SINGAPORE: Four private healthcare institutions have submitted applications to import COVID-19 vaccines under the Special Access Route (SAR) as of Wednesday (Jun 30), according to the Health Sciences Authority (HSA).
They are not part of the 24 private healthcare institutions which had earlier been selected to administer the Government's stock of 200,000 doses of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines.
HSA said it was unable to provide information on who had applied, and which vaccines they intended to bring in due to confidentiality reasons.
Through the SAR, the private healthcare sector can bring in unregistered COVID-19 vaccines, as long as they have been approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The scheme provides access to alternative vaccines for people who cannot or choose not to take the two COVID-19 vaccines currently authorised in Singapore, which are the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines. Both are based on mRNA technology.
Last week, private healthcare institutions CNA spoke to said they were considering bringing in more vaccines, including China's Sinovac and Sinopharm shots, following a surge in demand for non-mRNA vaccines.
One clinic said more than 4,000 people had been scheduled for vaccination appointments, with bookings running up to the end of September.
As of 28 June, there have been two adverse event reports of hives, a type of skin rash, following vaccination with the Sinovac shots, according to HSA.
However, it added that the effects were “non-serious”.
BANGKOK: The popular Thai resort island of Phuket reopened to tourists from overseas on Thursday (Jul 1) after more than a year without international arrivals due to COVID-19.
It is the first province in Thailand to welcome back international visitors and pilot a new tourism model called Phuket Sandbox, designed to help the pandemic-battered economy recover.
Tourists arriving in Phuket from Thursday are free to enjoy the island. But because some activities are still restricted, here are a few things that tourists need to know before booking their flight to the tropical getaway.
Q: Will be there be a quarantine upon arrival?
A: No. Tourists can move around freely if they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 no less than 14 days before they travel. They are only required to take a COVID-19 test upon arrival and wait for the results in their hotel room. If they test negative, they can travel freely within the province.
Travellers who plan to stay in Phuket for less than seven days must take a second test on Day 6 or 7. If the length of stay is between 10 to 14 days, they have to be swabbed for the third time on Day 12 or 13.
The tests can be done at certified hotels or partner hospitals at travellers’ own expense. If they test positive, tourists will be transferred to healthcare facilities for treatment.
According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand, the cost of an RT-PCR COVID-19 test ranges from 2,500 (US$78) baht to 4,000 per person. All the tests must be paid in advance through hotels.
Overseas tourists travelling to Phuket from Jul 1 have to meet several requirements. (Illustration: Rafa Estrada)
Q: Can my kids come along with me to Phuket?
A: Yes. Children aged below six who are travelling with their fully vaccinated parents can enter Phuket without prior vaccination against COVID-19.
Tourists under 18 years of age who travel with their fully vaccinated parents are required to present a medical certificate with a laboratory result indicating that COVID-19 is not detected in an RT-PCR test within 72 hours before travel.
A: Yes. Tourists can visit islands located in Phuket if they test negative for COVID-19 upon arrival. There are 37 islands in the province, including Koh Racha Yai, Koh He, Koh Bon and Koh Mai Ton.
However, they cannot visit islands located in other provinces, although they were previously accessible from Phuket. These include Koh Phi Phi in Krabi and the James Bond island in Phang-nga.
The Big Buddha and Kata Beach in Phuket AFP/Lillian SUWANRUMPHA
Q: Can I travel to other provinces in the country?
A: Yes. Tourists who have spent 14 nights at a certified hotel in Phuket and tested negative throughout their stay can continue their journey to other provinces in Thailand.
Travellers who intend to spend less than 14 nights Phuket must leave the province on an international flight to another country.
Q: Will I have to wear a face mask in Phuket?
A: Yes. Visitors to Phuket are advised to take some precautions during their stay as part of the province’s COVID-19 preventive measures. These include wearing face masks in public, social distancing, hand sanitising and temperature screening.
Patong Beach in Phuket has been usually quiet over the past year AFP/Lillian SUWANRUMPHA
Q: Are entertainment venues open?
A: No. Pubs, bars, karaoke venues, entertainment venues and businesses that are similar to entertainment venues in Phuket are temporarily closed.
However, tourists can dine in at eateries and consume alcohol there until 11 pm.
Q: Can I go for a massage?
A: Yes. Spa and massage venues are open but the number of customers may be limited to ensure social distancing.
JAKARTA: The Indonesian government has unveiled broad emergency community restrictions on Thursday (Jul 1) for the islands of Java and Bali, as the country battles a spike in COVID-19 infections.
