These are the top stories making the front pages of major newspapers from across Southeast Asia today.
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$2.2 billion in JSS pay-outs to support wages of over 2 million employees from June 30
Over 140,000 employers will receive Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) pay-outs totalling more than $2.2 billion from June 30. This will support the wages of over 2 million local employees, said the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras), in a statement released on Tuesday (June 22). With this pay-out, more than $26.7 billion in JSS support would have been disbursed since the introduction of the scheme at the Unity Budget in February 2020. Employers who have made mandatory CPF contributions for their local employees for the months of January to March 2021 by the stipulated deadlines will qualify to receive the pay-out, said the MOF and Iras. For the pay-out in June, employers in the aviation, aerospace and tourism sectors will receive 50 per cent support for the first $4,600 of gross monthly wages paid in January, February and March 2021. Those in food services, retail, arts and entertainment, land transport, built environment, and marine and offshore will receive 30 per cent support for wages paid during the same period, while employers in all other sectors will receive 10 per cent support. Eligible employers will be notified by post of their pay-out amount later this month. They can also log in to myTax Portal to view the electronic copy of their letter. Employers who have registered for PayNow Corporate by June 25, 2021, or have existing Giro arrangements with Iras, can expect to receive the JSS pay-outs from June 30. Other employers will receive their cheques from July 5. As announced earlier, to help businesses during phases two and three (heightened alert), the JSS will be enhanced to support sectors that have been significantly affected by the safe management measures from May 16 to July 11. Sectors that are significantly affected will receive 50 per cent support for this period. Other sectors that are affected will receive 30 per cent support for the period of restrictions, and 10 per cent support thereafter from July 12 to 25. Details of qualifying sectors can be found at this website. The enhanced pay-out will be disbursed in September. – The Straits Times
Night market traders cry for help
Some 15,000 night market traders in the federal capital are trying to survive with zero income since the total lockdown was imposed under the Movement Control Order. Since June 1, the traders are unable to operate, as per instructions of the National Security Council. The situation is getting worse for some as they are already running out of savings to survive the remaining days of the total lockdown. They are staring at empty pockets if this regulation continues and if the pandemic gets worse. Pertubuhan Pengurusan Pasar Malam Kuala Lumpur secretary-general Roy Charles James said they were hard done by the regulation, which disallows any night market trader from setting up stalls by the roadside during the lockdown. "The requirement for one to obtain this licence is that one must not possess a licence for night market operations. "So, we are tied to this one-sided regulation. We cannot do anything about it. "We can only sit around and wait, hoping the government will finally allow night markets to reopen. "Please listen to our pleas. We are humans, too, and have families to feed," James told the New Straits Times. He also said that no financial aid was made available for the night market operators during the total lockdown. The last time they received aid was in March last year, and that was a RM500 one-off payment. James saw articles of night market traders receiving aid recently in Johor, which left traders here perplexed by the lack of financial support from the government. He said he contacted an officer at the Kuala Lumpur City Hall to ask why they were not getting any aid. The response only left him frustrated. "They said the aid in Johor was from the state government, and that City Hall was only a local government entity. This matter should be under the Federal Territories Ministry. "We hope we can be given a chance to share our plight with the ministry soon," he said. James suggested that as a temporary measure, the government should give night market traders special permission to open roadside stalls to earn a living. He said traders continued to abide by all directives, and they would not want to set up stalls until they were given the permission to do so by the local authorities. "We also hope that the government will consider giving a one-off aid this time around, too, so that even non-essential traders can have some support." When contacted, a spokesperson for City Hall said the proposal to allow night market traders to operate at roadsides during the full lockdown "would be looked into". The spokesperson said the matter would be referred to relevant departments before any decision can be made. – New Straits Times
Beta variant sweeps through the South
