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.
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Walk-in Covid-19 vaccination begins for children aged 5 to 11 as cases rise among young people
The introduction of walk-ins for younger children comes after Singapore's director of medical services, Associate Professor Kenneth Mak, announced last Friday (Jan 21) that children below the age of 12 were starting to form the majority of hospitalised Covid-19 cases in Singapore.
Previously, only children who were accompanying their sibling to a vaccination appointment could get a jab without booking, under the "sibling walk-in" arrangement that began on Jan 10.
With the coming Chinese New Year season, when people are likely to gather more often, parents are taking advantage of the new walk-in system to protect their children from infection. The Straits Times found that only two out of the 10 parents who took their children to Hougang Community Club to get vaccinated were walk-ins.
The other eight were there for their children's scheduled appointments.
The vaccination process at Clementi Community Centre and Hougang Community Club on Tuesday was smooth and quick.
The Straits Times noted that queues were short and moved quickly at both venues at around 1pm. – Straits Times
50,000 case backlog at govt hospitals
It would take around one year for government hospitals to clear its 50,000 backlog of surgical and medical procedures.
Association of Private Hospitals president Datuk Dr Kuljit Singh said the waiting time for lesser-complicated and serious cases could also be longer as hospitals, at times, need to prioritise critical ones.
He said this was where private hospitals would like to lend the government a hand by easing their burden in clearing case backlogs.
"We are not in this for money as we already have existing patients at our private hospitals. We are open to provide the necessary help to the government to clear the backlog. "Our operation theatres, MRI or CT scanners are also available to be used for these patients. If the government wants it, we are more than happy to sit down with them and help," Dr Kuljit said.
He said it was not necessary for the government to transfer all of the 50,000 backlogged procedures to private hospitals.
In citing a solution to the matter, he said the main consideration for government hospitals would be the types of cases that could be transferred to private hospitals.
He said the cost for complicated cases would be high, hence the government might not prefer to transfer such cases. – New Straits Times
Thailand, Saudi Arabia agree to restore full diplomatic ties
Thailand and Saudi Arabia agreed on Tuesday to exchange ambassadors in the first high-level meeting between the two countries since a row over a jewellery theft nearly three decades ago led the Gulf state to downgrade ties.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and visiting Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha agreed on the appointment of ambassadors "in the near future" and to strengthen economic and trade relations, said a joint statement on Saudi state media. Saudi Arabian Airlines announced in a Twitter post on Tuesday that it would restart direct flights to Thailand in May.
Saudi Arabia downgraded relations with Bangkok after a diplomatic row over a theft in 1989 of around $20 million of jewels by Kriengkrai Techamong, a Thai janitor working in the palace of a Saudi prince, in what became known as the "Blue Diamond Affair".
A year after the theft, three Saudi diplomats in Thailand were killed in three separate assassinations in a single night.
The statement said Gen Prayut expressed "sincere regret over the tragic events in Thailand between 1989 and 1990" and said his government was ready to "raise cases to the competent authorities in the event of new, relevant evidence". – Bangkok Post
Unvaxxed NCR workers allowed to use public transport for 30 days
Unvaccinated and partially vaccinated workers in industries and establishments in the National Capital Region (NCR) will be given only 30 days from January 26 to continue riding public transportation in going around the metropolis.
Thirty days after the announcement of the new protocol, only workers in the NCR who are fully vaccinated will be allowed to use public transportation.
Within the 30-day window, partially vaccinated workers will still be allowed to board public transportation.
However, because partially unvaccinated individuals are still at risk, they will not be allowed to use public transportation if vaccination remains incomplete within the 30-day window.
This was after Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Secretary Silvestre Bello III, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año, and Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur Tugade decided on the matter in an inter-agency meeting on January 21 after looking into the country’s vaccination data.
DOTr Undersecretary Artemio Tuazon Jr. said the decision intends to protect unvaccinated and partially vaccinated workers who are using public transportation from contracting and developing severe coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
Tuazon added that the joint decision supported the government’s further ramping up of vaccination efforts, especially amid the highly transmissible Omicron variant.
“We want our workers to get fully vaccinated, especially now that there is no longer a shortage of Covid-19 vaccines, and there is a threat of highly transmissible variants of the virus. We are giving our workers the time to get themselves vaccinated,” he added.
Tuazon clarified that the latest protocol is not discriminatory. – Philippine News Agency
Government to complete programme on socio-economic recovery, development
Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khai instructed ministries to complete the draft Resolution of the Government on the socio-economic recovery and development programme during a conference on Tuesday in Ha Noi.
