These are the top stories making the front pages of major newspapers from across Southeast Asia today.
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More than 300,000 Singaporeans have used SingapoRediscovers vouchers, with $35.9m in bookings made
More than 300,000 Singaporeans have used their SingapoRediscovers vouchers to book hotels, attractions and tours since redemptions began on Dec 1. As at Jan 1, the bookings amount to $35.9 million in vouchers and payments, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said on Tuesday (Jan 5). The vouchers can be spent on more than 440 products available across the five authorised booking platforms: Changi Recommends, GlobalTix, Traveloka, Trip.com and Klook. "We are heartened by the interest that Singaporeans have shown in the SingapoRediscovers vouchers," said the STB. It added that it would continue to work with the tourism sector to roll out more such deals. As part of the STB's outreach efforts, it deployed ambassadors at 53 community centres and clubs islandwide to help those with queries on the vouchers. The ambassadors have assisted close to 63,000 Singaporeans as at Jan 1. Encouraging Singaporeans to make full use of their vouchers over the next six months, the STB reminded them to book time slots for attractions and tours beforehand. "This is to ensure they are able to visit and rediscover Singapore at their preferred time," it said. During the December school holidays, many reportedly could not use the tickets they bought, as the time slots for the attraction were fully booked. Some of the attractions that were fully booked for the first week of January included the S.E.A. Aquarium and HeadRock VR. While various attractions have introduced time slots to avoid overcrowding, not all Singaporeans were aware of this requirement. Several visitors to Sentosa such as Ms Grace Briones, 40, were denied entry because they had shown up without booking a time slot. “You assume it’s completed because you get a confirmation email but that’s just half of the booking process,” said the marketing manager who had purchased tickets for Universal Studios Singapore last Monday but did not book a slot. – The Straits Times
JAIS allows stipulated congregation for Friday, obligatory prayers
The Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS) has allowed Friday and obligatory prayers in the state to be conducted according to the number of stipulated worshippers on Monday. JAIS director Datuk Mohd Shahzihan Ahmad said the determination of the congregation number was based on the current development of the localised Covid-19 pandemic involving mosques and surau permitted to hold Friday prayers as well as surau in the state. He said for the state mosque and the Tengku Ampuan Mosque in Bukit Jelutong, a congregation of 500 people is allowed for Friday prayers and 150 for obligatory prayers. "For 39 management mosques and 17 institutional mosques, a congregation of 300 members are allowed for Friday prayers with 150 people for daily congregation prayers. "For mosques and surau permitted to hold Friday prayers in Kuala Selangor, Sabak Bernam and Hulu Selangor districts, the number of Friday prayer congregants is according to the actual capacity of the main prayer hall with a physical distancing of 1.5 metres while for obligatory prayers, the number is up to 40 worshipers including the administrators," he said in a statement. He added that for mosques and suraus permitted to hold Friday prayers in the districts of Klang, Petaling, Kuala Langat, Sepang, Hulu Langat and Gombak, only 40 pilgrims including the facility administrator are allowed for Friday prayers and obligatory prayers. He said all surau, including institutional surau throughout the state, are allowed to have 40 people to perform the obligatory prayers. Commenting further, Mohd Shahzihan said in his discussion with the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah on allowing prayers yesterday, His Highness expressed his disappointment that some parties claimed that mosques and suraus in the state had been closed. He said, he was also saddened by the perception of some people that the decision made earlier was like preventing Muslims from worshipping in mosques and surau. – New Straits Times
Qualified hope
