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Minggu, 28 Juni 2020

Indonesia's President Widodo threatens to reshuffle Cabinet over COVID-19 response - CNA

JAKARTA: Indonesian President Joko Widodo has told his Cabinet he is ready to reshuffle ministers or even disband government agencies that he feels have not done enough to fight the coronavirus outbreak, according to his office.

Widodo made the remarks in a Cabinet meeting on Jun 18, the video of which was released by his office on Sunday (Jun 28).

"I see that many of us are working as though things are normal. That's what's irritating me. Don't you have feelings? This is a crisis," Widodo said in the video.

"I will take any extraordinary measures for our 267 million people, for the nation. It can be disbanding agencies, can be a reshuffle, I have thought of everything," he said, adding that he may also issue more emergency rules if needed.

The president also complained to his ministers of slow government spending in the face of a dire global economic outlook.

New COVID-19 cases in Indonesia continued to rise even as the country eased movement restrictions and allowed some re-openings of businesses this month.

On Saturday the country reported its biggest daily rise in infections with 1,385 new cases, and reported another 1,198 on Sunday, taking the total to 54,010 so far. It has recorded 2,754 deaths, the highest in East Asia outside China.

READ: Indonesia reports biggest daily rise in coronavirus infections with 1,385 cases

READ: Social taboos hinder Indonesia's fight against COVID-19

Widodo's government has pledged to spend nearly US$50 billion on public health, social protection and relief measures.

Southeast Asia's largest economy may fall into a recession this year due to the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic, government officials say, sending millions into poverty.

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2020-06-28 13:44:29Z
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China puts half a million people in lockdown as Beijing fights new COVID-19 cluster - CNA

BEIJING: China imposed a strict lockdown on nearly half a million people in Hebei province to contain a fresh COVID-19 cluster on Sunday (Jun 28), as authorities warned the outbreak was still "severe and complicated".

After China largely brought the coronavirus under control, hundreds have been infected in Beijing and cases have emerged in neighbouring Hebei province in recent weeks.

Health officials said Sunday that Anxin county - about 150km from Beijing - will be "fully enclosed and controlled", the same strict measures imposed at the height of the pandemic in the city of Wuhan earlier this year.

Only one person from each family will be allowed to go out once a day to purchase necessities such as food and medicine, the county's epidemic prevention task force said in a statement.

The move comes after another 14 cases of the virus were reported in the past 24 hours in Beijing, taking the total to 311 since mid-June and spurring the testing of millions of residents.

READ: China reports 17 new COVID-19 cases, including 14 in Beijing

READ: Chinese firm says COVID-19 vaccine candidate shows promise in human test

The outbreak was first detected in Beijing's sprawling Xinfadi wholesale food market, which supplies much of the city's fresh produce, sparking concerns over the safety of the food supply chain.

Nearly a third of the cases so far have been linked to one beef and mutton section in the market, where workers are being made to quarantine for a month, city officials said Sunday.

Businesses in Anxin county had supplied freshwater fish to the Xinfadi market, state news agency Xinhua reported.

Some 12 cases of the novel coronavirus were found in the county - including 11 linked to Xinfadi, the state-run Global Times reported.

The new cases in Beijing have prompted fears of a resurgence of the virus in China.

The capital has mass-tested wholesale market workers, restaurant workers, residents of medium and high-risk neighbourhoods and delivery couriers over the past two weeks.

At a press conference on Sunday, officials said 8.3 million samples have been collected so far, of which 7.7 million have already been tested.

Testing has now expanded to include all employees of the city's beauty parlours and hair salons, the Global Times said.

Beijing city official Xu Hejian told reporters Sunday that "the epidemic situation in the capital is severe and complicated", warning that the city needed to continue tracing the spread of the virus.

City officials have urged people not to leave Beijing, closed schools again and locked down dozens of residential compounds to stamp out the virus.

But Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiology expert at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, told reporters last week the new outbreak had been "brought under control", and officials lifted a weeks-long lockdown imposed on seven Beijing communities on Friday.

