Concern in Malaysia over rising Covid-19 cases in highly vaccinated Sarawak - The Straits Times

KUALA LUMPUR - A surge in Covid-19 cases in Sarawak, one of Malaysia's most vaccinated states, is causing concern as the country prepares to transition to the disease being declared endemic at the end of next month.

Sarawak, which has fully vaccinated 87.9 per cent of its adult population, has emerged as the worst-hit state as infections begin to taper off in the country's biggest urban centre, the Klang Valley, amid a massive nationwide vaccination campaign by the government.

The state in Borneo, home to over 2.6 million people, had one of the fastest vaccination rates at the onset of the vaccination programme as it was due to hold a legislative election in the middle of this year. The state polls have been postponed to early next year.

Sarawak recorded 3,118 daily cases on Thursday (Sept 9), 16 per cent of the 19,307 total cases reported nationwide.

"We are not sure what is driving the transmissions," newly appointed Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said during a press briefing on Thursday.

He said that dealing with the situation in Sarawak would serve as a playbook for the other states as the country prepared to reopen the economy and live with Covid-19 while managing its healthcare system.

Mr Khairy said one possibility for the increased transmissions could be the waning effect of the vaccines. Sarawak's high-risk elderly population had received both doses of a vaccine more than four months ago.

Malaysia on Wednesday hit a major milestone with 50.5 per cent of its 32.7 million population fully vaccinated.

At least 64.1 per cent of its population, including those fully inoculated, have received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccines.

Malaysia uses another yardstick in deciding when to slowly reopen its economy: by measuring the level of full vaccinations of only the adult population.

As at Wednesday, 70.5 per cent of adults have been fully inoculated.

The surge in Sarawak is worrying from another angle: more deaths among those who have been vaccinated have been reported in the state.

In the first week of this month, more than half of the deaths in Sarawak involved fully vaccinated individuals, the vast majority of them with comorbidities and above the age of 60.

Mr Khairy said in comparison, only 0.009 per cent of Malaysia's fully vaccinated population had succumbed to the virus, with over 80 per cent of the victims over the age of 60 and having comorbidities.

Most economic activity is currently allowed in Sarawak, which is already in Phase 3.

Moving forward, the health ministry will start to use intensive care unit (ICU) bed usage and hospitalisation rates as barometers for the pandemic.

As at Wednesday, 82 per cent - or 1,575 Covid-19 ICU beds - are being used. And some 37.8 per cent of ventilators are currently being used for patients.

Ventilator use in Sarawak is the second-lowest in the country, but its ICU bed usage rate and hospitalisation rate have been creeping up over the past week. These now stand at 73 and 68 per cent, respectively.

Meanwhile, the Klang Valley region encompassing Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Selangor, once the epicentre for Covid-19, will be moving to a more relaxed second phase of the country's four-stage Covid-19 exit strategy starting on Friday, the government announced earlier this week.

As at Wednesday, 98.4 per cent of the Klang Valley's adult population were fully vaccinated.

Mr Khairy expects the whole country to move to phase four, which is a total reopening of the economy, at the end October.

Malaysia currently has 248,676 active Covid-19 patients, with 83.7 per cent of them serving home quarantine. The rest are placed in designated quarantine facilities or in hospitals.

Malaysia has recorded 1.9 million cases and 19,163 Covid-19 deaths so far.

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2021-09-09 14:02:45Z
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Taliban interim government agrees to let foreigners leave Afghanistan - CNA

The Taliban were pressed to allow the departures by US Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad, the US official said, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity.

The official could not say whether the American civilians and other foreign nationals were among people stranded for days in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif because their private charters had not been allowed to depart.

The announcement of a new government on Tuesday was widely seen as a signal the Taliban were not looking to broaden their base and present a more tolerant face to the world, as they had earlier suggested they would do.

All of the ministers are men, and nearly all are Pashtuns, the ethnic group that predominates in the Taliban's southern Afgan heartland but accounts for less than half the country's population.

Foreign countries greeted the interim government with caution and dismay on Wednesday. In Kabul, dozens of women took to the streets in protest and several journalists covering the demonstration said Taliban fighters detained and beat them.

The new Taliban Interior Ministry later said that to avoid disturbances and security problems, anyone holding a demonstration should apply for permission 24 hours in advance.

Protests by both women and men were being curtailed because there was a security threat from Islamic State fighters, said a Taliban minister who declined to be identified.

Any attack on journalists would be investigated, he said.

QUESTIONS OVER RECOGNITION

Many critics called on the leadership to respect basic human rights and revive the economy, which faces collapse amid steep inflation, food shortages and the prospect of foreign aid being slashed as countries seek to isolate the Taliban.

