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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NUS scientists develop painless way to shrink breast cancer using magnetic fields
Scientists from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have found a painless way to kill breast cancer cells by exposing them to a pulsed magnetic field.
They hope that this method will reduce the dosage needed for chemotherapy in the future, so that patients will have fewer side effects.
The treatment uses magnetic pulses to stimulate respiration in the cancer cells, which have elevated levels of a protein, TRPC1, that is especially sensitive to the stimulation. When exposed to the magnetic field, these cells essentially hyperventilate and eventually die.
Pre-clinical trials have shown that the magnetic treatment targets only cancer cells, unlike chemotherapy and radiation therapy, which can also damage healthy cells.
Magnetic fields can also target hidden cancer cells within a tumour that chemotherapy drugs travelling through the bloodstream cannot reach, said Associate Professor Alfredo Franco-Obregon from the NUS Institute for Health Innovation and Technology (iHealthtech), who led the development of the magnetic technology.
When undergoing the magnetic treatment, the patient lies face down on a therapy bed which has an opening for the chest region. The magnetic device - a short, hollow cylinder - is placed below the opening. – Straits Times
Over 860,000 children in Malaysia fully vaccinated against Covid-19
A total of 868,859 children aged five to 11 or 24.5 per cent of the child population in the country, have been fully vaccinated under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme for Children as of yesterday.
Based on the CovidNow website, a total of 1,536,766 children, or 43.3 per cent of the group, have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
For adolescents aged 12 to 17, a total of 2,894,533 individuals or 93 per cent of the group have completed the vaccination, while 2,992,178 individuals or 96.1 per cent have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
As for the adult population, a total of 16,035,520 individuals or 68.2 per cent of the group have received the booster dose, while 22,967,185 individuals or 97.6 per cent have received both doses of the vaccine and 23,243,448 (98.8 per cent) have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
Yesterday, a total of 12,380 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine were administered, with 1,847 as the first dose, 10,015 as the second dose and 518 as booster dose, bringing the cumulative number of vaccine doses dispensed under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme to 70,325,128. – New Straits Times
Pheu Thai up in arms over Abhisit claim
Former Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has come under fire from Pheu Thai members over an interview in which he claimed the party wants to win the next election by a landslide in order to allow Thaksin Shinawatra to come home.
In an interview on the "Sapah Thee Sam" channel on YouTube, Mr Abhisit said while he has no issue with the Pheu Thai Party winning the next election, he has concerns about the resulting administration resorting to practices which go against the principles of good governance – such as pardoning the ex-prime minister.
"I've always said that a poll victory is a mandate from the people, to push forward policy and work for the country, but it is not a licence to do anything, especially if it is against legal principles," he said.
Mr Abhisit's comments drew fierce criticism from the main opposition party. Phumtham Wechayachai, adviser to the Pheu Thai Party leader, wrote on Twitter that Mr Abhisit should clean up the mess in his own party, the Democrat Party, which has been rocked by sexual misconduct allegations.
Mr Phumtham also said the Democrat Party has yet to answer questions about its role in the May 22, 2014 coup. – Bangkok Post
Duterte insists he is not endorsing any presidential bet
Less than a week before the May 9, 2022 elections, President Rodrigo Duterte has reiterated that he is not bent on endorsing the candidacy of any presidential candidate.
In his taped Talk to the People, Duterte dismissed speculations that he might announce his support for his preferred successor in the coming days.
"There is none. I will not be endorsing any presidential candidate now until December," he said in a speech delivered Monday night but aired Tuesday morning.
In March, presidential son and Davao City Vice Mayor Sebastian "Baste" Duterte said there are "signs" that his father might support the presidential bid of former senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.
On April 25, Duterte's ruling party, the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban), raised the possibility that Duterte might attend its joint campaign rally with UniTeam presidential-vice presidential tandem of Marcos and Davao City Mayor Sara "Inday" Duterte.
"PDP-Laban and UniTeam will have joint campaign rallies. President Duterte might attend," the PDP-Laban said on its official Facebook page.
Despite the recent statements of his son and political party, Duterte insisted that he has no plan to back the candidacy of any presidential aspirant.
Duterte said he had even asked his Cabinet to stay "neutral" and refuse to endorse any presidential candidate. – Philippine News Agency
Foreign arrivals to Viet Nam soar in April
April international arrivals in Viet Nam soared to 2.4 times that of March and 5.2 per cent higher than the same period last year thanks to the country’s tourism reopening, according to the General Statistics Office of Viet Nam (GSO).
