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.
Stay informed with The ASEAN Post.
All travellers to Singapore need to take Covid-19 PCR test on arrival from Jan 25
Singapore has tightened its border restrictions in response to new virus variants and the worsening global pandemic situation. All travellers, including Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents, will have to take a Covid-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test when they arrive in Singapore. This will take effect from Jan 24, 11.59pm, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Saturday (Jan 16). The stay-home notice requirements, including the PCR test at the end of the stay, will continue to be in place. Short-term visitors will also need travel insurance to cover the costs of their medical treatment in Singapore, if they are suspected of having the virus. Those applying to enter Singapore under the air travel pass and reciprocal green lane arrangements will need to have a minimum coverage of $30,000 for their Covid-19-related medical treatment and hospitalisation costs in Singapore, from Jan 31, 11.59pm. These short-term visitors are currently required to bear the full cost of medical treatment, if they are suspected of having Covid-19 or if they need medical treatment for the virus while in Singapore. As a further precaution, all returning Singapore citizens and PRs from Britain and South Africa will be subject to an additional seven-day self-isolation at their place of residence, following their 14-day SHN at dedicated facilities. This will take effect from Jan 18, 11.59pm. They will be tested at the end of their SHN, and again after they have completed their seven-day self-isolation period. These new restrictions come amid warnings from American federal health officials that a far more contagious variant of the coronavirus first identified in Britain could become the dominant source of infection in the United States by March. This is likely to lead to a surge in cases and deaths, according to a forecast from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Cases also continue to rise worldwide, with new variants detected in various countries like Brazil and South Africa, even as the global death toll hit two million this weekend. MOH said: "As the global situation evolves, we will continue to adjust our border measures to manage the risk of importation and transmission to the community. "The Ministry of Health will also continue to review the data and evidence on any new viral strains and update the measures accordingly." – The Straits Times
'King's decision can't be challenged'
Political experts believe that opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's bid to get members of parliament to appeal to Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah to retract the state of emergency and allow Parliament to convene will be unsuccessful – at least for now. This, they said, was due to the fact that the king's decision in invoking the emergency provision cannot be challenged in any legal way, and that the yet-to-be-established Independent Special Committee, which will advise the king on the subject, will have a say on when the Emergency should be lifted. National Professors Council Chairman Professor Datuk Dr Shamsul Amri Baharuddin said that there was nothing Anwar could do while the recently gazetted Emergency (Essential Powers) Ordinance 2021 was in place. "The Emergency declaration and ordinance are two different things. The king can revoke the Emergency declaration, but only before the ordinance is gazetted. "Anwar can ask the king to revoke the declaration, but that is not enough because the king has to revoke the ordinance too. "Now that the ordinance has been gazetted, Anwar will have to wait another six months or whenever the ordinance is de-gazetted, if he wants to challenge this. "It is also important to note that Article 150(8) of the Federal Constitution says that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's satisfaction cannot be challenged in any court," he told the New Straits Times. Al-Sultan Abdullah, on Jan 12, consented to proclaiming a state of emergency nationwide until Aug 1. The Emergency Ordinance was gazetted two days later. Professor Dr Sivamurugan Pandian from Universiti Sains Malaysia said he was not convinced that Anwar could do anything to legally challenge the king's decision, but noted that the opposition leader may have other moves of his own. "Anwar would have consulted his legal team before making this decision, but I don't see how he can challenge this legally because it has been proclaimed and the ordinance has been gazetted. "So, what is the point in challenging something legally when it will not favour him? It'll be interesting to find out the reason. But I don't see this happening any time soon." – New Straits Times
Cops hunt for mall bombers