Under the PPKM (community-level public activity restrictions enforcement) Emergency which will be implemented from Jul 3 to Jul 20, all malls will have to be shut while dining-in will be banned.
In a televised statement, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Pandjaitan said that the restrictions must be enforced as the country has seen a spike in COVID-19 cases of about 230 per cent since the end of May.
"I believe our preparation (for the PPKM Emergency) is the most maximum," said Mr Pandjaitan.
"So now we must implement it firmly and measuredly."
The minister said that restaurants, cafes and street food vendors can only serve customers for take-aways.
He also said that people's movements will be restricted according to the sectors that they work in. There are three different categories, namely non-essential, essential and critical sectors.
All employees in the critical sectors can work in the office. These sectors includes energy, health, security, logistics and transportation, food industry, petrochemical as well as utilities among others that supply basic daily needs.
Those in the essential sectors can work in the office with a maximum capacity of 50 per cent and under strict health protocols.
These sectors include finance and banking, payment systems, information and communication technology, hotels that do not handle COVID-19 patients as well as export industries.
Meanwhile, all employees in the non-essential sectors must work from home.
Grocery stores, supermarkets, minimarkets, and wet markets can be operational until 8pm with a capacity of 50 per cent, while pharmacies can operate for 24 hours.
All students must study from home. Places of worship, sports facilities, and public facilities such as parks must shut.
Wedding receptions can be held with a maximum of 30 people and no dining-in, while public transport may operate with a maximum of 70 per cent capacity.
People who want to travel by plane, bus or train must at least be vaccinated once and present their vaccination card. They must also have a negative PCR test that is taken two days prior to boarding a flight.
A health care worker holds a baby born from a mother who contracted coronavirus disease (COVID-19) inside the emergency ward for COVID-19 at a government-run hospital in Jakarta, Indonesia, June 29, 2021. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan
Indonesia has been grappling with a spike in COVID-19 cases after the Idul Fitri holiday in mid-May.
While the spike in cases has been seen in many provinces, the new PPKM Emergency will only be enforced in Java and Bali where many areas have been classified as level 3 or 4.
Authorities have classified regions in Indonesia into four levels with level 1 being the safest and level 4 showing the highest levels of transmission.
The levels are determined by World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines that 50 confirmed cases daily per 100,000 people would be considered level 4.
There are 48 regencies or cities in Java and Bali which are classified as level 4. Seventy-four regencies and cities are classified as level 3, according to the government.
As of Thursday, Indonesia recorded 2,203,108 cases and 58,995 deaths.
The new curbs are stricter than current regulations which allow malls to operate until 8pm, while restaurants are allowed to serve diners at up to 25 per cent of their capacity.
Since Indonesia announced its first COVID-19 cases in early March last year, the government has opted against total lockdowns at the national level that would bar people from freely leaving their homes.
In late March last year, president Joko Widodo signed a regulation for cities and provinces to enforce large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) under which non-essential workers must work from home, students had to study at home and places of worship were closed.
PSBB curbs were relaxed earlier this year and PPKM was introduced, which allows local leaders to restrict movement within their communities. PPKM is currently in force in all 34 provinces.
Indonesia is currently battling a new wave of COVID-19 infections and logged a record 24,836 new cases on Thursday as well as 504 deaths.
The hike in cases is predicted to continue until at least the beginning of July as previous holidays tended to result in a spike of infections up to seven weeks.
BEIJING - Ahead of the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) centennial celebrations on Thursday (July 1), journalists, diplomats and other invited guests have been given a list of dos and don'ts for partaking in the festivities at Tiananmen Square.
Among them: refrain from taking toilet breaks after 7.30am; no hats; no taking personal belongings.
Details of the parade, which starts at 8am, have been kept tightly under wraps, but President Xi Jinping will address the nation while a fly-past of fighter jets and helicopters is also slated.
In a note to attending envoys, who checked into Diaoyutai State Guesthouse on Wednesday night for a Covid-19 test and quarantine, diplomats were encouraged to sing along and wave the Chinese flag during the celebratory event "to help with the atmosphere".
Control over the centennial celebrations has been unprecedented - more stringent than when the country marked the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China two years ago.
Residents who live near Tiananmen Square told The Straits Times that they are not allowed to leave their homes after 2pm on Wednesday. Policemen are on guard at every street to make sure they abide by their curfew.