In the first four months of the year, the number of foreigners arriving in Viet Nam neared 192,400, an annual rise of 184.7 per cent. Of the total, 88.6 per cent came by air, increasing close to four times from 2021, while arrivals by road and sea were down by 10.5 and 58.7 per cent, respectively.
Tourism revenue from lodging-food and transport services grew by 5.2 per cent and 10.5 per cent on-year, respectively.
In May, Viet Nam will host the 31st Southeast Asian Games with the participation of all the 11 regional countries that are sending large delegations of athletes, officials and reporters.
Ramping up related communications preparations, the Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism considers the tournament the first big event of the region after two years being impacted by COVID-19.
It has urged the entire sector to spare no efforts toward the overall success of the Games and the regional and global promotion of Viet Nam’s image. – Vietnam News
PM: Cambodia has won the battle, but not the war with Covid-19 virus and its variants
Cambodia has won the battle, but not the war with Covid-19 virus and its variants, Prime Minister Hun Sen said. Speaking at the meeting with more than one thousand grade A students 2020-2021, he said that the country’s is winning on the Coronavirus battlefield and is now arriving at the point of it becoming endemic as the infection rate is dropping and death rate is zero or low. However, the kingdom hasn’t achieved full victory over the Covid-19 war yet. Covid-19 still exists in some areas.
“We will use our existing tools to continue the fight against the virus, as the vaccination is the most important tool. We will continue to push vaccination coverage to make sure we achieve herd immunity, he said, adding that as Covid-19 transmission is on-going, some measures like avoiding crowded places, practicing self-hygiene with hand washing is still necessary even though mask-wearing outdoors has been lifted,”
As of Tuesday, almost 94% of the 16 million population based on 2019 census are vaccinated against Covid-19 with at least one dose. – Khmer Times
Two female 88 Generation activists missing following their arrest
Two women belonging to a political organization formed by veterans of the 1988 pro-democracy uprising were arrested in the Kayin (Karen) State capital Hpa-an last week and have not been heard from since, according to their colleagues.
Nu Nu Aung and Khet Khet, who are both members of the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society, were arrested on April 26 along with Khet Khet’s adult son, an official from the group told Myanmar Now.
Nu Nu Aung was in Hpa-An to receive medical treatment when all three were taken into custody, the official added.
Nu Nu Aung belongs to the group’s Farmers’ Welfare Department, while Khet Khet is a member of its Department of Women’s and Children’s Affairs.
Myanmar Now has been unable to obtain any information regarding the arrests from regime officials.
Founded by prominent former student leaders, the 88 Generation group has played a leading role in resisting the military’s return to power following last year’s coup.
One of its founding members, Min Ko Naing, is a member of the National Unity Consultative Council, a coalition of ethnic and pro-democracy forces formed to oppose the dictatorship and establish a federal union.
Currently in hiding, he has been wanted by the junta since February of last year, when the military ousted the country’s elected civilian government.
Mya Aye, another founding member, was sentenced to two years in prison in March, more than a year after being arrested at his home on the morning of the coup. – Myanmar NOW
2022 Eid homecoming flow running smoothly: President
President Joko Widodo has assured that the 2022 Eid homecoming flow in various Indonesian regions has been smooth.
"I see that everything is going well," Widodo said after meeting Yogyakarta Governor Sultan Hamengkubuwono X at the Yogyakarta Palace here on Monday.
Regarding the long queues of vehicles at Merak Port, Banten, the President said that the volume of vehicles exceeded the capacity of the docks and ships.
However, he assured that the long queues could be reduced by increasing the number of ships and docks.
"The ships have been increased from 30 to 50, but it is not enough,” the President noted. According to the President, the 2022 Eid homecoming flow was joined by around 85.5 million people traveling on 23 million four-wheeled vehicles and 17 million motorcycles.
"The numbers are really very large, so I urge you to come back early. Do not return on Saturday and Sunday, so there will be traffic jams, especially on toll roads and national roads," he said.
At least 1,757,837 vehicles left Greater Jakarta area during the period from April 22 to May 1, 2022, or a day before Eid al-Fitr, state-owned toll enterprise PT Jasa Marga (Persero) Tbk reported earlier.
In a statement issued on Monday, Jasa Marga's corporate communication and community development group head, Dwimawan Heru, informed that the figure is the cumulative traffic figure from four main toll gates (GT). – AntaraNews.Com