These are the top stories making the front pages of major newspapers from across Southeast Asia today.
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64-year-old man dies of Covid-19 complications in S'pore, the first such fatality in 3 months
A 64-year-old man, who had a history of hypertension, has died from complications due to Covid-19, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Monday (Oct 12). The permanent resident is the 28th patient to die from the virus here. He had been working in India since December 2019 and was placed on stay-home notice when he returned to Singapore on Sept 23. He was confirmed to have the coronavirus infection on Oct 4. Singapore General Hospital has reached out to his family and is extending assistance to them. Previously, the last patient to die here from Covid-19 related complications was a 62-year-old man on July 14, nearly three months ago. MOH had said then that the man had a history of diabetes mellitus, hypertension and hyperlipidaemia, and that he was diagnosed with the coronavirus on April 30. There were four new coronavirus cases on Monday. They included one community case, who is a family member of previously confirmed cases, said MOH. She had been identified as a contact of two other cases and had been placed on quarantine earlier. All three cases arrived from India on Sept 16, and were placed on stay-home notice at a dedicated facility. There were also two imported cases, comprising one permanent resident who returned to Singapore from the Philippines and one work pass holder who arrived from India and the UAE. They had both been placed on stay-home notice upon arrival in Singapore, and were tested even though they were asymptomatic. – The Straits Times
Anwar expected to have audience with Agong at 11am
PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is likely to be granted an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah at 11am today. This was confirmed by a source to the New Straits Times. At Istana Negara, two black vehicles – one of which is thought to be ferrying Anwar – were seen driving through the palace gates at around 10.30am. Anwar uploaded a picture of himself and his wife, former Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, to his Facebook page this morning. "May things run smoothly today (Semoga dipermudahkan segala urusan hari ini)," read the caption of the image, which was uploaded at 10am. Meanwhile, members of the media, who have been awaiting the arrival of the Port Dickson parliamentarian since 8.30am, were treated to breakfast courtesy of the palace. Recently, Anwar announced that he was granted an audience with the King to present proof that he has a "strong, convincing majority" among Members of Parliament to form the federal government. – New Straits Times
Looser quarantine eyed
The Ministry of Public Health has proposed a new type of Alternative State Quarantine (ASQ) that will allow short-term visitors to travel to designated areas during their 14-quarantine period in some selected provinces. Director-general of the Health Service Support Department, Thares Krassanairawiwong, said a new type of ASQ was being discussed for short-term visitors in the provinces ready to reopen. This type of ASQ would allow tourists to travel to designated areas during the 14-day quarantine period instead of confining themselves to hotel premises, the doctor said. The new ASQ will come with terms and conditions to be discussed between government units and entrepreneurs. People in each of the provinces must be informed of the new ASQ and approve of it, the official said. He stressed the new ASQ must be based on safety and economic viability. Foreign visitors must accept travel routes set by the provinces and must not veer off course. Most importantly, they must come from countries with low Covid-19 risk and no local infections for three months, Dr Thares said. – Bangkok Post
'A form of betrayal': Disability rights activists criticize 'discriminatory' jobs law
A coalition of disability rights activists and groups across the country raised their call on the government to repeal the newly passed Job Creation Law, arguing that it violates the rights of disabled workers. “Disability groups were never involved in the deliberation process. It’s a pity, considering the relevance of the Job Creation Law, which will affect the lives of disabled people, too," said Fajri Nursyamsi from the Center for Indonesian Law and Policy Studies (PSHK), who represented the coalition in a webinar on Monday. The coalition also claimed the omnibus law embodied an "epistemic crime" by using the term cacat (handicapped) to describe people with disabilities, a step back in the efforts to foster respect and equality for them. “The term cacat is against the spirit of the Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities, which was ratified through Law No. 19 in 2011,” they argued. Furthermore, the coalition said the law scrapped Article 27 (2) of Law No 28/2002 on buildings, which stipulated requirements of accessibility for disabled people and the elderly. “The article is a form of state protection for disabled people to get accessibility inside buildings [...] The removal of Article 27 also indicates that the Job Creation Law does not support the rights of disabled people in the workplace,” the group added. – The Jakarta Post
Duterte to meet Cayetano, Velasco in Malacañang
As the speakership showdown continues to heat up, President Rodrigo Duterte called speakership rivals Alan Peter Cayetano and Lord Allan Velasco to a meeting in Malacañang Tuesday. “This is to confirm that President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has called Rep. Alan Peter Cayetano and Rep. Lord Allan Velasco for a meeting at 12:30pm in Malago today regarding the passage of the 2021 budget,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said. The meeting comes even as the President said he was already fed up with politics in Congress’ lower chamber and appealed to prioritize passing the proposed 2021 national budget first. Duterte even called Congress to a special session starting Tuesday until Friday, October 16 to avoid delays in passing the budget. On Monday, Velasco was elected by 186 lawmakers in a session held at an events place in Quezon City. But Cayetano refused to acknowledge this, saying he has the support of 200 congressmen. The President had previously brokered a term-sharing deal between Cayetano and Velasco for the House speakership, with the former serving for 15 months or up to October and the latter serving for the remaining 21 months. – INQUIRER.net
Heavy rain, floods wreak havoc in central provinces as new typhoon approaches
Ongoing heavy rains and flooding has killed 20 people in central provinces, and 14 more have been reported missing in central provinces, as the country braces for the seventh typhoon to hit this year. The National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting said on Monday afternoon that the low pressure out in the north of the South China Sea (known in Việt Nam as the East Sea) had strengthened into a typhoon internationally known as Nangka. Nangka is forecast to make landfall in the north-central part of Việt Nam on Wednesday, while the accompanying rains could cover the central region already battered by torrential downpours over the last few days. The centre forecast that central provinces would face heavy rains ranging from 150 to 300mm on Tuesday and Wednesday. The National Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control issued an urgent letter on Monday asking the bureau to closely supervise the development of the low-pressure system and issue warnings to localities and ships. Ministries, sectors and localities were instructed to co-operate with and supervise boats and ships operating in danger areas, and keep in contact with their owners. Authorities also instructed boats and ships to find safe habour and to take measures to ensure the safety of local people and tourists on islands and in coastal areas. Aquaculture farmers should be kept informed of the development of the low-pressure system, the letter said. The Foreign Ministry was also asked to contact countries and territories to ask for shelter for Vietnamese fishermen. – Viet Nam News
Vaccine promise from a good friend: China will provide doses to Cambodia
China has promised that Cambodia will be one of the first countries to get a COVID-19 vaccine once one of those being developed and in the final stages of testing becomes available. Chinese State Councillor and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi made the promise during a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong, co-chair of the Cambodia-China Intergovernmental Coordination Committee on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the Common Destiny Community of Cambodia-China, in Phnom Penh yesterday. During the meeting Namhong raised the issue of the COVID-19 vaccine and asked China to provide one as a gift to Cambodia. Wang said the Chinese government and people would not forget Prime Minister Hun Sen’s visit in February 2020, at a time when China was experiencing a severe outbreak of COVID-19. He said that in relation to the COVID-19 vaccine, China will provide the vaccine to developing countries, especially Cambodia, an ironclad friend. Wang also praised Cambodia for successfully controlling the spread of COVID-19. China has also made significant contributions to the Kingdom’s health sector, such as providing medical equipment, ambulances and training of Cambodian health officials. Minister of Health Mam Bun Heng has said that since early last year, China has provided 40 mobile clinics, 200 ambulances and 200 ecological machines to the health sector. – Khmer Times