Police will issue warrants for the arrest of two suspects who threw a bomb at anti-government demonstrators outside a shopping mall on Rama IV Road on Saturday, a senior police officer at the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) said. Pol Maj Gen Piya Tawichai, deputy commissioner of the MPB, said an initial check found two suspects riding on a motorcycle on the Thai-Japanese Bridge threw a ping-pong bomb down on a group of anti-government demonstrators outside Chamchuri Square. Four people suffered minor injuries in the explosion, not long after demonstrators started leaving nearby Samyan Mitrtown, where they had rallied after being dispersed from Victory Monument. The blast happened hours after members of the Free Guards group gathered at Victory Monument to demand the release of two of their members who were arrested earlier. The bomb was similar to the one used at a previous rally at Ratchayothin intersection. This type of bomb is also commonly used during fights between rival vocational college students, Pol Maj Gen Piya said. Royal Thai Police spokesman Pol Maj Gen Yingyos Thepchamnong said that on Saturday members of the anti-government group gathered at the Phaya Thai island around the Victory Monument, Soi Chula 4 on Phaya Thai Road, and Samyan intersection, violating the emergency decree and the Disease Control Act. Six were arrested and identified as Baiboon Thaipanich, 20, Panupong Pongthanu 20, Sathaporn Warawongwanich, 27, Apisit Chanakorn, 40, Krisana Sara, 49, and Charunee Saplaeng, 52. – Bangkok Post
Hunt for survivors continues as West Sulawesi quake death toll hits 56
The death toll from a powerful earthquake in West Sulawesi has jumped to 56, authorities said Sunday, with thousands left homeless as rescuers raced to find anyone still alive under mountains of rubble. Hospitals were overrun with hundreds of injured after the 6.2-magnitude quake struck in the early hours of Friday, triggering panic among residents of the island, which was hit by a 2018 quake-tsunami disaster that killed thousands. Rescuers have spent days hauling corpses from beneath crumpled buildings in Mamuju, a city of 110,000 people in West Sulawesi province, where a hospital was flattened and a shopping mall lay in ruins. Others were killed south of the city. The official death toll stood at 56 – up from 46 on Saturday – but the count could still climb. Aerial images from the devastated seaside city showed buildings reduced to a tangled mass of twisted metal and chunks of concrete, including the regional governor's office. It was unclear how many more bodies could be under the debris, or if there was anyone still trapped but alive more than two days after the disaster. Authorities have not given a figure for how many survivors have been rescued. A pair of young sisters plucked from under the mass of concrete and other debris were treated in hospital. Meanwhile, corpses were recovered from under a collapsed hospital, while five members of a family of eight were found dead in the crumpled remains of their home. The thousands left homeless by the quake took to makeshift shelters – many little more than tarpaulin-covered tents filled with whole families – that were lashed by heavy monsoon downpours. They said they were running low on food, blankets and other aid, as emergency supplies were rushed to the hard-hit region. Many survivors are unable to return to their destroyed homes, or were too scared to go back fearing a tsunami sparked by aftershocks, which are common after strong earthquakes. "It's better to take shelter before something worse happens," said Mamuju resident Abdul Wahab, who took refuge in a tent with his wife and four kids, including a baby. "We hope the government can deliver aid soon like food, medicine and milk for the children," he added. Worried about an outbreak of Covid-19 in the crowded camps, authorities said they are trying to separate high- and lower-risk groups. The quake's epicentre was 36 kilometres south of Mamuju and it had a relatively shallow depth of 18 kilometres. – The Jakarta Post
Varying prices of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine raise alarm
Sharp differences in the prices of the Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine in the Philippines and neighbouring countries smack of corruption, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said on Sunday. CoronaVac, the vaccine developed by the Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech, costs as little as $5 per dose, or about P240, in other Southeast Asian countries, but may be priced at $38, or more than P1,800, in the Philippines, Lacson said. “The difference in prices of Sinovac vaccine at $5, $14 and $38 reminds me of an old story about how corruption is committed in three Southeast Asian countries – UNDER the table, ON the table, and INCLUDING the table,” he said in a post on Twitter. “Here, it may cost $38.50 (P1,847.25) per dose but is covered by a confidentiality disclosure agreement,” he added. Lacson cited a report in the Bangkok Post on Saturday saying the price of CoronaVac in Thailand was $5 per dose, based on figures from the World Health Organization and from the manufacturer. But a report in India Today on Tuesday said the price of CoronaVac in India was $14, or about P673, per dose. Vice President Leni Robredo, speaking in her radio show on Sunday, also pointed out the varying prices of CoronaVac, citing a statement of Dr. Tony Leachon, a former adviser to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, that the price of the China-made vaccine, as reported by a Thai newspaper, was $5 in Thailand and $17 (P817) in Indonesia. Robredo asked the Department of Health (DOH) for an explanation. During budget deliberations in November, the DOH told the Senate committee on finance that the price of the Sinovac vaccine was P3,629.50 for the two-dose regimen. The head of the government’s vaccine program, Carlito Galvez Jr., later disputed reports about CoronaVac’s pricing, claiming it was actually lower than the prices of other brands and was in the middle among seven drug manufacturers being eyed by the Philippine government as sources of COVID-19 vaccines. Galvez, however, refused to disclose how much Sinovac had offered the government, citing confidentiality agreements. – INQUIRER.net
