SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong extended his greetings on Sunday (May 24) to the leaders of Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia for Hari Raya Aidilfitri.
The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said he made telephone calls to Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and the Sultan of Johor Ibrahim Iskandar.
"Prime Minister Lee reaffirmed his friendship with the leaders, and his strong support for the close cooperation that exists between our states and peoples," said PMO.
"He looked forward to working with them to secure the health and well-being of our populations during the COVID-19 pandemic, and resuming and expanding our wider areas of cooperation as the COVID-19 outbreak is brought under control."
BEIJING: A controversial security law for Hong Kong proposed by China during its national legislative session should be imposed "without the slightest delay", China's foreign minister said on Sunday (May 24).
The proposal is expected to ban treason, subversion and sedition, and comes after Hong Kong was shaken by months of massive and sometimes violent protests.
Wang Yi told a press conference that the law was "imperative" after protests in Hong Kong last year "seriously endangered China's national security".
The draft measure would authorise Chinese lawmakers to directly enact controversial security legislation long called for under Hong Kong's mini-constitution but which authorities in the city have been unable to push through due to local public opposition.
"It is imperative that the Hong Kong national security legal system and enforcement mechanism must be established without the slightest delay," Wang said.
He told reporters covering the week-long legislative session that "violent and terrorist activities are continuing to escalate, (and) foreign forces have deeply and illegally interfered in Hong Kong affairs."
Hong Kong's unpopular pro-Beijing leader Carrie Lam said in a statement on Friday that the new proposal was necessary to protect national security and punish "violent political elements".
Police fired tear gas in Hong Kong on Sunday after hundreds of pro-democracy campaigners defied warnings not to gather for their first rally since China introduced the legislative proposal.
HONG KONG: Police fired tear gas and pepper spray at hundreds of Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters who gathered on Sunday (May 24) in opposition to a controversial security law proposed by China last week.
The proposal is expected to ban treason, subversion and sedition, and comes after Hong Kong was shaken by months of massive, sometimes violent protests, and repeated warnings from Beijing that it would not tolerate dissent.
Fearing the proposed law will spell the end of the city's treasured freedoms, campaigners called for supporters to rally and hundreds responded, gathering in the busy Causeway Bay and Wan Chai districts, chanting slogans against the government as riot police warned them against the assembly.
"People may be criminalised only for words they say or publish opposing the government," 25-year-old protester Vincent told AFP.
"I think Hongkongers are very frustrated because we didn't expect this to come so fast and so rough. But ... we won't be as naive as to believe that Beijing will simply sit back and do nothing. Things will only get worse here."
Police quickly fired teargas to disperse the crowd, catching everyone by surprise. Protestors had just blocked off Hennessy Road trying to push towards Wanchai. pic.twitter.com/A4JZcoFd7w
Protestors lingering in CWB. Chants restarting. Because of universal mask wearing, it’s hard to distinguish protestors from passersby. Here, water cannon seen between CWB and Wanchai. 2 officers sitting atop armored vehicle holding teargas/rubber bullet guns. pic.twitter.com/dPGtScJQ2f
Riot police were deployed after earlier warnings from authorities against unauthorised assembly and the city's current coronavirus-linked law banning public gatherings of more than eight people.
The Sunday protest followed a similar pattern to many of last year's demonstrations, with police firing tear gas and pepper spray, and protesters pushing back - some throwing objects such as umbrellas at the police.
The Hong Kong pro-democracy movement had previously fizzled as arrests mounted and, later, large gatherings were banned to stop the coronavirus.
More than 8,300 people have been arrested since the protests erupted last year. Around 200 were detained during small rallies at malls on Mother's Day earlier this month.
Police had warned that they would "make arrests as appropriate", and at least one pro-democracy campaigner was detained by police on Sunday at the start of the rally, AFP reporters said.
Hong Kong residents enjoy rights - including freedom of speech - unseen on the mainland as part of the agreement that saw the British colony handed back to China in 1997, and the city has its own legal system and trade status.