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2020-06-28 10:09:59Z
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China sent martial artists to India border before deadly clash: State media - The Straits Times

BEIJING (AFP) - China reinforced its troops near the Indian border with mountain climbers and martial arts fighters shortly before a deadly clash this month, state media reported.

Tensions are common between the two nuclear-armed neighbours in the mountainous border terrain, but this month's fighting was their deadliest encounter in over 50 years.

Five new militia divisions including former members of a Mount Everest Olympic torch relay team and fighters from a mixed martial arts club presented themselves for inspection in Lhasa on June 15, official military newspaper China National Defence News reported.

State broadcaster CCTV showed footage of hundreds of new troops lining up in the Tibetan capital.

Tibet commander Wang Haijiang said the Enbo Fight Club recruits would "greatly raise the organisation and mobilisation strength" of troops and their "rapid response and support ability", China National Defence News reported, although he did not explicitly confirm their deployment was linked to ongoing border tensions.

Chinese and Indian troops clashed later that day in the most violent confrontation between the two powers in decades, in the Ladakh region 1,300km away.

India says 20 of its own soldiers were killed in brutal hand-to-hand combat that day, while China suffered an unknown number of casualties.

Both sides have blamed each other for the battle, which was fought with rocks and batons without any shots fired.

India said on Thursday that it had reinforced troops in the contested Himalayan border region, saying it was matching a similar build-up by China.

Chinese state media have in recent weeks highlighted military activity including high-altitude anti-aircraft drills in the Tibet region bordering India.

The new troops were recruited with the aim of "strengthening the border and stabilising Tibet", China National Defence News said.

India claims Chinese troops ambushed Indian soldiers and forced them down a ridge where they had gone to remove a Chinese "encroachment".

A bilateral accord prevents the use of guns, but the fighting was still fierce, with rudimentary weapons.

China has in turn accused Indian soldiers of twice crossing the Line of Actual Control, the unofficial boundary, provoking its troops.

The two countries fought a war over the border in 1962. There is an understanding between the neighbours that their troops in the disputed and inhospitable region will not use firearms.

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2020-06-28 04:16:45Z
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Sabtu, 27 Juni 2020

Global coronavirus cases approach 10 million - CNA

BEIJING: Global coronavirus cases neared 10 million on Sunday (Jun 28), according to a Reuters tally, marking a major milestone in the spread of the respiratory disease that has so far killed almost half a million people in seven months.

The figure is roughly double the number of severe influenza illnesses recorded annually, according to the World Health Organization.

The milestone will come as many hard-hit countries are easing lockdowns while making extensive alterations to work and social life that could last for a year or more until a vaccine is available.

Some countries are experiencing a resurgence in infections, leading authorities to partially reinstate lockdowns, in what experts say could be a recurring pattern in the coming months and into 2021.

READ: Australia starts COVID-19 testing blitz to stop second wave in Melbourne

North America, Latin America and Europe each account for around 25 per cent of cases, while Asia and the Middle East have around 11 per cent and 9 per cent respectively, according to the Reuters tally, which uses government reports.

There have been more than 497,000 fatalities linked to the disease so far, roughly the same as the number of influenza deaths reported annually.

The first cases of the new coronavirus were confirmed on Jan 10 in Wuhan in China, before infections and fatalities surged in Europe, then the United States, and later Russia.

READ: Commentary - Why are advanced countries experiencing world’s highest COVID-19 death rates?

The pandemic has now entered a new phase, with India and Brazil battling outbreaks of over 10,000 cases a day, putting a major strain on resources.

The two countries accounted for over a third of all new cases in the past week. Brazil reported a record 54,700 new cases on June 19. Some researchers said the death toll in Latin America could rise to over 380,000 by October, from around 100,000 this week.

The total number of cases continued to increase at a rate of between 1-2 per cent a day in the past week, down from rates above 10 per cent in March.

Countries including China, New Zealand and Australia have seen new outbreaks in the past month, despite largely quashing local transmission.

In Beijing, where hundreds of new cases were linked to an agricultural market, testing capacity has been ramped up to 300,000 a day.

READ: Florida notches one-day COVID-19 case record in setback to reopening

The United States, which has reported the most cases of any country at more than 2.5 million, managed to slow the spread of the virus in May, only to see it expand in recent weeks to rural areas and other places that were previously unaffected.

