta) and Rujak Center for Urban Studies. "Of the 1,100 respondents, 88.4 percent said they were afraid that medical facilities could not accommodate those who were sick," Nila Ardhianie, the director of the Amrta Institute, said in an online press conference on Monday. Nila explained that this concern stemmed from the fact that the government had not conducted enough testing for COVID-19. "Indonesia has a very low testing rate compared to other countries, even in Southeast Asia. – The Jakarta Post
ABS-CBN vows comeback after being shut down by government
ABS-CBN shut down on Tuesday evening its radio and television operations nationwide in compliance with an order from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), which had turned its back on a commitment it made to Congress that it would give a provisional license to the broadcast giant. The NTC issued a cease-and-desist order (CDO) to the network earlier on Tuesday, a day after the network’s 25-year franchise had expired. The network went off the air at 7:52 p.m., at the close of its flagship news program, “TV Patrol.” It was the first time ABS-CBN was forced by the government to shut down since it was padlocked in September 1972 when dictator Ferdinand Marcos imposed martial law. – Philippine Daily Inquirer
Quảng Ninh tops competitiveness index again
Quảng Ninh led all 63 provinces and cities nationwide to top the Provincial Competitive Index (PCI) for the third consecutive year in 2019. The Việt Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) announced the index in Ha Noi yesterday. The northern coastal province added more than 3 points from its score in 2018, reaching 73.4 on a 100-point scale. Since 2005, the PCI report has been produced annually to assess the ease of doing business, economic governance and administrative reform efforts by provincial and city governments to promote the development of the private sector. The 15th report was based on responses from more than 12,500 enterprises, including nearly 11,000 domestic private firms from 63 provinces and cities and nearly 1,600 foreign-invested enterprises in 21 provinces. – Viet Nam News
Food security concerns mount as COVID-19 disruption leaves Myanmar farmers unable to plant
Food security concerns in Myanmar are looming as farmers are unable to start the new growing season due to COVID-19 disruptions. “Since COVID-19, there is no longer usual trading as crops simply don’t sell anymore,” said Ba Myint, a farmer in Taungup township in southern Rakhine State, where the primary crops are rice and beans. The price of produce has crumbled, and at times there were no buyers even when the price was slashed by 75 percent, he told this newspaper. Ba Myint’s plight underscores the struggles farmers across the nation are now facing. Travel restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have led to lower sales for farmers and resulted in significant losses for those who rely on loans. That has strangled their ability to plant this season, leading to a near collapse of Myanmar’s agricultural economy. – Myanmar Times