These are the top stories making the front pages of major newspapers from across Southeast Asia today.
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16-year-old detained under ISA for planning mosque attacks to receive religious, psychological counselling
The 16-year-old student who has been detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) for planning terrorist attacks on two mosques will receive Christian religious counselling to correct misconceptions he may have about his religion. The Protestant Christian of Indian ethnicity will also go for psychological counselling to address his propensity to violence and vulnerability to radical influences, said the Internal Security Department (ISD) on Wednesday (Jan 27). There will be mentoring on pro-social behaviour as well for the youth, who is the first detainee influenced by far-right extremist ideology. Arrangements have also been made for him to continue his education while in detention, said the ISD. Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam said Singapore's approach of providing religious counselling to radicalised youths is better for their rehabilitation than charging and imprisoning them. The 16-year-old youth is the youngest person to date to be dealt with under the ISA for terrorism-related activities. "There's a reasonable expectation, that he, like many of the other boys, would eventually understand what their religion is about, and can actually get rehabilitated," Mr Shanmugam told reporters at the Home Team Science and Technology Agency. Legally, there is no minimum age for a person to be dealt with under the ISA. Due to the youth's age, special safeguards were taken during the investigations and detention, said the ISD. For example, his mother was present during the interview prior to his arrest. Family visits were also allowed for him during the 30-day investigation period, although such visits are typically not allowed in the first 30 days. Mr Shanmugam also noted that Singapore adopts a consistent approach to rehabilitation, regardless of an individual's race or religion. He cited the example of the Religious Rehabilitation Group, which was set up after the 9/11 terror attacks to explain how the counselling takes place. The group, formed by Islamic scholars and teachers, receives some administrative support from the Government but operates independently, he said. The members counsel the detainees and explain to them what the religion is really about and where they have gone wrong in their understanding of their religion, he added. "In the case of some of the detainees, it didn't take very long... After one period of detention - two years, 2½ years - some of them were able to be released," he said. – The Straits Times
A Thaipusam unlike any other
The extension of the Movement Control Order (MCO) to Feb 4 means that Thaipusam this year will be unlike any other. Mykavadi Store and Shivaputra Kavadi group founder Suresh Vyavari, 45, said since the Conditional MCO was announced in November, he had already expected Thaipusam to be subjected to Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOP). Suresh, who has been carrying the kavadi for the last 26 years, said he and more than 80 people in his kavadi group knew they had to scale down the celebration due to physical distancing and other gathering requirements. "Covid-19 is still a threat, so we knew what had to be done. Of course, many of us were disappointed that we would not be able to celebrate Lord Murugan's coming by marching and following the chariot's procession, carrying kavadi and attending prayers at the temple. "We had actually begun preparations for Thaipusam late last year by fasting either for a period of 21 or 30 days and by being vegetarian," he said. On the preparations, he said the kavadi made at his home workshop used wood and copper with a gold-plated base. "This will be the third time that I will miss carrying the kavadi. The other two times were due to deaths of family members. We understand that the celebration this year will be different because we have to follow the strict SOP to ensure everybody's safety." Suresh has been married to his wife, Melanie Peter, 40, a special needs therapist, for 13 years. The couple has a 10-year-old son who is autistic. He said measures introduced under the MCO had also affected his income and livelihood, but he remains steadfast in his devotion by carrying on with activities that he was allowed to do for Thaipusam. "Since 2003, every time during Thaipusam, we cook and prepare food to be distributed to the poor, homeless and needy. "We usually distribute up to 100 packs of food and mineral water each day. This year, we will be distributing food throughout the MCO period. "This is a form of salvation for us, where apart from staying at home and praying, we also cook food and help those in need. This is our way of looking out for each other, especially