The Beta strain of Covid-19 first identified in South Africa is now sweeping through the South after initially being diagnosed in a cluster at a Muslim school on June 9, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) reported on Monday. Dr Apisamai Srirangson, assistant spokeswoman for the CCSA, said the recent cluster in the Muslim religious school of Margaz Tabligh preaching center in Yala's Muang district, has already spread to 402 patients across 12 southern provinces. There were 111 positive cases reported in Narathiwat, 102 in Yala, 46 in Satun, 46 in Pattani, 36 at Songkhla, 18 in Krabi, 13 in Phatthalung, 10 in Nakhon Si Thammarat, nine in Surat Thani, five in Phangnga and three each in Trang and Phuket. The Margaz community has a population of 4,000, including around 500 students from 17 provinces who frequently gather for social activities such as formal dinners in which they share utensils and trays, and perform religious rites with no mask wearing, according to Dr Apisamai. The school has been closed and access to and from nearby areas heavily restricted as active case finding is conducted. Those who have had any close contact with the students have been asked to report to healthcare officers. Dr Apisamai said the Eid al-Fitr festival in July, in which feasts are held to celebrate the end of Muslim fasting will be go ahead this year and Asis Pitakkumpol, Sheikh-ul-Islam of Thailand has asked Muslims to be mindful of the outbreak situation and follow disease control measures. Meanwhile, Chief of the Department of Medical Sciences, Dr Supakit Sirilak acknowledged that laboratory tests had all but confirmed the schools to be the sources of the Beta infections, and more work was being done to trace its route into the community in the first place in order to stop further clusters arising. Dr Supakit warned that the Beta variant is of particular concern due to studies showing that it can lessen the efficacy of Covid-19 vaccines. "We have seen both Alpha and Beta variants in the school and it is necessary to control the disease in particularly infectious areas like these. However, the rate of transmission is quite slow so it can be controlled quickly if patients are found and quarantined," he said. Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said that he has already passed an order for an increase in action to control the outbreak, saying there would be no cause for concern if all those infected were processed within the Thai healthcare system. However, there was a chance that illegal migrants could be spreading it too so close cooperation with the Ministry of Interior would be needed too. He added that the ministry is considering extending quarantine from 14 days to 21 days or more for arrivals from countries where the strain is particularly prevalent, adding that the academic committee is going to discuss the proposal. – Bangkok Post
Vaccine supply is ‘biggest problem,’ Binay says after Duterte’s threat to arrest vaccine ‘sceptics’
“Vaccine supply is the biggest problem,” so said Senator Nancy Binay after President Rodrigo Duterte warned that those refusing COVID-19 vaccination may be arrested. “May problema tayo sa supply. It’s not as if ayaw ng mga kababayan natin magpabakuna,” Binay said in an interview on ABS-CBN News Channel Tuesday when asked about Duterte’s warning. Binay noted that there are Filipinos who line up at vaccination centers early in the morning to ensure they receive their vaccine that day. “Madaling araw pa lang pumipila na sila dun sa vaccination centers para ‘di sila abutan ng cut-off,” she said. “So, at this point, I think vaccine hesitancy is not the problem, vaccine supply is the biggest problem so we need to arrest that,” she added. Nevertheless, Binay acknowledged that vaccine hesitancy among the public is still a present problem which needs to be addressed in the government’s inoculation program. Last November 2020, a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed that only 66 percent were willing to be vaccinated against COVID-19. “But for me yung urgent need right now is to have more supply of the vaccine,” she stressed. The percentage went down in a more recent SWS survey with only 32 percent of respondents saying they would be willing to be vaccinated. Other surveys also showed similar numbers, with most respondents being concerned about the safety and efficacy of the vaccines. The government has administered over seven million vaccine doses as of Monday, according to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases. Of that number, only 1.9 million have been fully vaccinated or have received their second vaccine dose. – INQUIRER.net
Viet Nam to get one million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine each week starting July: VNVC
