These are the top stories making the front pages of major newspapers from across Southeast Asia today.
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141 digital birth certificates issued on Sunday, the first day of new registration process: ICA
The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) issued 141 digital birth certificates on Sunday (May 29), the first day such certificates are given in place of physical hard copies, its spokesman told The Straits Times on Monday night.
The authority added that it issued another 78 digital birth certificates as at 6pm on Monday, bringing the total to 219.
Over the past five years, about 39,100 birth certificates were issued each year, said the ICA. This works out to an average of 107 physical birth certificates issued a day previously. The number of digital certificates issued on Sunday was thus higher than this average. In a move to make the registration process easier, physical birth and death certificates will no longer be issued from Sunday, the ICA announced earlier this month.
Instead, digital certificates are now issued and all registrations are done online. In-person birth and death registrations will no longer be available.
For some parents like Mr Muhammad Fahmi Nurkamal, the convenience of a digital birth registration was worth waiting for. The 27-year-old watch technician's daughter was born last Monday, but he and his wife decided to wait a week so that they could register her birth digitally on Sunday. Baby Mia was among the first to be issued a digital birth certificate here.
"It was a good choice because it ended up being very convenient. I registered her birth a little after midnight on May 29. It was all done in less than 20 minutes. I imagine it would be a hassle to head down to ICA to register and collect the birth certificate," said Mr Fahmi, whose wife, Ms Fadilah Selamat, 33, a financial adviser, gave birth to their first born at KK Women's and Children's Hospital.
Before the process was digitalised, parents had to register their child's birth at the hospital where the baby was born or at ICA's Registry of Births and Deaths at the ICA Building in Kallang. – Straits Times
Two nabbed, 1.35 tonnes of ketum leaves seized in Kedah
The Kedah police detained two men and seized 1.35 tonnes of ketum leaves in an operation dubbed Op Bersepadu Luaran at the south-bound Gurun rest and recreation (R&R) area along the North-South Expressway last night.
Kedah Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department chief Supt Mohd Mahiri Hussin said the men, both aged 36, were detained at about 11.30pm.
"A patrol team spotted a lorry being driven in a suspicious manner at the Gurun R&R and flagged it down for inspection.
"The inspection found 135 black plastic packages of what is believed to be ketum leaves weighing 1.35 tonnes," he said when contacted by Bernama here today. Mohd Mahiri said the two suspects were believed to have obtained the ketum leaves from Pokok Sena to be sent to Kluang and Johor Bahru, Johor.
"They have been taken to the Kuala Muda district police headquarters for further investigation under Section 30 (3) of the Poisons Act 1952," he said.
Meanwhile, Mohd Mahiri said the operation which started at 9pm involved nine officers and 56 personnel from the state Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department, Road Transport Department (RTD), National Anti-Drugs Agency (AADK), Department of Environment and PLUS Malaysia Bhd.
"The police also issued 52 summonses to road users for various traffic offences. A total of 24 summonses were issued by RTD for various traffic offences such as carrying excess load and driving with an expired licence.
"Urine tests carried out by AADK on 33 individuals, found six of them positive for methamphetamine and heroin," he said. – New Straits Times
Ministry eyes cutting virus alert to Level 2
The Public Health Ministry will consider lowering its Covid-19 alert level this week as daily caseloads have continued to fall.
Chakrarat Pittayawonganon, director of the epidemiology division at the Department of Disease Control, said on Monday that the alert is currently maintained at Level 3, with a focus on warning the high-risk "608'' group and those who have not received booster shots of Covid-19 vaccines against visiting high-risk venues such as night entertainment establishments. The 608 group comprises people aged 60 and older, those with underlying conditions and pregnant women.
However, the ministry will consider lowering the alert to Level 2 this week and decide which provinces will be assigned Level 2 status, Dr Chakrarat said. He further said the number of patients with pneumonia, patients dependent on ventilators and the number of new fatalities is declining at a slow pace.
A total of 882 patients with lung inflammation, 425 on ventilators and 26 deaths were reported on Monday.
Most new fatalities were people aged 70 years and older and over half of them were unvaccinated, Dr Chakrarat said, adding that it is important for the high-risk group to be vaccinated and receive booster shots to prevent the worst effects of the virus.
After schools nationwide resumed onsite learning at the start of the new academic year on May 17, infection rates detected in some schools are still low, he said. – Bangkok Post
About time to update illegal drugs watchlist, cop chiefs told
An official of the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Tuesday ordered all chiefs of police to regularly update their illegal drugs watchlist as part of the efforts to continue the campaign against illegal drugs.
Maj. Gen. Valeriano de Leon, PNP director for operations, said there is a need to beef up the intelligence gathering to identify those who continue dealing with illegal drugs in the community.
"We cannot lower our guard because there will be new players who may take over the operations of the drug traffickers that we neutralize. We should not allow that to happen,” de Leon said in a statement.
De Leon reminded all police commanders to continue the aggressive campaign against illegal drugs amid concerns that anti-illegal drug operations will weaken once President Rodrigo Duterte steps down on June 30.
De Leon said the PNP has developed a new strategy to prevent drug syndicates from continuing their illegal operations.
The operations and law enforcement would be backed by an aggressive information drive and education campaign aimed at students, who are often the target customers of illegal drug syndicates.
De Leon said he is certain that incoming President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. will continue the anti-illegal drugs campaign.