Journalists, who all have to be fully vaccinated to cover the event, had to quarantine in a hotel for at least 15 hours before being taken to the venue.
They were also told on Wednesday that they could not take hats, umbrellas, water or food to the venue, and only one mobile phone is allowed for each person.
The party has been on a campaign to reinforce its political legitimacy.
On Thursday, he is also expected to announce that China has reached its target of becoming a "moderately prosperous society" by doubling its per capita gross domestic product (GDP) to US$10,000 (S$13,400) from 2010 levels.
Its membership has swelled in recent years. On Wednesday, the party said its membership number has crossed the 95 million mark, growing nearly 4 per cent from the end of 2019.
The CCP started with about 50 members when it was founded in 1921.
About 2.31 million people joined in the first half of this year alone, said a statement from its organisation department.
Nearly 25 per cent of its members are aged 35 or younger, while 28.8 per cent of all members are women.
SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has congratulated Chinese President Xi Jinping on the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party of China (CPC).
Writing in his capacity as secretary-general of the People’s Action Party (PAP), Mr Lee noted the CPC’s role amid “tremendous and rapid” changes in the world over the past century.
"Against this backdrop, the CPC has steered China to overcome many domestic and external challenges, and shepherded China onto the path of peace and prosperity,” he wrote in a letter addressed to Mr Xi as general secretary of the CPC.
“China has made momentous progress in its development, raising the standard of living for an unprecedented number of people.”
In the letter released to the media on Wednesday (Jun 30), Mr Lee said that in recent years and under Mr Xi's leadership, China "has succeeded in eradicating absolute poverty and achieving a moderately prosperous society".
China has also brought its COVID-19 situation under control, paving the way for economic recovery, he added.
The CPC marks its 100th founding anniversary on Jul 1. The party has ruled China since 1949.
Mr Lee said the goals laid out in the CPC’s 14th five-year plan will bring China "another step closer to its vision of a modern socialist economy".
"A stable, prosperous, and successful China that is well-integrated into the international system benefits not just China, but also the rest of Asia and the world," he wrote.
Mr Lee added that the PAP and the CPC share warm and friendly ties, underpinned by regular exchanges.
“The growing relations between both parties have kept pace with our countries’ evolving development priorities and greatly benefited our peoples,” he said.
"I am confident that our bilateral relations will continue to strengthen in the years ahead.”
KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia’s King wants Parliament to reconvene before the state of emergency expires on Aug 1, despite the government committing to a sitting by October.
In a joint statement on Wednesday (June 30), the chairs of both Houses in the federal legislature said Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah had “decreed his view” during an audience on Tuesday, which was also attended by their deputies.
“(We) stated our commitment and the full readiness of Parliament to meet as decreed by His Majesty,” said Lower House Speaker Azhar Harun and Senate president Rais Yatim.
They added that they had made this known to Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and suggested to him that “a special sitting be held before Aug 1”.
The issue of exactly when Parliament should meet for the first time since December has been the subject of heated debate in the fortnight since the King and eight other state rulers said that the legislature should assemble as soon as possible.
Sultan Abdullah and the other rulers had convened a special meeting on June 16. Prior to that, the King had spent a week in a series of audiences with leaders of major political parties, heads of institutions and experts on the pandemic following the deadliest weeks of Malaysia’s ongoing Covid-19 outbreak.
The royal statements came just a day after Mr Muhyiddin unveiled a National Recovery Plan, which outlined a September or October target for a parliamentary session to be held when Malaysia’s worst Covid-19 wave eases and lockdown restrictions are loosened.
Although the law states that it is up to the embattled Premier to decide when to bring the House into session, the royal opinions are weighing on Mr Muhyiddin, whose grip on a parliamentary majority has been in doubt since a spate of defections in January.
It was immediately after two Umno lawmakers withdrew support for his Perikatan Nasional government that the state of emergency was imposed on Jan 11. It suspends the need for Parliament to sit within six months of its last meeting in December.
Cabinet ministers have insisted that the government’s timeline meets the royal criteria of “as soon as possible”, while critics and the opposition disagree.
Heaping pressure on Mr Muhyiddin, main opposition pact Pakatan Harapan has begun the process of convening the assemblies of the three states it governs - Selangor, Penang and Negeri Sembilan. Pahang, ruled by the King himself, will resume in August.
Pahang’s state government is led by Umno, Mr Muhyiddin’s partner in the federal administration, which has been pushing for fresh polls to be held as soon as the pandemic is under control.
