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.
Stay informed with The ASEAN Post.
Vaccinated S'pore residents travelling to countries with low Covid-19 cases could be exempt from quarantine upon return: Ong Ye Kung
Singapore can consider allowing residents who are vaccinated to travel to countries that have low numbers of Covid-19 cases without having to be quarantined on their return, said Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung. This is another avenue for travel that the Republic is exploring, he said on Wednesday (April 28), as the country prepares to open up a two-way quarantine-free travel bubble with Hong Kong on May 26. He noted that countries such as Britain, Denmark, France, Germany and the United States have already exempted travellers from Singapore from quarantine, in response to questions from Lianhe Zaobao after an interview on 91.3FM's The Big Show. With vaccination efforts under way in Britain and the US, the numbers of Covid-19 infections have been going down in those countries, he said in Mandarin, though not to a low enough level for Singapore to reciprocate with quarantine-free travel. "If they can keep the number of cases quite low - and it doesn't have to go down to zero or one, two cases - we can consider allowing vaccinated Singaporeans to travel to these places. And when they return, they can just get tested instead of being quarantined," he added. "It won't be considered a travel bubble, but it will be an important avenue to open up some more." Tickets for flights to and from Hong Kong have been snapped up since the May 26 start date for the Singapore-Hong Kong travel bubble was announced on Monday. The travel bubble, initially scheduled to open in November last year but postponed due to a spike in Covid-19 cases in Hong Kong, will allow quarantine-free travel between the two cities, with no restrictions on the purpose of travel. Travellers have to take designated flights operated by Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific. Asked if more flights will be added, Mr Ong said it was important to take things one step at a time. He added: "If the travel bubble works, then we can think about having more flights and even having travel bubbles with other countries. Many people will be watching to see if it succeeds, and if it does, it can serve as a model for other places." – The Straits Times
Takiyuddin: Govt to implement Undi18 soon
The lowering of Malaysians' voting age to 18, also known as Undi18, will be implemented soon, according to Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Parliament and Law) Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan. In a statement today, he said the government is committed to implement Undi18 in accordance with the amendment of Article 119 of the Federal Constitution which was unanimously agreed in Parliament in 2019. "This matter was discussed and confirmed in a cabinet meeting on April 28, 2021, and efforts will be made to implement it soon," he said. Takiyuddin said the Election Commission (EC) will take immediate steps to resolve several matters related to certain legal provisions as well as technical matters including updating the required software system. "It is clear from this resolution that the government is committed to providing opportunities to young people of 18 years and above to be voters in the 15th General Election or any by-election and state election. "The government is also confident that the EC is always prepared with regard to managing an election process in terms of logistics, human resources and adjustments to the Standard Operating Procedures, in line with the new norms of election management following the Covid-19 outbreak in the country," the Kota Baru Member of Parliament said. The minimum voting age was lowered to 18 from 21 previously after the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2019 was passed by the Dewan Rakyat on July 16, 2019, followed by approval by the Dewan Negara on July 25, 2019. Last week, former finance minister Lim Guan Eng accused the government of intentionally delaying the Undi18 initiative to avoid facing a big chunk of youth who are facing unemployment in recent months. Although the government had previously said that the implementation of Undi18 was expected to be done by July 2021, the EC had on March 25 said it could only be implemented after September 1, 2022. – New Straits Times
Local AstraZeneca jab ready by June
AstraZeneca's plan to produce its Covid-19 vaccine in Thailand has made significant progress and the first batch of vaccines will be ready for delivery to the government by June. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Siam Bioscience as a manufacturing facility for AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine. The company, together with Siam Bioscience, has been working tirelessly to ensure that the facility is on track to safely deliver supply to support the national vaccination campaign. The collaboration with the Thai government and the FDA has facilitated the swift but careful progress with the manufacturing plant over the past few months, according to a statement issued by AstraZeneca (Thailand) Ltd on Wednesday. James Teague, Country President, AstraZeneca (Thailand) Ltd, said: "AstraZeneca and our global manufacturing partners, including Siam Bioscience, are committed to maintaining the highest safety and quality standards of our products. Numerous safety tests and quality control measures are carried out at each step. We are working as quickly as possible to supply the vaccine to the Thai government to overcome the ongoing pandemic." "Thailand will play a central role to support our neighbours in