"This is proof that incoming President Marcos really appreciates what President Duterte has started and this serves as an assurance of the continuous support of the next administration to the aggressive campaign against illegal drugs," De Leon said.
He said there is a need to continue the drug war since there has been a significant decrease in the crime volume since it was started in July 2016.
In Metro Manila alone, the crime volume dropped by more than 50 percent in the first three years of the Duterte administration. – Philippine News Agency
More room to develop Viet Nam's international shipping fleet
The potential is great, but the development and operation of Vietnamese cargo shipping has not been commensurate with the role and position of the country.
In the project to develop Viet Nam's international shipping fleet by the Viet Nam Maritime Administration (Ministry of Transport), the administration said that the country's seaport system in recent years has developed relatively synchronously and modernly and is able to welcome some of the world's largest ships.
However, containers of goods imported and exported to/from Viet Nam is mainly handled by foreign shipping lines, especially on long-distance sea routes from/to developed countries such as Europe and the US.
The domestic fleet currently mainly undertakes domestic transportation and short international routes in Asia. The international shipping market share of Viet Nam's shipping fleet has been on a downward trend in recent years.
The fleet structure is not as good as it could be with mainly small tonnage ships carrying dry and bulk cargo. There is a lack of container ships and large tonnage ships operating on international routes.
There were 1,502 ships under the Vietnamese flag (excluding data of ships under construction) as of December last year, with a total tonnage of about 7.15 million GT and 11.7 million DWT.
The number of ships ranged from 1,000 to over 1,200 ships in the 2016-20 period.
The number of ships has decreased by over 200 last year compared to 2016, equivalent to a decrease of 17.2 per cent.
Compared with the 2010-15 period, Viet Nam's transport fleet has decreased by over 400 ships. However, the total tonnage of the transport fleet grew by over 6 per cent. – Vietnam News
For the people: CPP, CP, Funcinpec, GDP and CRP focus on improving livelihoods
As the June 5 Commune Election edges closer, Khmer Times continues its special Cross Talk-Political Dialogue which provides a platform for competing parties to explain their policies and manifestos.
Yesterday two dialogue sessions took place, one between representatives of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) and the Candlelight Party and the other involving Funcinpec Party, Grassroots Democratic Party (GDP) and Cambodia Reform Party (CRP).
One common concern which is close to the hearts of all five parties is to improve the people’s livelihoods and each had their own approach to this. CPP representative Sok Eysan said they would continue to improve on the successes achieved so far to provide more for the people. This includes new services and fresh blood from the party to provide them.
His CP counterpart Son Chhay said his party would improve livelihoods by focusing on combatting corruption, increasing dialogue between the people and authorities and dealing with people’s needs and problems based on what affect their respective communities. CPP and CP also spoke on improving public services, especially access to education.
Funcinpec representative Veun Vorn said his party’s candidate will work hard to promote the wellbeing of the people in the communities in general, starting from providing good and non-biased public services. His CRP counterpart Eav Bov Bang rebutted by saying they would focus on bringing about positive reforms, starting with empowering people and providing opportunities for them at the local level.
GDP representative Yang Saing Koma said his party would focus on improving the lot of people in rural and remote areas by concentrating on increasing opportunities and incomes in the agriculture sector. – Khmer Times
Myanmar’s military seizes control of dam in Gangaw Township
Regime forces mounted a major offensive last week to retake control of a dam in Magway Region’s Gangaw Township that had been captured by anti-junta groups active in the area.
In a series of attacks last Thursday, the military forced local resistance forces to retreat from the area around the Myittha dam, which is located near the village of Pyin Thar. According to Hla Maung, a battalion commander with the Yaw Defence Force (YDF), the regime used MI-35 attack helicopters to carry out multiple assaults on resistance fighters stationed near the dam.
“They kept coming back to hit us again, even after we started clearing the area. There were four attacks in all,” he said.
A member of the Gangaw People’s Defence Force (PDF), another group targeted in the attacks, said that the helicopters were also used to transport troops into the area.
“We saw helicopters hovering over the dam and also heard that around 50 soldiers were dropped off,” he said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Around 5,000 civilians from several villages near the dam also fled the attacks, according to local sources.
At least one PDF member is believed to have been killed during one of the airstrikes, but full casualty figures from the initial assault were not available.
However, it has been confirmed that at least four resistance fighters were killed in a clash that took place soon after junta troops arrived to take control of the dam. – Myanmar NOW
Finance Minister outlines five pillars to reform finance sector
Finance Minister Sri Mulyani outlined the government's five strategic pillars in designing the reformation of Indonesia's finance sector, one which concerns the expansion of long-term financial sources.
"This pillar specifically becomes a guideline in designing the development of the insurance industry and pension fund that collect long-term funding," the minister noted during the 2022 Indonesian Financial Group (IFG) International Conference here on Monday.
In addition, bolstering financial service access became the second pillar that is a foundation for improving financial institutions.
This is done by providing access to various products and services from financial institutions based on the people's needs, such as by utilizing financial information and technology or fintech. The third pillar concerns the strategy to improve competitiveness and efficiency of the finance sector.
This pillar emphasizes the creation of an efficient business process within the finance sector through innovation to establish healthy competition between industries.
Meanwhile, the fourth pillar revolves around the development of financial instruments and strengthening financial instrument risk mitigation measures.
The fifth pillar is improving protection for investors and consumers, with the goal of bolstering the people's trust to participate in Indonesia's financial market and ensure its integrity and fairness. – AntaraNews.Com