Campaigners fear the proposed new law could spell the end of Hong Kong's cherished freedoms. (Photo: AFP/Anthony Wallace)
Fears had been growing for years that Beijing was chipping away at those freedoms and tightening its control on the city, and campaigners have described the new proposal as the most brazen move yet.
Of particular concern is a provision allowing Chinese security agents to operate in Hong Kong, and that they could launch a crackdown against those dissenting against the mainland's Communist rulers.
"I'm very scared, but I still have to come out," said protester Christy Chan, 23.
"Aside from being peaceful, rational and non-violent, I don't see many ways to send out our messages."
A top pro-Beijing official, however, said on Saturday that mainland law enforcement would not operate in Hong Kong without "approval" from local authorities.
"I'm not worried about anybody being arrested by a police officer from the mainland and then taken back to China for investigation or punishment," Maria Tam, a Hong Kong law advisor to the Chinese parliament, told AFP.
"It is not, not, not going to happen."
Hong Kong's unpopular pro-Beijing leader Carrie Lam has defended the new proposal, saying it was necessary to protect national security and punish "violent political elements".
But there is deep mistrust of China's opaque legal system in Hong Kong and of how Beijing might use such regulations in the city - the massive protests last year were sparked by a now-scrapped bill that would have allowed extraditions to the mainland.
The new proposal could prove even more wide-ranging than that plan, and several Western governments have voiced alarm.
China's legislature is expected to sign off on the draft resolution on Thursday, the last day of the annual parliamentary gathering, before the details are fleshed out at another meeting at a later date.
Officials have said the law would then be implemented locally.
SINGAPORE: The eve of Hari Raya Puasa is a day usually spent with family, breaking fast for the final time at the end of Ramadan, and preparing for a day filled with festive cheer.
On Saturday afternoon (May 23) in Ng Teng Fong General Hospital’s intensive care unit (ICU), Mr Efendi Abdul Rahman, 43, had something to cheer about too.
Sixteen days ago, he was wheeled into the ICU with a breathing tube inserted into his mouth. COVID-19 had ravaged his lungs so much that he was barely getting any oxygen. He was eventually put into an induced coma and on a ventilator.
Now, Mr Efendi's condition had drastically improved. He still had a tube in him, this time through his neck, so he couldn’t talk. But he was conscious and communicating, by using a black marker on a little whiteboard.
It was a high point in a battle that has taken Mr Efendi to the edge of death and back, and his wife and seven children through sadness, anxiety, relief and happiness.
Last week, CNA reported how his wife Mrs Sharifah Radiah Ameer, 42, and the children were coping with the ordeal while being quarantined at home. With her permission, CNA spoke to Mr Efendi's doctors on Saturday regarding his condition.
That day, the hospital team thought Mr Efendi had some cause for celebration, especially with Hari Raya just around the corner.
So the evening before, Dr Shanaz Matthew Sajeed, the intensive care medicine consultant who was on the night shift at the ICU, dropped by Mr Efendi’s home on the way to work. It was a five-minute drive from the hospital anyway.
The doctor picked up two pieces of clothing: A batik shirt he often wore, and a blue baju kurung made of cotton. Mr Efendi would put the batik shirt on during a video call with the family the next day.
“It was my head of department who mooted this idea to consider getting some kind of clothing for him for his Hari Raya celebration,” said Dr Shanaz, who did not enter the home, wore a mask and kept a safe distance when he picked up the items.
During the WhatsApp video call the next day, Mrs Sharifah said her husband was in “better spirits”.
They talked about celebrating Hari Raya, and he wrote that he would very much like to be back with them. He did a little jigwith hands that his son loved to see him do. He curled his fingers into the shape of a heart for his children.
“He was smiling today, and while communicating to his family we could see there were a lot of emotional moments,” said intensive care medicine consultant Dr Monika Gulati, who is also on Mr Efendi’s ICU team.
“His family was obviously very happy to see him alert and awake, and he’s looking quite motivated. So we all hope Efendi continues on the path of recovery.”
