Blinken says global pressure may force China to be transparent on Covid-19 South China Morning Post
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JOHOR BARU (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - An elderly couple drove for almost two hours from Batu Pahat to get their AstraZeneca Covid-19 shots at a mega vaccination centre in Johor Baru.
Retired school principal Idris Ahmad, 67, and his wife Azmah Hairun, 64, were determined to be vaccinated so they went on a 127km journey from their home in Batu Pahat.
Mr Idris said they left their home after subuh (dawn) prayers just to be at the vaccination centre in time.
"There were not many vehicles along the highway due to the movement control order. It was a nice, slow drive.
"Both of us had looked forward to getting the vaccine, " he said on Monday (June 7).
Mr Idris said he was very happy that both he and his wife got the same appointment dates when their children registered their names through the MySejahtera app.
Ms Azmah, a retired teacher, urged those who had yet to be registered for the vaccine to immediately do so, which would help protect Malaysians against Covid-19.
"I told all my family members to get vaccinated. But if they are still stubborn, then they should not come and see me at all.
"If you really love your family, get vaccinated as there is nothing to be afraid of, " she said, adding that it took them less than half an hour to get their AstraZeneca jabs.
Checks by The Star at mega vaccination centre at the Persada International Convention Centre in Johor Baru found people starting to form a queue as early as 7am.
The presence of army personnel together with police, Fire and Rescue Department, Civil Defence Force and People's Volunteer Corps and volunteers from non-governmental groups helped manage the large crowd.
An express lane is also provided for the elderly and disabled.
Vaccine recipients would have to go through five different stations at the centre, with the first for symptom and temperature screening, station two for registration, station three for consultation and authorisation, station four for vaccination, and station five for observation.
The Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force (CITF) had previously announced that the second round of administering the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine would be held from June 7 to July 27 at mega vaccination centres in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang, Johor and Sarawak.
SINGAPORE: The “very slow” progress being made to resolve the ongoing crisis in Myanmar is disappointing, said Singapore’s Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan on Monday (Jun 7).
The situation in Myanmar was among the issues discussed at Special ASEAN-China Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Chongqing, China.
“All of us were united on the need for an immediate cessation of violence, on the need for the release of detainees and for meaningful negotiations and dialogue to occur among all parties," Dr Balakrishnan told Singapore reporters over a call from Chongqing.
“And even the appointment of an ASEAN envoy only makes sense if there is a genuine desire within Myanmar itself for genuine dialogue and negotiations and reconciliation. So this is still a work in progress,” he added.
“To be honest with you, we are disappointed at the slow – very, very slow progress. Unfortunately, we know that there are still civilians who have been hurt or killed. There has been no release of political detainees, there has been no real sign of meaningful political dialogue and negotiation. So we’ll have to watch this space.”
Dr Balakrishnan reiterated that ASEAN’s main role is not to interfere, as “in the end, only the people themselves within Myanmar can determine its future”.
“But ASEAN stands ready to help, to be supportive, to facilitate mediation if possible, but we will have to wait. It’s disappointing but let’s not give up hope,” he said.
The high-level meeting in Chongqing marks the30th anniversary of ASEAN-China relations.
It also comes amid recent tensions in the South China Sea. On May 31, Chinese warplanes entered Malaysia's maritime zone air space and flew within 60 nautical miles of Sarawak – a move that Malaysia called a “breach of (its) airspace and sovereignty”.
Dr Balakrishnan said the situation in the South China Sea is an example of the challenges in ties between China and ASEAN.
He added that officials have been “working in the last few years" on trying to make progress on the Code of Conduct for the South China Sea.
It was meant to be finalised by the end of the year, but talks have been stalled since the COVID-19 pandemic hit last year.
“This morning the officials met … And all this again is preparatory work for what I hope will be progress in the years to come to a substantive Code of Conduct, which will improve stability, security,peace and opportunity for prosperity across Southeast Asia, and in the South China Sea between us and China," he said.
“NOT THE RIGHT TIME" TO RESTART TRAVEL
Dr Balakrishnan also acknowledged the “effective cooperation” between China and ASEAN since the pandemic set in - noting China's provision of vaccines and medical supplies to the region.
Beyond this, he said that Singapore and China are looking at how they can restart travel safely, assuming the COVID-19 situation remains under control.
Dr Balakrishnan had said in April that Singapore welcomed China’s proposal on the mutual recognition of health certificates, calling it a "timely initiative" as both countries have begun vaccination programmes.
On Monday, he said there have been discussions on bilateral recognition of vaccine certificates and both sides are sorting out the details of protocols for travel.
“So yes, the discussions are ongoing, it’s positive. But like I said, this is not the right time to press the start button yet,” he said.
He added, however, that when the situation improves both in Singapore and in China, the two countries will be ready.
OTHER AREAS OF DISCUSSION
Dr Balakrishnan noted that the past three decades of diplomatic ties have been “momentous” with China and ASEAN’s economic development.
The meetings are thus a chance to “reflect on successes” but also to discuss ways to move forward on challenges confronting China and ASEAN, he said.
Another “fertile” area of discussion, he said, was economic recovery and opportunities for investment – particularly relating tothe Belt and Road Initiative.
Sustainable development was also on the agenda – an area that will provide “ample opportunities for collaboration in the future”, he said.
TAIPEI: A leading Taiwanese chip testing and packaging company said on Monday (Jun 7) that all its migrant employees have been suspended from working for around two weeks to contain a coronavirus outbreak.
