These are the top stories making the front pages of major newspapers from across Southeast Asia today.
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SMRT to distribute S'pore-made electric motorcycles
Electric motorcycle maker EuroSports Technologies has teamed up with SMRT-owned Strides Transportation to develop, market and supply smart electric motorbikes. In an announcement to the Singapore Exchange on Monday (April 19), EuroSports Technologies said the two local companies have signed a memorandum of understanding which will see Strides appointed as the sole distributor of commercial electric motorcycles in Singapore and the Asia-Pacific region. This range of two- and three-wheelers will be separate from EuroSports' Scorpio brand of premium electric motorbikes. They will be targeted for food delivery and logistics applications. EuroSports Technologies - part of listed sportscar distributor EuroSports Global - will be rolling out the new range of commercial motorbikes by the fourth quarter of this year - ahead of the Scorpio's 2022 production. Like the Scorpio, these motorcycles will be equipped with smart features such as over-the-air software updates, connectivity to the Internet of Things and in-house charging systems. But they will have lower performance, fewer premium features and a substantially lower price tag. Formed in 2016, Strides provides limousine and premium bus services in Singapore, and car leasing and limousine services in Myanmar. EuroSports chief executive Melvin Goh described the non-binding MOU as a "momentous milestone". He added: "As the creator of Scorpio Electric, the first Singapore home-grown high-performance smart electric motorcycle, we are proud to fly our flag high in the international scene with Strides. "The collaboration will broaden the scope of our reach to tap the unfulfilled potential of regional electric vehicle markets." – The Straits Times
APHM: No Covid-19 infections amongst private healthcare workers
The Association of Private Hospital of Malaysia (APHM) today said none of its workers were infected with Covid-19 after receiving their vaccines. "We have not been informed of any Covid-19 infection amongst the private healthcare workers after the first and second doses but it would be isolated and with mild symptoms should it ever occur. "Our view is the vaccination is important and we have seen increased confidence levels in our healthcare workers during their duty of managing Covid-19 patients in private hospitals after completing the vaccination. "However, we have advised all our private healthcare workers to maintain the highest level of precaution and adherence to the standard operating procedures (SOPs) despite of the completion of vaccination," its president Datuk Dr Kuljit Singh said in a statement today. Recently, Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah revealed that 40 healthcare workers have been infected with Covid-19 upon completion of their coronavirus vaccine shots. A total 31 healthcare workers were infected less than two weeks of the second dose of inoculation, while another nine were infected more than two weeks after the second dose. However, all were only less severe symptoms. APHM lauds government's efforts so far to implement Phase 1 of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (NIP). For the continuation of the NIP's success, Dr Kuljit urged more people to register for the upcoming phases of vaccination. "About 60 plus private hospitals have registered as Private Vaccine Centres and the supply of vaccine will be from the government," he added. Almost 10,000 senior citizens aged above 75 with chronic conditions will receive the Covid-19 vaccine today under Phase 2 of the NIP. – New Straits Times
Talks on Monday could see school term postponed
The new school term, which is scheduled to begin next month, may be deferred to June due to the worsening Covid-19 situation. Education Minister Treenuch Thienthong said she would discuss the matter on Monday with permanent-secretary for education Supat Jampathong and Office of the Basic Education Commission (Obec) secretary-general Amporn Pinasa. The Covid-19 situation and its impact on schools and students would continue to be assessed until April 30, to see whether it is still possible to start the new school term in May as planned, said Ms Treenuch, but if it is found to be impossible the new term may be postponed to June 1. The minister said the likely delay would only be imposed once several factors had been taken into account, including contingency plans which each educational authority has put in place to cope with difficulties in arranging in-person classes during the outbreak. "Opinions from all sides, especially ones from educational service area offices that directly supervise schools and from provincial education committees, will be compiled," she said. However, the minister said she did not expect every school to have to fully move classes online, following reports that many parents and students around the country are concerned about the need to do so. Certain schools now appear ready to ensure strict Covid-19 control measures if and when they are allowed to reopen, which means they shouldn't have to fully shift to online learning, she said. Those schools that cannot guarantee adequate social distancing at school will, however, probably have to conduct classes online instead, said Ms Treenuch. Dr Opas Karnkawinpong, chief of the Department of Disease Control (DDC), had previously revealed that two foreign teachers had contracted Covid-19 and ended up infecting at least 30 other people at a private school in the Bang Phli district of Samut Prakan. Of the 30 infections, two were other foreign teachers, one was a Thai teacher, 23 were students and four were family members of some of the infected students, said the doctor. Meanwhile, Horwang School in Bangkok has closed its music building for 14 days so it can be disinfected and so those who were in close contact on April 9-11 with Khemchat Chan-akson, an infected part-time music teacher, can self-quarantine. – Bangkok Post