The arrival of a Covid-19 vaccine would not mean an end to the virus prevention protocols the public has been told to abide by, and people would still be required to wear masks, wash their hands, and practise social distancing, says the country's head of disease control. "News of a Covid-19 vaccine might have sparked hopes of an economic recovery but that does not mean that restrictions will be lifted immediately," Opas Karnkawinpong, director-general of the Department of Disease Control (DDC), told the Bangkok Post in a special interview. The DDC under the Ministry of Public Health is overseeing the Covid-19 vaccine campaign due to begin next month. "The challenge posed by Covid-19 is new and we have no playbook for it. No one knows whether these vaccines will work or how long the immunity will last. It is a learning process and scientists around the world can only watch and learn at the moment. "Until the ministry is convinced the vaccination is effective and safe, restrictions will remain. And even after that, the easing will be gradual," he said. "The government must inoculate more than 50% of the population then assess whether herd immunity kicks in," he said. Dr Opas said the government will provide free jabs for all Thais. "But there will be some groups that will receive the vaccine first and some who will receive it later based on various factors such as risk and level of participation as the Covid-19 vaccine need to be monitored," he said. This massive vaccination drive will be the largest ever undertaken in Thailand. The real challenge is not providing jabs to tens millions of people as soon as possible, although that too raises logistical concerns, but monitoring as many people afterwards to gather reliable data for scientists. Each person will get two jabs, a month apart, Dr Opas said. The ministry must make sure that the message is clear: one shot is not enough. – Bangkok Post
Ministry reports drop in mobility during year-end holidays
The government’s desperate appeal for would-be holidaymakers to stay put for the recent Christmas and New Year break looks to have paid off, with the Transportation Ministry reporting receding mobility amid fears of another spike in COVID-19 cases. Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said there had been a significant drop in land transportation ridership over the year-end break compared to the same period last year. “Our data indicates that ridership for land transportation dropped from 13 million in 2019 to 5.6 million in 2020,” Budi said on Tuesday, as quoted by kompas.com. The number of ferry passengers also dropped by 47 percent, from 3 million in 2019 to a mere 1.5 million at the end of last year, while air travel passenger numbers saw a decrease of 42 percent from 3.6 million in 2019 to around 2 million in 2020. Statistics also show that sea transportation ridership apart from ferries decreased from 1.3 million to just 500,000 in the same period. The Indonesian Flight Navigation Service Institution, or AirNav Indonesia, previously forecasted that air traffic would increase by 4.8 percent in December from the previous month. Meanwhile, Airnav president director Pramintohadi stated that traffic movements in 2020 had in fact declined by 41 percent year-on-year, with the pandemic identified as one of the major factors contributing to the decline. The largest drop in passenger numbers, however, was seen in railway travel, where passenger numbers dwindled 83 percent. “The number of train passengers declined from 3.4 million in 2019 to 555,000 in 2020,” Budi said. The numbers appear to support a state-led PR blitz to curb mobility over the year-end holiday period, in which the general population was urged to stay at home in an effort to contain COVID-19 transmission. As a result, the drop in ridership was bound to happen, the minister said. “I appreciate the public’s effort to limit travel. Not only are they following the President’s recommendations, they are also following health protocols,” he said. To prevent another spike in transmission over the year-end holidays, as previously observed after holiday weekends in August and October, the national COVID-19 task force imposed strict measures for travellers during the Christmas and New Year’s Eve holiday period. – The Jakarta Post
Genome sequencing study out: No UK variant yet in PH, says DOH
The new coronavirus variant – first detected in the United Kingdom and believed to be more contagious – has yet to be detected in the Philippines based on the result of a genome sequencing study by experts, the Department of Health (DOH) said Wednesday. In a statement, the DOH cited the result of the study of the Philippine Genome Center (PGC), which conducted a genome sequencing on samples of passengers from countries with reported cases of the new variant, as well as samples from coronavirus patients in the Philippines infected in November and December. “Based on the lineage analysis through whole-genome sequencing done by the PGC, the UK variant was not detected in any of the 305 positive samples submitted to them from 9 institutions,” DOH said. “The 305 samples analysed by PGC were composed of positive samples from November-December hospital admissions and from inbound travellers who tested positive upon arrival at the airport,” it added. However, Hong Kong earlier announced that a passenger from Manila tested positive for the new coronavirus variant. The DOH said it is in close coordination with Hong Kong’s International