Viet Nam will receive one million doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines each week starting in July, the licensed importer for the vaccine in the country has announced. Viet Nam Vaccine JSC (VNVC), a private firm that remains the only one to be authorised by the health ministry with regards to import of COVID-19 vaccine, said this is the fulfilment of the order of 30 million doses supplied within 2021. VNVC paid US$30 million deposit to AstraZeneca (along with proof of import and storage capacity and commitment for equitable use) when the vaccine was still in phase 2 of clinical trials last year in order to get early access at a "special price" if it succeeded. But they ran the risk that had AstraZeneca vaccine failed VNVC would not get the deposit back and would likely need to continue committing further money for next steps of development. Taking this into account, the Vietnamese Government on June 1, 2021, awarded the commendation to the company for "outstanding achievement in fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic." The company from the onset said it was committed to sell back the entire 30 million doses on order to the Vietnamese health ministry on a non-profit basis. The Government on June 19 issued a resolution officially greenlighting the purchase of the vaccines imported by VNVC (under the model of selecting contractor/provider in special circumstance in line with Law on Bidding), including the doses already arrived in Viet Nam since February. It accepted the vaccine price set under the not-for-profit principle as reported by the health ministry about the result of the purchase negotiation with the VNVC. In this agreement, in case AstraZeneca decides to cut the prices of the doses, VNVC would need to slash the price in accordance when selling to the health ministry, but should AstraZeneca decide to increase the price, VNVC would have to accept the prices as stated in the agreement with the health ministry. However, the Government agrees to waive the responsibility of VNVC if it failed to deliver on schedule as well as the responsibility of both AstraZeneca and VNVC regarding any complaints emerging from the use of the vaccine. So far, the delivery of the vaccine under this deal has been limited. About 405,600 doses arrived in Viet Nam in two shipments in late February and late May, with the first batch of 117,600 doses also the first COVID-19 doses to reach Viet Nam, allowing the country to start inoculation of frontline workers and medical staff. It is expected that another million doses of AstraZeneca vaccines will be delivered to Viet Nam via COVAX initiative in late June, early July, adding on top of some 2.5 million doses already arrived in the country in April. With the severe fourth wave of infections underway since late April, Viet Nam is looking at all sources of possible vaccine supplies to secure 170 million doses to inoculate 70 per cent of its near 97 million population by year-end. According to the health ministry, as of 4pm June 20, 2021, 2,422,643 doses of vaccines have been administered in Viet Nam, while 12,683 have been fully vaccinated with two doses. – Viet Nam News
Phnom Penh’s private schools in crisis
There are more than 500 registered private schools in Phnom Penh, Ros Soveacha, secretary-general for the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, told Khmer Times. “The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport encourages private education providers, private education receivers and relevant stakeholders to continue negotiating appropriate solutions by understanding each other and realising the give-and-take strategies because all relevant entities are affected by Covid-19,” Soveacha told Khmer Times. Zion International School in the capital’s Tuol Tom Poung commune, Chamkar Mon district undertook its second round of layoffs yesterday. Khmer Times reached out to Philip White, its vice-director, for a comment upon hearing the news via WhatsApp with a message that read: “Phil. Working on a story about the state of English schools in Phnom Penh. Having heard that [a teacher] was laid off today, Zion will be in the article. This is your opportunity to answer questions and make a statement before it goes to print tomorrow.” In response, he said: “Please do not include our school or mention our layoffs. It is private and confidential. Thank you.” White warned that any publication of the layoffs would result in “repercussions”. “We will take legal action against [the teacher] if our school is mentioned in the article as per her contract. We are also consulting lawyers regarding, you [and] the paper now. This would be a lot easier and better for all of you just leave us out and move on,” White said. “We will contact lawyers and your boss if necessary. I do not consent to any of my comments here or elsewhere being used in any publication.” The employee laid off has a close relationship with the author of this article. She alleged that White had approached her when she was alone preparing worksheets for future lessons after being laid off. White is said to have cursed at the 23-year-old teacher, belittled her, threatened her with legal action and told her that her severance pay would be cut – in defiance of Ministry of Labour laws – if Khmer Times printed an article naming Zion International School in any way, shape or form. She said that she felt threatened, belittled and bullied. At one point she told White that she was shaking because she felt “intimidated and scared” upon being approached by White, who is in his 40s. Okhna Dr Mengly Quach, founder of Aii Language Centers (Aii) and American Intercon Schools (AIS) said that the idea of silencing an employee to be laid off and threatening anyone with litigation was “ridiculous”. “It is the