DOH detects more virus variant cases
Highly infectious variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, were predominant among sample cases of the disease taken from around the country and recently analysed by government health experts. The Department of Health (DOH) also said that nearly half of the detected variant cases were in Metro Manila and the rest were in seven other regions. Genetic studies showed that 642 out of 752 latest COVID-19 samples, or 80 percent, bore either the contagious B.1.1.7 or B.1.351 variants, which were first detected in the United Kingdom and South Africa, respectively, or the potentially contagious P.3 variant first found in the Philippines. 47 percent of the variant cases were in Metro Manila. The rest were in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Calabarzon, Northern Mindanao, Soccsksargen and Caraga. While the DOH confirmed last month that the UK and South Africa COVID-19 variants had been detected in all cities in Metro Manila, results of the latest genetic analysis showed that the so-called Philippine variant was now in the capital region. The DOH has maintained that the P.3 variant is not yet a cause of concern due to insufficient data about its impact on public health. The P.1 variant, first detected in Brazil, which is experiencing its worst health crisis, has so far been detected in two returning overseas Filipinos. The UK virus variant has so far been detected in Metro Manila and eight other regions; the South Africa variant in Metro Manila and four other regions; and the Philippine variant in Metro Manila and four other regions. In the latest genome sequencing of 752 COVID-19 samples, the University of the Philippines-Philippine Genome Center detected 266 UK variant cases, 351 South Africa variant cases and 25 Philippine variant cases. Most of them are local cases but there are some cases among Filipinos returning from abroad. Among the variant cases, 12 have died, 521 recovered and 109 still actively battling the disease, according to the DOH. – INQUIRER.net
Quang Nam offers to host international visitors with ‘vaccine passports’
The central province of Quang Nam has put forward plans to host international tourists with vaccine passports and negative coronavirus tests. As part of the plans, arrivals at Chu Lai Airport will stay at the assigned Hoiana resorts in Duy Xuyen District and Tui Blue Hotel in Nui Thanh District for five or 10 days. Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, Le Tri Thanh confirmed the plans to Viet Nam News, stating that the province and managing boards of the two resorts and Chu Lai Airport authorities held a working session on preparations to soon host tourists with the proposed vaccine passports. Thanh said the province will register with the Government to become the first province in Viet Nam to pilot the hosting of international visitors and roll out a ‘safe tourism’ programme. “We plan to receive South Korean ‘vaccine passport’ tourists on chartered flights as part of the pilot project, and they (tourists) must test negative for coronavirus by Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR),” Thanh said. “Chu Lai Airport will be given better medical testing equipment and coronavirus prevention measure for arrivals as well as the reception sites at the two hotels,” he said. The chairman said the two hotels are far from community and residential quarters, and the two sites had been tested and surveyed by the Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also agreed with the pilot plan. Thanh said all staff of the two hotels and task force members will be vaccinated and implement coronavirus preventive measures before hosting tourists. – Viet Nam News
Lockdown chaos: Panic buying and confrontations at barricades
While lockdowns in Phnom Penh and the nearby city of Takhmao enter the sixth day today amid the large-scale COVID-19 community transmission, the capital became chaotic with residents panic-buying food and supplies and confronting law enforcement officers who have declared “no mercy” for the violators. Due to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases, The Health Ministry yesterday also began using the “Panbio COVID-19 Ag Rapid Test Device” which provides results in 15 minutes. The government announced on Wednesday night that Phnom Penh and Takhmao City are to be placed under temporary lockdown for 14 days starting 00:00 am on April 15 till April 28. During the lockdown, all citizens are not allowed to travel outside the home area except for emergency purposes. Khmer Times journalists had attempted to observe the situation in some part of the capital yesterday but were blocked by standby police and military police, who asked the journalist to return, without recognising the press cards or company’s documents. At Chenla traffic stop alone near the temporary closure of Doeum Kor Market in Tuol Kork district yesterday dozens of military police were deployed to catch lockdown violators and barricaded the roads. A police officer at a blocked street in Tuol Kork district’s Boeng Salang commune said none of the residents were allowed to travel due to concerns of the serious community outbreak unless for “emergencies”. While some residents support the government measure, others expressed anger over the travel restrictions as food prices have doubled or tripled due to panic buying. – Khmer Times