Southeast Asia to combat Covid-19. Together we can join hands to fight this pandemic," said Mr Teague. Shortly after the announcement, the Ministry of Public Health insisted that the first jab would be given to the first group of 16 million people on June 7. The ministry needs to inoculate at least 70% of the population living in zones having a high level of infections in Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Chon Buri shortly to help slow down the spread of Covid-19 throughout the country. Sathit Pitutecha, a deputy public health minister, said that the ministry has already set up criteria for the first group of 16 million people who are the ministry's first priority to administer AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine to. Their names have already been registered with the "Mor Prom" app which will be launched on May 1, said Mr Sathit. Sophon Mekthon, assistant to Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, said the 16 million people include 11.7 million aged over 60 and another 4.3 million suffering from chronic diseases such as severe respiratory disease, heart disease, kidney disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity and stroke. Dr Sophon said the second phase of inoculation will be available for 31 million people aged between 18-59, who can register online in July. The vaccine will be ready for this group from August. – Bangkok Post
Another 500,000 doses of Sinovac’s CoronaVac arrive in PH
Some 500,000 more doses of Sinovac’s COVID-19 vaccine CoronaVac arrived in the country on Thursday morning, completing the 1.5 million doses for delivery this April. The vaccines arrived via commercial plane Cebu Pacific at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport 2, the National Task Force against COVID-19 said in a statement. This batch is part of the government-purchased vaccine from Sinovac, a China-based company. Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said the shots will be distributed immediately “in areas that are experiencing high cases of COVID-19.” So far, the Philippines has received a total of 3.5 million doses of CoronaVac, including the one million doses donated by the Chinese government which came in two tranches – February 28 and March 24. An additional 1.5 million doses of CoronaVac may be expected to arrive on May 7, according to authorities. – INQUIRER.net
More than 318,700 people receive COVID-19 vaccination
More than 318,700 people across the country have received both shots of the COVID-19 vaccination by Wednesday morning, according to the Ministry of Health (MoH). Provinces and cities have made efforts to speed up the vaccination process but still ensure safety. About 30 percent of people had reactions after the vaccination, including fever, fatigue and injection site pain. The rate is lower than European reports and those of the manufacturers. These are common symptoms and also common reactions of the body to all vaccines in general, according to the MoH. In particular, the MoH said, because Viet Nam's immunisation programme was very methodical with the goal of ensuring safety of people who get vaccinated, the procedures for vaccination against COVID-19 were different from other countries. There is screening, pre-vaccination counselling, safe vaccination sessions, and the vaccination person is monitored at the injection site for at least 30 minutes, then continues with home health monitoring for at least a day, before receiving follow up checks for up to three weeks after injection. Hospitals are always ready to prevent severe reactions after vaccination to ensure maximum safety for people being vaccinated. Professor Dang Duc Anh, director of the Central Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, said it was expected that by May 15, Viet Nam would complete the second round of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccinations. In June, the World Health Organisation would continue to provide COVID-19 vaccines to Viet Nam and would continue to distribute them nationwide, he said. The MoH issued a request to provincial and municipal departments of health to continue to strengthen inspection and handling of violations related to COVID-19 pandemic prevention. In Viet Nam, although no cases of COVID-19 have been reported in the community for a while, the risk of disease transmission remains very high. The MoH’s inspector will coordinate with relevant departments to organise unscheduled inspections at a number of establishments producing, importing and trading in goods for pandemic prevention nationwide. The MoH on Wednesday morning organised an online conference with 63 provinces and cities nationwide. It also marked the launch of the COVID-19 Vaccination Safety Steering Committee. During the online conference, the MoH gave training on how to handle adverse incidents following COVID-19 vaccination. The conference aimed to improve the capacity of COVID-19 diagnosis and treatment for medical examination and treatment facilities across the country. – Viet Nam News
Rainsy punished: Ex-opposition leader charged for inciting disobedience
The Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday charged former opposition leader Sam Rainsy for “obstructing” the government’s COVID-19 preventive measures and “incitement” after he was accused of urging people to disobey the authority’s instructions during Phnom Penh’s lockdown. The court also issued an arrest warrant ordering public forces to search for, detain and arrest Rainsy. The action was made after Rainsy, co-founder of the court-dissolved Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), early this week accused the government of starving people through the strict measures enforced to curb the COVID-19 community outbreak, saying the people “will revolt because they have no choice”. According to the court warrant issued by investigating Judge Pich Vicheathor, the court charged Rainsy with “obstructing” under Article 11 of the Law on Measures to Prevent the Outbreak of COVID-19 and Other Deadly and Dangerous Infectious Diseases and “incitement to commit a felony or to disturb social security” under Articles 494 and 495 of the Criminal Code. According to Article 11 of the COVID-19 Law, “obstruction of the implementation of measures” is defined as acts of intentional obstruction. If found guilty, he faces between six months and three years in jail and a fine of between $500 and $2,500, or if he is found to have caused COVID-19 transmission to others or had a serious impact on public health, he will face between two and five years in jail with a fine of between $1,250 and $5,000. Additionally, under Article 495 of the Criminal Code, if found guilty of “incitement”, he faces up to two years in jail and a fine of up to $1,000. National Police spokesman Lieutenant General Chhay Kim Khoeun said yesterday that the charge against Rainsy was made after the National Police reported Rainsy to the court for “obstructing the implementation of measures” and inciting “serious social unrest”. He said Rainsy posted a video clip on his Facebook page on April 24, inciting people to revolt against the lockdown measures with the intent to overthrow the government. Lt Gen Kim Khoeun said the authorities have already received the court order to arrest Rainsy (who is living abroad) and the police have been following up on it. In the video clip, Rainsy said people have reported to him on the situation in the capital during the lockdown, adding he has seen pictures of the quiet city with no people on the streets, comparing it to the day when Khmer Rouge soldiers took over Phnom Penh in 1975. Rainsy claimed that the government’s measures to lock down the capital and force people to stay in their houses are “disproportionate” to the COVID-19 situation in Cambodia, saying it has caused people to panic. “They (the authorities) respond to a situation in panic, which disturbs the nation and makes the people miserable,” he said, adding that people will stand up against the government over strict lockdown measures in a few weeks if the measures are not lifted. Rainsy also criticised reports of some enforcement officers resorting to caning those who violate the measures in designated Red Zones. “In a little while, when millions of hungry people now forcibly locked down in their homes in Phnom Penh decide to force their way out to find food, we don’t know who will be chasing whom,” he said in another Facebook post yesterday. – Khmer Times
Soldier who defected to CDM shot dead by junta’s forces in Tamu clash, say resistance fighters
A soldier who defected to the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) was shot dead by the junta’s forces during a clash on Tuesday night in Tamu, Sagaing Region, local resistance fighters told Myanmar Now. The soldier was on patrol with the Tamu Security Group when they met with Myanmar military troops near the town’s Kuntaung Bridge. He was 30 years old and known as Aung Aung, one of the resistance fighters said, adding that it was unclear if that was his full name. It was also unclear what his rank was before he defected. He was shot in the chest. The security group was formed by local residents in March to defend against attacks on unarmed civilians by the new military regime. Tuesday’s clash started at around 7:30pm. About half an hour later, more regime troops who were stationed at a construction site in the town came to the bridge as reinforcements. A breakaway group of resistance fighters used grenades to attack the remaining soldiers at the construction site in an effort to distract the troops shooting near the bridge. Out of five soldiers left at the site, three were killed and two were injured critically in the grenade attack, another member of the Tamu Security Group said. “The military were there with force and [we] wanted to split them up.” There have been numerous clashes in recent weeks between the junta’s forces and local residents, who are often armed with rudimentary hunting rifles. In early April, Myanmar military soldiers raided protest camps and stationed themselves in hospitals, schools and police stations in the town. Five of the junta’s policemen were killed when a resistance group led by a policeman who had joined CDM attacked the Nan Phar Lone Police Base with three hand grenades on April 1. Many of Tamu’s residents have fled their homes. – Myanmar NOW
Widodo appoints two new ministers in minor reshuffle
Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has appointed Nadiem Makarim as the minister for education, culture, research and technology and Bahlil Lahadalia as the investment minister in a minor reshuffle. Makarim, who was previously the education and culture minister, took his oath of office at a swearing-in ceremony that took place at the State Palace in Jakarta on Wednesday. Lahadalia and Laksono Tri Handoko were also sworn in along with Makarim. Handoko will replace Bambang PS Brodjonegoro as the head of Indonesia's National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN). Besides President Widodo, the ceremony was also attended by Vice President Ma'ruf Amin and several cabinet members, under the strict observance of health protocols. Speaking to journalists after taking his oath of office, Makarim said he would do his best to improve the quality of research and innovation at Indonesian universities. – AntaraNews.Com