ON THE EDGE
But as with many critical medical conditions, things hadn’t always run smoothly.
Just a few days back on Wednesday, Mr Efendi’s heart had simply stopped beating. As the virus attacked his lungs, air built up around them and pushed against them, so doctors needed to put a drain in to relieve the pressure and let them expand.
“His lungs are infected with the virus,” Dr Monika said. “This complication which happened in this state of fragility probably tipped him over.”
Like clockwork, the team did cardiopulmonary resuscitation and pumped in the necessary drugs, getting a heartbeat back within minutes.
“This is something that we are trained for, it didn't catch us by surprise,” said Dr Shanaz, who had put the drain in.
“We were very well-prepared for it, and because of the quick thinking of all the members of the team in the room and outside of the room, we managed to secure his airway and bring back his circulation within minutes, with no damage whatsoever to his brain that we could observe.”
Mr Efendi's wife and seven children were present for the call. (Photo: Ng Teng Fong General Hospital)
While emotions were ice-cool in the ICU, Mrs Sharifah reacted differently after getting a call from the team that morning.
“I had a late night, so I was drowsy,” she said. “And when they said that, my heart stopped. I just went numb. He may have died, and I wondered if I had been too happy the day before.”
Mrs Sharifah had video called her husband the day before. It was the first time she had seen him conscious since he was admitted.
“He was very drowsy, but still he managed to ask for the sixth one, my eight-year-old,” she said of that call. “I cried tears of joy.”
So it was tough on Mrs Sharifah that her world came crashing down again the next day, as she recalled feeling “empty”.
“I was moody; I forced myself into conversations,” she said. “My kids hid their feelings well, but I knew it affected them too. It was more helpless as we were still in quarantine.”
Still, Mrs Sharifah was relieved that her husband survived the incident: “I felt that God had answered my prayers.”
ROAD TO RECOVERY
Dr Shanaz believes this episode occurred as Mr Efendi’s condition had been improving since his early days in the ICU, when he arrived “critically ill”.
The first five to seven days were “quite an intense period” where his life was in danger, Dr Shanaz said, noting that he also needed dialysis for his kidneys and support for his blood pressure.
Mr Efendi Abdul Rahman with the youngest two of his children. (Photo: Sharifah Radiah Ameer)
“The moment that patient is on a ventilator and requiring support for his organs and blood pressure, we are concerned for the patient's life,” he added.
Roughly a week into his stay in the hospital, Mr Efendi’s oxygen levels remained critically low, as doctors considered using an urgent but riskier form of ventilation known as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).
This involves pushing a patient’s blood through a machine that adds oxygen and removes carbon dioxide before pumping it back into the body. But because this procedure requires blood thinning, it carries a significant risk of bleeding.
“The fact that he was considered for ECMO itself, marks him as a patient who would be considered at very high risk,” Dr Monika said.
However, Dr Shanaz said the team eventually decided on a “more unconventional ventilation strategy” for Mr Efendi that led to significant improvements.
“At that point, we were sort of cautiously optimistic,” he added. “He was improving and he got to a point where his oxygen requirements had dropped significantly, they were much lower than what he initially started off with.”
Mrs Sharifah shares this cautious optimism, saying there’s no rush and that she just wants to see him get better.
“We're all doing okay,” she said. “There is enough to keep us going for now. When he gets better and decides to retire or whatever, he has our support. Things will never be the same, but it's a fresh start. That's good enough for me.”
She said the kids are happier too. “Maybe when he was in a coma, they were thinking about a bleak future,” she added.
“Seeing their father now that way, they seem to have their own perseverance to want to succeed and help him.”
“IT VALIDATES WHAT WE DO”
While Mr Efendi is now on the slow road to recovery, Dr Shanaz stressed he isn’t completely out of the woods.
“For the next stage of recovery, we want to see that he has good physiotherapy, we want to get him strong again,” he said.
“We want to make sure that he is able to take good breaths, is able to cough well, regain his strength and then take it from there.”
To leave the ICU, Dr Monika said Mr Efendi must first be taken off breathing support. Still, he has been getting back some strength, enough to write, and is “heading in the right direction”.