Two killed in separate incidents, as hundreds flee amid military build-up
Two anti-coup protesters were killed in northern Myanmar over the weekend as the military continued its push to crush resistance to its rule. One person was reported dead in the northern Shan State town of Kyaukme on Saturday, while another died during a shootout in Sagaing Region’s Kani Township on Sunday. Aung Ko Ko Phyo, a 25-year-old government employee who had joined the Civil Disobedience Movement, was shot in the head as he was leaving the monastery where he had temporarily ordained as a monk during the Thingyan holidays. According to local sources, Aung Ko Ko Phyo, who worked for the Department of Electrical Power, was shot near Kyaukme’s Wailuwun monastery at around 9pm on Saturday. “He was on his way to his teacher’s home. He had just left the monkhood because it was the end of Thingyan,” a Kyaukme resident told Myanmar Now. There were numerous witnesses to the incident, the source added, noting that it occurred in the centre of town. A doctor who treated him said he died from a bullet wound and would be cremated on Monday. The troops who killed him removed his body from the scene soon after the shooting. Family members were told they could collect it on Sunday. However, according to a local news agency, his mother was forced to sign a release before she was allowed to claim his body stating that her son had been stabbed to death and that the military was not involved in his killing. Residents of Kyaukme, a trading town located about 175km northeast of Mandalay, have held regular protests against the military since it seized power in a coup on February 1. On Sunday, another man died after the arrest of a local man led to a five-hour confrontation between regime forces and civilians in Sagaing region. The shootout, which occurred on the Monywa-Kalaywa-Yargyi road between Mingin and Kani townships, began at around 1pm, a resident of the area told Myanmar Now. “[Soldiers] fired a shot and came into the village. They arrested a local and that’s when the fighting began,” said a resident of Sal Yar Chaung, the village where the arrest was made. At least 100 soldiers were involved in the clash, according to another villager. No further details were available about the man who died. Residents said that some of the military forces may have been injured by homemade hunting rifles and air guns used by members of a village defence team. Residents say that hundreds of people have fled the area since Sunday, as more army troops pour in and conduct door-to-door raids targeting local civilians. “They came into the village in the morning. There were a lot of them. They were searching every house, so we had to run. It looks like they’re setting up base,” said a resident of Chaung Ma Kyway, one of the affected villages. The shootout on Sunday came days after a similar incident on April 15 left six civilians dead and at least 20 others missing. Many parts of Sagaing region have been tense since late last month amid efforts by the regime to crack down on strongholds of the anti-coup movement. According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, more than 730 civilians have been killed by the junta nationwide as of April 17. – Myanmar NOW
Six million doses of Sinovac's bulk vaccine arrived in Indonesia
Six million doses of bulk vaccine from China's Sinovac has arrived at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Banten Province on Sunday, as the eighth batch of vaccine delivery to Indonesia, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said. "Today we have received six million doses of bulk vaccine from Sinovac, China, as part of 140 million doses of bulk vaccine that we will receive in 2021," Sadikin said in a virtual press conference on Presidential Secretariat YouTube account. As of now Indonesia has received 59.5 million doses of Sinovac bulk vaccine that could be used to produce 47 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine by state-run vaccine maker PT Bio Farma. Bulk vaccines are the raw material of vaccines that will be made into ready-to-use vaccines by BioFarma. "Until now, of the total 46 million doses, we have distributed 22 million doses to all regions," he said. Indonesia is expected to have additional 20 million doses of vaccine with the arrival of the bulk vaccine on Sunday, to meet demand in April and May, Sadikin said. The minister has called on local governments to continue the vaccination program during the fasting month of Ramadhan. "The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has declared that vaccination would not invalidate a Muslim's fast," he said. The vaccination has also focused on senior citizens, because during the Eid al-Fitr celebration people will visit the elderly. Sadikin has called on the public to increase alertness and adhere to the health protocols, with the spike in COVID-19 cases in some countries in Europe, Asia such as India, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and South America such as Chile and Brazil. "The implementation of public activities restriction (PPKM) should not make us unaware of the spread. Lest our hard work is fruitless because we do not stay on alert," the minister said. – AntaraNews.Com