Health Regulations to secure official notification and other pertinent information regarding the Hong Kong resident who tested positive for the variant following travel history from the Philippines. The health department then reminded local governments and the public to continue following health protocols against COVID-19. “The DOH calls on all local government units and the transport regulators to continuously implement the health protocols in all settings,” it said. “Strictly following the minimum public health standards (MPHS) is still the best measure to cut transmission of the variant and minimize the opportunities for virus mutation,” it added. The spread of the new variant across the globe prompted governments to impose travel restrictions, including the Philippines which has imposed a travel ban on UK and other countries where the new variant was already detected. Although there is no evidence yet suggesting the new variant, known as BC117, is more deadly, experts said it’s up to 70% more infectious than the old variant. – INQUIRER.net
PM orders suspension of flights from UK, South Africa due to new coronavirus variants
Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc has ordered the suspension of flights carrying Vietnamese citizens home from countries and territories which have reported new variants of SARS-CoV-2 and seen complex pandemic developments, initially the UK and South Africa. The two countries have seen two new variants of the coronavirus that are reportedly much more transmissible than others and have been responsible for surging infections. B117, the UK’s variant of concern, is said to be up to 70 per cent more contagious and has been reported in Việt Nam in the case of a citizen repatriated from the UK. Việt Nam has kept its borders closed since March last year to prevent the spread of the virus and only permitted a limited number of flights from overseas bringing in returning citizens, diplomats, foreign business executives and experts. The Government leader made the instruction late on Tuesday as part of efforts to intensify COVID-19 prevention and control to ensure a safe Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday, which falls in the first half of February this year. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is tasked with the strict screening of Vietnamese citizens abroad who wish to return to the country, to ensure the repatriation of those most in need. The PM's directive notes that the pandemic continues to spread rapidly in many countries, with more than 600,000 new cases and 6,000 fatalities recorded each day. In particular, several new and more contagious variants of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 have been detected in 38 countries. The risk of the coronavirus entering and spreading in Việt Nam remains high due to both legal and illegal entries and negligence in disease prevention and control among the community. In implementing the message of the Party Central Committee’s Secretariat on intensifying disease prevention and control, the Prime Minister requested the Defence Ministry to work with the Ministry of Public Security and People’s Committees of border provinces to tighten border management to prevent illegal entry. The Ministry of Defence and local People’s Committees should maintain close monitoring of all people entering Việt Nam and ensure the 14-day concentrated quarantine and strict medical surveillance after quarantine so as to stop the coronavirus from spreading at concentrated quarantine facilities and from these facilities to the community. – Viet Nam News
Cambodia’s migrant workers COVID-19 cluster increases to 18, total tally now 383
Cambodia’s COVID-19 positive cases have moved to another level with the latest cluster identified as the returning migrant workers clusters at the Cambodia-Thai border. The Health Ministry announced this morning that one more migrant worker fleeing Thailand because of a surge in the number of positive cases there, has been tested positive for COVID-19 in Pailin. The patient is a 28-year-old male from Pailin Province who returned to the province from Thailand on 2 January, 2021. He is being treated in Pailin hospital. The tally thus increased to 383, including 261 Cambodians, 45 French, 18 Chinese, 13 Malaysians, 12 Americans, 10 Indonesians, 6 British, 3 Vietnamese, 3 Canadians, 3 Indians, 2 Hungarians, 2 Pakistanis, 1 Belgian, 1 Kazakhstani, 1 Polish, 1 Jordanian, and 1 Japanese. Of them, 362 have been so far cured successfully with no recorded fatalities case, while the active cases rose to 21, among whom are 19 women. They have been hospitalised at Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital and the National Centre for Combating Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control in Phnom Penh, and Battambang and Pailin Provincial Referral Hospitals. – Khmer Times