These are the top stories making the front pages of major newspapers from across Southeast Asia today.
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VSS among issues in Dewan Rakyat today
The issue of the number of termination of employees’ services in all sectors including through the voluntary separation scheme (VSS) in 2018 and 2019 will set the ball rolling at the Dewan Rakyat sitting today. According to the Dewan Rakyat order papers, Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed (PH-Jeli) has posed this question to Human Resources Minister M. Kula Segaran, asking about the opportunities available to those who have lost their jobs. – New Straits Times
Worker dies in crane collapse at Novena construction site of new TTSH rehab hub
A worker has died after a construction crane collapsed at a worksite in Novena on Monday (4 Nov). Another injured worker was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH). The new 17-storey 500-bed rehabilitation complex, which is part of TTSH, is being built by the Ministry of Health (MOH) at the worksite. – The Straits Times
Hi-speed rail project set for more talks
Although the 35th ASEAN Summit will end on Monday, Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang will meet Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-Cha in a bilateral talk on Tuesday in yet another attempt to clear hurdles standing in the way of Thailand's first high-speed railway linking Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchasima.
Beijing views the 253-kilometre rail route as part of its Belt and Road Initiative, a network of transport infrastructure spanning 80 countries, while Bangkok wants to include the high-speed train system in its plan to make Thailand a hub of transport in Southeast Asia. – Bangkok Post
Journalist-cum-activists found dead in North Sumatra
Two journalists who mediated a protracted land dispute between local residents and an oil palm plantation were found dead in Labuhan Batu regency, North Sumatra, their bodies riddled with stab wounds. The victims, Maraden Sianipar and Maratua P. Siregar, worked for Pilar Indonesia Merdeka (Pindo Merdeka), a Medan-based weekly and online news portal that closed down in 2017. But the two were better known for their activism and mediating a land dispute between residents and oil palm plantation PT Sei Alih Berombang (SAB), also known as multi-business cooperative (KSU) Amalia. – The Jakarta Post
SMC chief balks at SLEx toll cut
San Miguel Corp. (SMC) president Ramon Ang said over the weekend that toll cuts at the South Luzon Expressway (SLEx) were “unwarranted,” warning this would erode investor confidence in the conglomerate that taps outside financing for its big-ticket infrastructure projects. – Philippine Daily Inquirer
New Laos-Japan flights expected to boost tourist arrivals
Lao Airlines plans to operate flights from Vientiane and Luang Prabang to Kumamoto prefecture in Kyushu, Japan, next March after getting the green light from the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau. Lao Airlines is hopeful that the two new flights will help make Laos a travel hub on the Indochina Peninsula. – Vientiane Times