Quảng Bình Province approves 35 investment projects
35 investment projects have been given the green light by the central province of Quảng Bình at a conference yesterday. The projects will help boost trade, tourism and urban development with a total investment capital of about VNĐ93 trillion (US$3.96 billion). Of the 35 projects, 13 were awarded investment policies, including outstanding ones with large total investments such as Quảng Trạch II Thermal Power Plant Project invested by Vietnam Electricity (VNĐ48 trillion), and Vĩnh Hưng high-class resort, sports, commercial and entertainment resort (VNĐ2.7 trillion). The People's Committee of Quảng Bình Province also signed investment memorandums to 22 projects of 17 investors with a total investment of nearly VNĐ70 trillion. In which, the largest is the Phúc Lộc Thọ wind power plant project by the joint venture of Đồng Tâm Group Joint Stock Company and Quadran International Company of Lucia Group (France) with a total investment of VNĐ28 trillion. Deputy Prime Minister Trịnh Đình Dũng, representatives from the province’s authorities, as well as 500 local and foreign investors, business owners and Government officials were at the event. Deputy PM Dũng said the conference is an important event with great significance, taking place before the 13th National Party Congress. “Despite the losses caused by historic natural disasters in 2020, the province’s economy still grew by 2.63 per cent,” he said. “Major industrial projects such as the Quảng Trạch II Thermal Power Plant and the B&T wind farm cluster have started, showing high determination for growth by the province and investors. “Quảng Bình has played to its strength to grow the tourism economy. This is one of the province’s biggest successes of its tourism development strategy.” Speaking at the conference, Secretary of the province’s Party Committee Vũ Đại Thắng said: "The huge amounts of investment capital speak volumes about local and international investors' interest in the province, which is a great sign for a new era of development. "We would like to continue to receive support from the Party, the State and the Government and all sectors. We would also like to invite businesses in and out of the country to further seek investment opportunities in our province.” – Viet Nam News
PM to take first shot: Mr Hun Sen will be the first to take the Sinopharm vaccine upon delivery of one million doses from China
Prime Minister Hun Sen will be the first person in Cambodia to be vaccinated when the Sinopharm vaccines are delivered to the Kingdom, a move to infuse confidence and trust in Cambodians that the vaccines are safe. Mr Hun Sen who made the announcement on his Facebook page yesterday also revealed that on Friday he had accepted a donation of one million doses of the vaccine from China. “Today, in order to build trust in vaccines and promote the fight against COVID-19, I wish to announce that the first injection of the vaccine will be given to me. I must be on the front line, which has been my normal habit for decades,” Mr Hun Sen said. He added that the vaccine would be free and offered on a voluntary basis, but in the future, the country will need many more vaccines to inoculate between 10 and 13 million people or about 80 percent of the population. In an audio message, Mr Hun Sen said he had gone back on his previous commitment to only obtain vaccines approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) because of the current virus situation in Cambodia. A team of WHO experts are currently in China testing the Sinopharm vaccine. Xinhua News quoted WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at a recent media briefing as saying: “I’m pleased that a WHO team is in China currently working with producers of the Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines to assess compliance with international quality manufacturing practices ahead of potential emergency use listing by WHO.” A potential approval by the WHO would open the door for Cambodia to receive more Sinopharm vaccines through the Covax facility. Mr Hun Sen said the Sinopharm vaccine had been used by millions across the globe, including the Indonesian president Joko Widodo and Chinese leaders. “So far, not only Chinese vaccines, but also other countries’ vaccines are not yet known for their validity or effectiveness. But for Chinese leaders, the Chinese vaccine has been used since October 2020,” the Premier said. – Khmer Times