At least 206 employees, mostly migrant workers, at facilities run by King Yuan Electronics Company in northern Miaoli county have tested positive, according to the government.
The cluster is the first major outbreak in Taiwan's semiconductor industry, which is operating at full capacity to meet a worldwide shortage.
King Yuan employs more than 7,000 people, including around 2,100 migrants, and counts some top international tech firms as clients, such as Intel, Qualcomm and Nvidia.
King Yuan said in a filing to the Taiwan Stock Exchange that its June output and revenue are expected to drop 30 to 35 per cent due to the suspension of work.
Local media raised concerns that the suspension could impact the global chip shortage as King Yuan's business is a key final step in the semiconductor supply chain.
Two other tech firms in Miaoli have also reported infection clusters and suspended migrant workers.
Taiwan's semiconductor factories have been struggling to plug a pandemic-driven shortage of chips that power essential electronic devices.
The water-intensive facilities are running at full capacity, even as Taiwan suffers its worst drought in decades, although recent heavy rains have brought some temporary relief.
Taiwan emerged largely unscathed from the pandemic last year with just a few hundred cases and single-digit deaths thanks to one of the world's best coronavirus responses.
But it is now battling a sudden outbreak. Infections have jumped to more than 11,000 with 286 deaths in more than a month after a cluster initially detected among airline pilots spread.
The government announced on Monday that strict social distancing restrictions, including closing public venues and schools, would be extended to Jun 28.
NEW DELHI: India's capital New Delhi and financial hub Mumbai began a gradual easing of restrictions on Monday (Jun 7) as coronavirus infections in the country fell to a two-month low.
India on Monday reported 100,636 new infections - after several days of 400,000-plus cases in May - and 2,427 deaths.
Hospitals in the megacities, which have a combined population of about 40 million, were overwhelmed by a deadly COVID-19 wave in April and May, with severe shortages of oxygen and other critical medicines.
The huge spike saw India report record-breaking numbers of cases and deaths to become the second worst-hit nation after the United States, with just under 29 million infections.
Authorities in Delhi and Mumbai, as well as other cities and states, imposed restrictions on movement and activities to combat the surge.
"We have to stay safe from corona infection and also bring the economy back on track," Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted on Monday as some shops and malls reopened.
He ordered half of the capital's shops to open on odd and even numbered days of the month respectively, in a bid to limit crowds, but allowed offices and the Delhi underground rail network to run at 50 per cent of capacity.
But some curbs were retained, such as the ban on dining in at restaurants and the use of theatres and gyms in a city still slowly recovering from a surge in the months of April and May that overwhelmed hospitals.
The northern city was reporting an average of 25,000 daily cases during its peak. It fell to 381 infections on Sunday, officials said.
A healthcare worker collects a swab sample from a court employee during a rapid antigen testing campaign for COVID-19 at a court in Mumbai, India, Mar 25, 2021. (Photo: REUTERS/Niharika Kulkarni)
MAHARASHTRA
Maharashtra, India's richest state of which Mumbai is the capital, eased restrictions based on infection rates and hospital bed occupancy.
Authorities allowed businesses to run until late afternoon, staffed with half their employees, and opened gyms, salons and spas.
In Mumbai - where the caseload soared to 11,163 in early April - there were 794 new infections on Sunday.
Malls were allowed to reopen in the city with restrictions, but were reopened fully in cities with lower infection rates such as Nagpur and Aurangabad.
"This is a step in the right direction," said Rajendra Kalkar of Phoenix Mills, which manages three shopping centres in Maharashtra.
"Businesses at our malls are coming back slowly. This is a very welcome step for thousands of mall staff and retail employees."
A man getting a haircut is reflected on a mirror at a barber shop in Mumbai, India, Jun 7, 2021.(Photo: AP/Rafiq Maqbool)
The Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India estimated that more than 2 million jobs were lost during the Maharashtra lockdown.
"We are very happy to open our doors again today," the restaurant manager of the Mumbai branch of popular eatery Social, who gave his name as Malay, told AFP.
VACCINATIONS
The reopening efforts come as authorities struggle to vaccinate the population of nearly 1.4 billion, in a strategy officials say is the only way to limit any third wave of infections.
But tight supplies have meant that fewer than 5 per cent of 950 million adult Indians have received the mandatory two vaccine doses.
The pressure to resume some economic activity has grown as millions depend on daily wages to pay for food and rent.
"I have opened my shop after 40 days," a tea vendor, Monu Yadav, told Reuters partner ANI in the northern city of Varanasi, adding that only some of his customers have returned.
Passengers walk outside the New Delhi railway station in New Delhi, India, Jun 7, 2021. (Photo: AP/Ishant Chauhan)
Last week, the central bank cut its forecast for economic growth to 9.5 per cent from 10.5 per cent for the fiscal year 2021/2022.
The second wave has "impaired the nascent recovery that was underway", but "not snuffed it out", said Shaktikanta Das, the governor of the Reserve Bank of India.
Experts warn that while the crisis has eased in Delhi, Mumbai and other major cities, the disease is still spreading in rural areas and some southern states.
The death toll - which usually lags infection figures by several weeks - was still at elevated levels, they added.
The health ministry said total deaths were just under 347,000 so far, although experts warn the actual toll could be much higher and there have been claims of under-counting.
The industrial and trade hub - the capital of China's most populous province, Guangdong, and the home to almost 19 million people - reported 64 new infections in two weeks since May 21, plus 13 asymptomatic cases.
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