during Thaipusam. "Since there are no events at the temple, I haven't received orders for kavadi or requests for other related work. As such, I've had little or no earnings for quite some time. I am currently helping my wife with her food catering business from home called Mel's Kitchen," he said. Another kavadi maker and founder of the Vellai Mayil Kavadi group, Mahadevan Santhilnathan, 26, said public health and safety and was paramount amid the pandemic. "Apart from fulfilling our vows and performing prayers, we usually sponsor paal kavadi (milk pots) to a dozen orphans at Pusat Jagaan Shashti in Gombak, accompanied by bhajan (devotional) music from a group called Hanuram. "It will be a different Thaipusam because of the unavoidable circumstances, but we will adhere to the SOP by fulfilling our vows and prayers at home with our families. "Hopefully, we can all return to how it was next year, when we are free from the virus." – New Straits Times
B51m of 'ice' found on beach
Packages of crystal methamphetamine, or ice, weighing a total of 17 kilogrammes were washed ashore on a Koh Samui beach on Wednesday. Villagers informed local police of that 17 tightly sealed plastic packages had been found on Hat Koh Taen beach in tambon Taling Ngam. The yellow packages each weighed 1kg and each had three layers of wrapping, with pictures of fancy carp and Chinese lettering. Police estimated the total market price of the drugs at 51 million baht. The packs were similar to three other 1kg packages of crystal meth found on Hat Niyom beach in Chaiya district on Jan 20. A narcotics suppression official said the packages on the two beaches could be from the same illegal shipment as 100kg of crystal meth found on the coast of Vietnam on Dec 10. It was possible the drugs were being transported by boat from Vietnam to Thailand for onward smuggling to a third country, but the vessel sank, the official said. In March last year, a total of 496kg of crystal meth in tightly wrapped plastic was washed ashore in the eastern province of Trat. – Bangkok Post
Cavite drops China-backed Sangley airport deal
Negotiations for a new P500-billion China-funded international gateway on Manila Bay were scrapped on Wednesday, easing national security concerns over its strategic location close to the Philippine capital but stalling a major project to decongest the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia). Cavite Gov. Jonvic Remulla said his office approved a Jan. 26, 2021, recommendation by the provincial Special Selection Committee to cancel the award granted to state-run China Communications Construction Co. Ltd. (CCCC) and taipan Lucio Tan’s MacroAsia Corp. on Feb. 12 last year. “The notice of selection and award for the Sangley Point International Airport Project issued on 12 February 2020 was cancelled,” MacroAsia reported to the stock exchange on Wednesday. CCCC-MacroAsia was the only group that made a bid to develop the first phase of the Sangley Point International Airport (SPIA)—a massive airport and land reclamation project envisioned to serve up to 130 million passengers per year, or four times Naia’s capacity. In an interview on Wednesday, Remulla told the Inquirer that the cancellation followed the failure of the Chinese-Filipino consortium to submit post award requirements and to correct defects in the joint venture documents despite multiple extensions due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Remulla told Reuters news agency that the consortium’s documentation was “deficient in three or four items.” “We saw it as a sign they were not fully committed to the project,” Remulla said. The governor told the Inquirer that the Cavite government would rebid the SPIA and hopefully award the project before the October 2021 deadline for the filing of certificates of candidacy. “I still believe that a new international airport is important for the country,” said Remulla, who said he would run for re-election in 2022. The SPIA was conceived and implemented by the provincial government and one of the few local projects with national impact. It faced obstacles after the U.S. government on Aug. 26, 2020, placed CCCC’s subsidiaries and other Chinese companies on a blacklist for their role in building and militarizing artificial islands in the West Philippine Sea. – INQUIRER.net
Việt Nam’s foreign debts under control