individual’s right to say what they need to say. If I am being laid off, I have to tell people that I am being laid off and no one can stop me. In reality, a lot of people have already been laid off or are going to be laid off. For staff to say that [not] mentioning it in public is ridiculous. It is within everyone’s rights and the freedom of speech to say what they need to say,” said Mengly, who received his doctorate from Berkeley University in California. He has been instrumental in guiding the Kingdom’s education and health systems in the post-war era after returning to the Kingdom in 2002. Transparency and openness were critical to the development of the Kingdom he said, adding that they are virtues that must be passed on to the younger generation. His schools have more than 15,000 pupils and staff there have seen a 10 percent pay cut during the pandemic. Mengly said that he laments cutting salaries but stressed they were necessary under the current economic conditions. He emphasised that education was a “low-margin” sector and educators pursued careers in it out of love, not for profit. – Khmer Times
Five arrested near site of former USDP MP’s assassination
At least five people were arrested in Yangon’s Botahtaung Township on Wednesday night near the site of the shooting death of former Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) MP Nay Myo Aung. According to local residents, all five live near Botahtaung Pagoda, where Nay Myo Aung was gunned down on June 10 by two men on a motorcycle. Two of the detainees, Win Htay and Hla Htay, were said to be employees of the Myanma Port Authority’s civil engineering department. The other three were identified as Soe Thaung, Htein Lin and Kyaw San Win. Relatives of the men said they have not heard from them since they were taken into custody. A member of the National League for Democracy (NLD) who lives in Botataung Township told Myanmar Now that none of the five detainees are affiliated with his party. “Regarding the death of Nay Myo Aung, some USDP members were pointing fingers at whoever they thought were the assailants,” he said. Nay Myo Aung was elected to the Yangon Region parliament in 2010 as the member for Seikkan Township’s constituency 2, but lost his seat five years later when the NLD swept to power. In 2018, he ran again and defeated his NLD rival by around 150 votes. However, the result was later overturned due to alleged electoral fraud, allowing the NLD candidate, who received the second-highest number of votes, to claim the seat. Following his murder, USDP spokesperson Thein Tun Oo said that the party was trying to respond in accordance with the law. USDP members have been accused of acting as informants to the regime that seized power on February 1. A number of party members have been targeted by guerrilla groups formed in the wake of murderous crackdowns on protesters. On May 27, the USDP township chair in Bilin, Mon State, was fatally shot in the head by two gunmen in a drive-by shooting while he and his wife were walking to their rambutan plantation. On June 1, a USDP member and former local administrator in Mohnyin, Kachin State, was shot dead near a market in a pre-dawn assassination. – Myanmar NOW
VP assures development in Papua, W Papua will run smoothly
Vice President Ma’ruf Amin has assured that efforts to accelerate development programs in the provinces of Papua and West Papua will run smoothly and suit the needs of districts with low prosperity rates. "I want to ensure that the program is designed to handle the districts with low prosperity rate," he said here on Monday in his capacity as chief of the steering council of the integrated coordination team for the acceleration of prosperity development in the provinces of Papua and West Papua. Seven issues will become the focus of the development program in the two provinces, in accordance with President Joko Widodo's instruction number 9 of 2020 on the accelerated development of prosperity in Papua and West Papua, he noted. The seven issues are poverty eradication, education, health, micro small businesses, manpower, infrastructure, and sustainable development goals (SDGs), he informed. He said he has asked the National Development Planning (PPN) Ministry/National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) to map problems in the provinces and ensure the working program is relevant to regional needs. "I want Bappenas' plan to meet regional conditions, in accordance with the focus of the development program on the seven issues. This way the regions that have low prosperity rates can be identified and the activities of the (development) program are available (to them),” he explained. Meanwhile, National Development Planning (PPN) Minister/National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) head Suharso Monoarfa has launched the Quick Wins program, as part of efforts to accelerate development in Papua and West Papua. Through the program, the government will carry out a total of 231 activities in 2021 and 2022, he informed. He said public relations services and all relevant stakeholders must get involved in the program since the public communication strategy is important for building public trust. – AntaraNews.Com