In some countries with limited testing capabilities, case numbers reflect a small proportion of total infections. Roughly half of reported infections are known to have recovered.

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2020-06-28 00:46:19Z
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Mahathir endorses Shafie Apdal as M'sian opposition's 'unanimous' choice as PM - TODAYonline

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Mahathir endorses Shafie Apdal as M'sian opposition's 'unanimous' choice as PM TODAYonline
Calls for Muhyiddin to hold snap polls to capitalise on Mahathir-Anwar feud The Straits Times
Malaysia's Mahathir backs new candidate for prime minister Yahoo Singapore News
Time against Dr M as snap polls loom The Star Online
How the Mahathir-Anwar relationship shaped Malaysia's politics AsiaOne
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2020-06-27 12:38:51Z
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Singapore, Malaysia agree to allow cross-border travel for some residents and business travellers - CNA

SINGAPORE: Singapore and Malaysia have agreed to allow cross-border travel for certain groups of people, including residents who hold long-term immigration passes for business and work purposes.

This was discussed between Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his Malaysian counterpart Muhyiddin Yassin in a telephone call on Friday (Jun 26), said Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) in a press statement on Saturday.

The two leaders agreed to establish a Reciprocal Green Lane (RGL) and a Periodic Commuting Arrangement (PCA) to facilitate the needs of different groups for cross-border travel.

The RGL will facilitate cross-border travel for essential business and official purposes between both countries.

Travellers would have to adhere to a set of COVID-19 prevention and public health measures, which are under discussion and will have to be mutually agreed upon by both countries, said MFA.

READ: Singapore to take 'step by step' approach on reopening border with Malaysia: Vivian Balakrishnan

The PCA, on the other hand, will allow Singapore and Malaysia residents who hold long-term immigration passes for business and work purposes in the other country to periodically return to their home countries for short-term home leave.

"They will be able to return home for leave after spending at least three consecutive months in their country of work, and they will be allowed to re-enter their country of work after their home leave," MFA added.

Mr Lee reiterated Singapore’s commitment to address the needs of Singaporeans and Malaysians who were previously commuting between both countries before the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted travel.

Both leaders agreed that any bilateral arrangement would have to include mutually agreed public health protocols, to preserve the public health and safety of citizens on both sides, while taking into account the medical resources available in both countries.

MFA said Mr Lee and Mr Muhyiddin have tasked their officials to "work expeditiously" on the operational details of the RGL and PCA.

Officials will also continue discussions on other proposals to gradually facilitate more cross-border movement of people, to ensure a stable recovery by both Singapore and Malaysia from the COVID-19 situation, the ministry added.

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2020-06-27 08:01:28Z
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Jumat, 26 Juni 2020

US imposes visa restrictions on Chinese officials over Hong Kong autonomy - CNA

WASHINGTON, DC: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Friday the United States was imposing visa restrictions on Chinese Communist Party officials believed responsible for restricting freedoms in Hong Kong.

"Today, I am announcing visa restrictions on current and former CCP officials who are believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, undermining Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy," Pompeo said in a statement, which did not name those targeted.

The announcement comes in response to moves by China to impose new security legislation on Hong Kong, which prompted US President Donald Trump last month to initiate a process to eliminate special economic treatment that has allowed the territory to remain a global financial center.

It also comes at a time of intensified US rhetoric against China in the midst of Trump's re-election campaign, in which opinion polls have shown voters increasingly embittered toward Beijing, especially over the coronavirus, which began in that country.

"President Trump promised to punish the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials who were responsible for eviscerating Hong Kong’s freedoms. Today, we are taking action to do just that," Pompeo said in the statement.

He said China's Communist Party had stepped up efforts to undermine Hong Kong’s autonomy through the national security legislation and by putting pressure on local authorities to arrest pro-democracy activists and disqualify pro-democracy electoral candidates.

Pompeo called on China to honor its commitment to allow Hong Kong "a high degree of autonomy" and added: "The United States will continue to review its authorities to respond to these concerns."

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2020-06-26 16:59:54Z
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