The effective management of foreign loans has transformed Việt Nam from a poor and heavily indebted country to one that international organisations consider to have a controlled external debt and is not in the group of countries with a debt burden. The information was released at a conference on national debt management held in Hà Nội on Tuesday. Võ Hữu Hiển, the Ministry of Finance's Deputy Director of Debt Management and External Finance Department, said over the past three decades, Viet Nam had gained many achievements and innovations in debt management, especially foreign debt management. Foreign capital sources had facilitated the opening of financial-credit relations with international organisations and foreign governments, making a great contribution to Việt Nam’s socio-economic development. According to the ministry, in the context of limited domestic resources, foreign debts from all economic sectors through flexible use of capital mobilisation has contributed to meet investment needs for public works, encouraged domestic savings and sped up capital turnover. It has also helped unleash potential resources of the economy to achieve socio-economic development goals and stabilise macro economy. The national external debt ceiling target compared to GDP by the end of 2020 was maintained within safe limits approved by the National Assembly, ensuring national financial security. The external debt of the public debt sector (government debt and government guaranteed) has been controlled. Specifically, the proportion of public external debt tends to decrease rapidly in the national external debt structure, from 73.6 per cent in 2010 to 63.4 per cent in 2015 and 43.7 per cent in 2020. The growth rate of external debt balance of the public sector has also been strictly controlled, from the average of 13 per cent a year in the period of 2011-15 to about 3 per cent a year in the 2016-20 period, contributing to curbing direct debt obligations and State budget provisions. In addition, foreign loans of the Government are still mainly ODA and concessional loans (accounting for 98 per cent of the total Government external debt). Việt Nam has so far signed over US$85 billion of ODA and preferential capital with relatively favourable loan conditions. The average maturity is 13.8 years with weighted average interest rate of 1.35 per cent. – Viet Nam News
Cambodia to get 20 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine
Cambodia is expected to receive 20 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine of which 11 million doses are donations from friendly nations and partner organisations. Ministry of Economy and Finance permanent secretary of state, Vongsey Vissoth said the first phase of seven million doses of the vaccine will arrive via the United-Nations backed COVAX facility. He said that for the first phase, Cambodian will receive seven million doses of the vaccines through COVAX initiative, one million doses of the Sinopharm vaccines donated by China, which is expected to arrive in the country by February, and 3 million doses purchased by a grant provided by the Australian government. “For now, we will receive 11 million doses through aids and donation,” Vissoth said. “We can have more, as Samdech Prime Minister [Hun Sen] has asked India to donate their vaccine to us while Samdech Tea Banh [ Defence Minister] has already made the same request to Russia.” He added that Cambodia was a small country and the vaccination drive will inject confidence for investors, both local and foreign, to invest in the Kingdom while the move will jump-start development and national economic recovery to weather the economic shocks created by the COVID-19 pandemic. General Tea Banh, Minister of Defence, said they have also requested vaccines from Russia. So far, he added, the government has received more than $57 million from wealthy Cambodians to help authorities pay for the purchase of vaccine doses that the Kingdom is purchasing. Meanwhile today (Jan 28), Cambodia will start its two-days annual Meak Bochea Day celebration on the top hill of Preah Reachtroap (Oudong), Ponhea Leu district, Kandal province, where a stupa of Buddha’s relics is located. – Khmer Times
Mount Merapi erupts, spewing hot ash three kilometres away
One of the world's most active volcanoes, Mount Merapi, erupted Wednesday, belching out huge clouds of smoke and ash that billowed down the sides of its rumbling crater. The volcano, near Yogyakarta, shot hot ash into the air around three dozen times throughout the day. Some of it travelled as far as three kilometres (two miles) away from its peak, Indonesia's geological agency said. Authorities told residents to stay outside a five-kilometre no-go zone, warning about possible lava flows. Fiery red lava has been seen flowing down the volcano in recent days, but authorities have kept its alert status at the second-highest level. Mount Merapi's last major eruption in 2010 killed more than 300 people, and forced the evacuation of around 280,000 residents from surrounding areas. That was its most powerful eruption since 1930, which killed around 1,300 people, while another explosion in 1994 took about 60 lives. Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", a vast zone of geological instability where the collision of tectonic plates causes frequent quakes and major volcanic activity. The Southeast Asian archipelago nation has nearly 130 active volcanoes. – The Jakarta Post