Chairing the conference, Deputy PM Khai said that the Government had carefully prepared the socio-economic recovery and development programme. The Politburo also issued Conclusion No 24 on December 30 last year on the programme.
At the last extraordinary session, the 15th National Assembly (NA) discussed and voted to approve the programme. NA Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue signed and promulgated Resolution No 43/2022/QH15 on financial policies to support the programme.
The Government needs a resolution to officially decide on contents, tasks and solutions to implement Resolution 43. The conference thus is to give opinions on completing the draft resolution and submit it to the Government for approval. It will strive to issue the resolution before the Lunar New Year holiday.
The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) said that based on the conclusions of the Politburo and the NA’s Resolution, following Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s guidance, the ministry has proactively and urgently developed a draft resolution on the programme. – Vietnam News
APHR chair slammed over Hun Sen’s Myanmar visit criticism
The National Assembly yesterday lashed out at the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights chair over his criticism of Prime Minister Hun Sen’s recent visit to Myanmar. Their reaction came as Charles Santiago, the current chair of APHR and Member of Parliament from an opposition party in Malaysia reportedly said that Mr Hun Sen’s trip to Myanmar risked destroying ASEAN’s five-point consensus.
In its statement issued yesterday, the NA’s Commission on Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation, Information, and Media brushed aside Santiago’s accusation over Mr Hun Sen’s Jan 7-8 visit.
“Without a doubt, only an evil-minded person and his/her clique would under the pretext of human rights dare to turn their blind eyes to the goodwill and deliberate efforts of Prime Minister Hun Sen to foster an environment for peace, reconciliation and unity as well to protect the life of the people in Myanmar, a country currently in deep crisis and prone to protracted civil wars and intensified human security, a tragedy for humanity in the 21st Century,” it said.
It said that Mr Hun Sen’s visit was aimed at solving the Myanmar crisis and harmony for the whole ASEAN region.
The statement said that Santiago has often seen to have associated himself with a handful of extremist political activists, war-monger politicians or outlaws. – Khmer Times
Junta makes another bid to introduce draconian cyber law
Myanmar’s military junta is making a second attempt to implement a new cybersecurity law, nearly a year after it was forced to abandon an earlier effort.
According to documents seen by Myanmar Now, the regime submitted a revised version of the bill to stakeholders on January 13 and called for their feedback by January 28.
The junta’s transportation and communications minister, General Tin Aung San, sent the draft law not only to various ministries in Naypyitaw, but also to commercial enterprises such as banks and telecommunications companies.
The move to advance the proposed law, which aims to tighten controls over the internet, including social media and online transactions, comes as reports of the regime’s atrocities continue to fuel resistance to its rule.
“This was done for their own benefit. They are trying to prevent anyone who opposes them from using the internet,” said Thein Oo, the justice minister for the shadow National Unity Government.
“They’re dragging the country back into the darkness,” he added, noting that the law, if enacted, would deepen the isolation of Myanmar’s people at a time when the rest of the world is moving towards greater interconnection.
The regime attempted to introduce a new cybersecurity law just days after it seized power last February. However, pushback from business leaders in the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry and the Myanmar Computer Federation forced it to back down.
The newly installed regime of coup leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing responded by amending an existing law, the 2004 Electronic Transactions Law, two weeks after the coup. – Myanmar NOW
Indonesia must achieve 70% vaccination coverage quickly: official
Indonesia must step up efforts to achieve the 70-percent vaccination coverage target so that it is well-prepared for any potential wave caused by the highly-transmissible Omicron variant, a government official has said.
"Our vaccination rate has been high enough, but we need to soon get the percentage of fully-vaccinated Indonesians recorded at 70 percent," head of the Finance Ministry's Fiscal Policy Division Febrio Kacaribu stated.
The 70-percent target can hopefully be gained in a few months, he said during a hearing with House of Representatives' (DPR) Commission XI, which oversees financial affairs, here on Tuesday.
As of January 24, 2022, the number of first dose recipients in Indonesia has been recorded at 181.65 million, or 87.22 percent of the targeted population, he noted.
However, the number of second dose recipients, or those who have been fully been vaccinated, still stands at 124.63 million, or 59.85 percent of the targeted population, Kacaribu said.
Meanwhile, 1.36 million of the 1.46 million healthcare workers in the country have received the booster shot, he added. Thus, the booster coverage among medical workers has reached 93 percent, he pointed out. – AntaraNews.Com