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.
Coronavirus: S'pore to start phase 2 reopening on June 19; F&B dine-in, social gatherings of up to 5 people allowed
Singapore moves to phase two of its reopening this Friday (June 19), as a range of restrictions will be eased to allow more business and social activities to resume, the multi-ministry task force tackling Covid-19 announced on Monday. People can also get together socially in groups of up to five, and households can receive up to five visitors at any one time. But individuals will still have to keep a safe distance of at least 1m from others. Where this is not feasible, groups of no more than five persons should be at least 1m apart - with no mixing between groups. Speaking at a virtual press conference, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong, who co-chairs the task force, noted that the number of community cases over the past two weeks since Singapore exited the circuit breaker has remained stable. – The Straits Times
Sarawak to restart tourism activities from tomorrow
Specific tourism, arts and cultural activities will be allowed in Sarawak effective June 17, during the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO), state Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said. He said homestays, hotels, adventure and extreme tourism, scuba diving and snorkelling, theme parks (dry park only) are allowed to resume but operators will have to comply to the standard operating procedures (SOPs) and guidelines set by the State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC). "Basic guidelines on social distancing, personal hygiene, temperature scanning, sanitisation of public facilities should be observed, while staff, guests and contractors must download the MySejahtera and COVIDTrace apps, to facilitate necessary contact tracing," he said in a statement. – New Straits Times
PM says local polls likely this year
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has said that local elections are likely to be held this year, though he did not elaborate on which polls will take place first. The votes will be held when the Interior Ministry and the Election Commission (EC) are ready, said the prime minister in response to reporters' questions about local elections, which have been suspended since the May 22, 2014 coup with the aim of preventing political unrest. Regarding concerns that local elections might be delayed because the budget earmarked to finance them had been diverted to fight the Covid-19 pandemic, Gen Prayut said: "I'll find ways to fix it." Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam had said on Sunday that local elections might be delayed because budget had been repurposed due to the current situation. Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda also said yesterday that there were still many issues to be cleared up before they could be held. – Bangkok Post
Indonesia to allow phased reopening of schools in COVID-19 ‘green zones’: Minister
The Education and Culture Ministry has announced that the country will allow phased reopening of schools located in COVID-19 low-risk areas, or “green zones”, starting in July. A joint ministerial decree by the education minister, religious affairs minister, home minister and health minister was announced on Monday to regulate the school reopening during the pandemic. "We'll allow schools in green zones to reopen," Education and Culture Minister Nadiem Makarim said in Monday's online press conference. "Around 90 cities and regencies across Indonesia are considered green zones. The number of students in those areas is roughly equivalent to 6 percent of all students in the country. This means the remaining 94 percent still have to continue their education through online learning," added Nadiem. – The Jakarta Post
Duterte extends GCQ over Metro Manila, other areas until June 30
President Rodrigo Duterte has opted to extend the general community quarantine (GCQ) over Metro Manila and several other areas because of the continued increase in confirmed cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In a statement issued late on Monday, Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said Duterte approved the recommendation of the Inter-agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID). The President likewise placed under GCQ several areas in Luzon until month’s end – Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, Santiago City in Cagayan Valley (Region 2); Aurora, Bataan, Bulacan, Tarlac, Olongapo City in Central Luzon (Regoin 3); Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon, or the entire Calabarzon Region (Region 4-A), and Occidental Mindoro in Mimaropa (Region 4-B). – Philippine Daily Inquirer
Rice exports set to skyrocket, renewable energy in high demand: trade minister
Việt Nam may take a global lead in rice exports for the year 2020, said Minister of Industry and Trade Trần Tuấn Anh in a report to the National Assembly on Monday. Speaking to the NA, the minister said as countries were trying to raise food stockpiles due to the COVID-19 pandemic, demand for Vietnamese rice has been on the rise, pushing the country's rice exports in the first two months of the year to increase by 31.7 per cent from the same period last year. Adverse effects caused by climate change, such as droughts and salinisation raised concerns over the country's ability to maintain its level of rice export. As a response, the Government ordered a halt to rice exports until May so that further studies can be done on Việt Nam's rice production and stockpile. – Viet Nam News
Cambodia says ‘no clues so far’ on disappearance of Thai political activist
Cambodian authorities have not found any clues on the disappearance of Thai pro-democracy activist Wanchalearm Satsaksit, 37, who was abducted from his apartment in Phnom Penh on June 4, the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Ministry spokesman Cherdkiat Atthakor said that Cambodian authorities had found information on him entering the country several times between 2014 to 2015 but there was no evidence of his visa being extended since 2017. The Thai embassy in Phnom Penh had sent a letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cambodia requesting coordination with relevant agencies regarding the disappearance of Wanchalearm, including requesting information to help find him. – The Cambodia Daily