It is a huge change in fortunes considering both doctors agreed Mr Efendi was one of the most severe cases of COVID-19 they had attended to.
“Both of us would say that it's hugely satisfactory to see a patient, that is on the verge of dying, being brought back to life and then recovering and then eventually thriving,” Dr Monika said.
“He hasn't got to the thriving stage yet, but that's what we hope to see for him, and that is of course, hugely satisfying. It validates what we do on a day-to-day basis. It makes the long nights and the long hours worthwhile.”
Mrs Sharifah said the team at the hospital has been “amazing and I am forever grateful for their efforts”.
“They did a great job,” she added. “I mean, it’s not easy to meet people's expectations, to keep him alive and not disappoint his family.”
On Saturday, Mr Efendi scribbled a message on the whiteboard for the team that has been caring for him. “Thank you all,” it said.
STAYING STRONG
For Mrs Sharifah, it was a different experience seeing her husband in traditional Malay garb lying in a hospital bed surrounded by tubes and wires.
“He looked different in every way, his face and eyes,” she said. “Maybe it was an effect from the meds. I'm sure once everything is sorted out he will be okay.”
Mrs Sharifah Radiah Ameer (in purple) with her dad, husband and children during Hari Raya in 2019. (Photo: Sharifah Radiah Ameer)
Ms Ong Mei Yan, a medical social worker at the hospital who has constantly been in touch with Mrs Sharifah, said the family has supported each other well.
“Being stressed and having anxiety is actually very normal during a crisis situation, especially in such a difficult time,” she said. “But she has personally displayed resiliency, as well as optimism with Mr Efendi’s situation.”
Ms Ong said the pandemic has forced hospital staff to find creative ways to connect patients with their loved ones, including setting up video calls and this mini Hari Raya celebration.
For obvious reasons, Mrs Sharifah said Hari Raya for her this year won’t be especially festive, although she acknowledged that life has to go on.
Mr Efendi is certainly looking forward to resuming life with his family. “I want to go home tomorrow,” he wrote on the whiteboard.
HONG KONG: Hong Kong braced on Sunday (Mar 24) for its first protests since Beijing’s controversial plan to directly impose national security laws on the city, in what could provide a litmus test of public opposition to China's tightening grip over the financial hub.
Beijing on Thursday proposed tough security legislation for Hong Kong, a move that sent a chill through financial markets and drew a swift rebuke from foreign governments, international human rights groups and some business lobbies.
In drafting the new laws, which could see the setting up of Chinese government intelligence agencies in the global financial centre, Beijing plans to circumvent Hong Kong's lawmaking body, the Legislative Council.
The move has sparked concerns over the fate of the "one country, two systems" formula that has governed Hong Kong since its return to Chinese rule in 1997 and which guarantees the city broad freedoms not seen on the mainland.
A backlash intensified on Saturday as nearly 200 political figures from around the world said in a statement the proposed laws said the proposed laws are a "comprehensive assault on the city's autonomy, rule of law and fundamental freedoms".
China has dismissed other countries' complaints as "meddling" and rejected concerns the proposed laws would harm foreign investors.
On Saturday, local Hong Kong media reported police were seen entering Beijing's main representative bureau in the city, the Liaison Office, ahead of protests expected to start later in the bustling shopping district of Causeway Bay.
The rally was initially organised against a controversial national anthem bill, which is due for a second reading at the Legislative Council on Wednesday. The proposed national security laws sparked calls for more people to take to the streets.
Hong Kong has increasingly become a pawn in deteriorating relations between Washington and Beijing, and observers will be watching for any signs of resignation to defeat among the broader local community or indications that activists are gearing up for a fresh challenge.
Anti-government protests that escalated in June last year plunged the city into its biggest political crisis in decades, battered the economy and posed the gravest popular challenge to President Xi since he came to power in 2012.
The sometimes violent clashes that roiled the city saw a relative lull in recent months as the government imposed measures to curb the spread of coronavirus.