The Taliban government wanted to engage with regional and Western governments and to work with international aid organisations, the Taliban minister said.

But White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said no one in the Biden administration "would suggest that the Taliban are respected and valued members of the global community".

The European Union voiced its disapproval at the appointments. It was ready to continue emergency humanitarian assistance, but longer-term development aid would depend on the Taliban upholding basic freedoms.

Saudi Arabia expressed hope the new government would help Afghanistan achieve "security and stability, rejecting violence and extremism".

Analysts said the make-up of the cabinet could hamper recognition by Western governments, which will be vital for broader economic engagement.

The new acting Cabinet includes former detainees of the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay.

The interior minister, Sirajuddin Haqqani, is wanted by the United States on terrorism charges and carries a reward of US$10 million, while his uncle, with a bounty of US$5 million, is the minister for refugees and repatriation.

NOT CRICKET

US Central Intelligence Agency director William Burns discussed Afghanistan in talks in Pakistan with army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa and military intelligence head Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed, Pakistan's military said.

Afghanistan's ousted US-backed government for years accused Pakistan of supporting the Taliban. While officially denying that, Pakistan has long seen the Taliban as its best option for minimising the influence of old rival India in Afghanistan.

The last time the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, from 1996 to 2001, women and girls were banned from work and education. The group carried out public executions and its religious police enforced a radical interpretation of Islamic law.

Taliban leaders have pledged to respect people's rights, including those of women, in accordance with sharia Islamic law, but have yet to provide details of the rules they intend to enforce. Afghans who have won greater freedoms over the past two decades fear losing them.

In an interview with Australia's SBS News, a senior Taliban official said women would not be allowed to play cricket - a popular sport in Afghanistan - or possibly any other sport because it was "not necessary" and their bodies might be exposed.

Australia's cricket board said it would scrap a planned test match against the Afghanistan men's team if the Taliban did not allow women to play.

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2021-09-09 11:25:00Z
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WHO says Africa's already thin vaccine supply to drop by 25% - CNA

That revision, Moeti told reporters, is “in part because of the prioritisation of bilateral deals over international solidarity". 

The COVAX challenges, along with export controls on vaccine doses and the introduction of booster shots by some countries, “really means at the end there has to be a calculation, a projection that we will get 25 per cent less doses than we were anticipating before the end of the year”, she said.

Moeti noted that while COVAX has delivered over 5 million vaccine doses to African countries in the past week, “three times as many doses have been thrown away in the United States alone” since March.

“Every dose is precious,” Moeti said.

“If companies and countries prioritise vaccine equity, this pandemic would be over quickly.”

The WHO says the target of vaccinating 10 per cent of people in Africa by the end of this month is being missed.

The goal is to vaccinate 40 per cent by the end of the year.

The Africa CDC says 145 million vaccine doses have been procured across the continent of 1.3 billion people, and 111 million of them, or 77 per cent, have been administered.

But far more are needed, and the rollout of booster shots by some richer countries including the United States also has caused alarm.

The WHO director-general on Wednesday called for a delay in administering boosters until the end of the year to address sharp vaccine inequality.

“The problem we have with the third (booster) doses is we have not seen enough science behind that” on when they are needed, Africa CDC director John Nkengasong told reporters on Thursday.

“Without that, we are gambling ... It is really still confusing to me why we are moving toward a vast recommendation to third doses.”

He said he fully understands that people with vulnerable immune systems need to boost their protection, but for “otherwise healthy individuals, I just haven’t seen enough science.”

African countries have recently seen a strong resurgence in cases driven by the delta variant, but the WHO Africa director reported a decrease of nearly 25 per cent in new cases last week, “the steepest drop in eight weeks since the peak in July". 

With the world’s lowest vaccine coverage, however, the continent is left vulnerable to another surge or even another variant of the coronavirus, as the highly infectious delta variant already drives outbreaks in many African countries.

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2021-09-09 12:26:21Z
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Traders Rush to Dump China Tech Stocks as Gaming Targeted Again - Yahoo Finance

(Bloomberg) -- Technology stocks led Chinese shares lower on Thursday after Beijing took aim at gaming companies for focusing solely on profit, underscoring the risk of calling a bottom to the market.

The Hang Seng Tech Index tumbled 4.5%, the most in six weeks, with Tencent Holdings Ltd. dropping by almost twice that amount in its worst day in more than a month. NetEase Inc. slumped 11% in a decline that accelerated after a report that China would halt approvals for new online games.

Thursday’s pullback was triggered by regulators summoning officials from companies including Tencent and NetEase to remind them of their social obligations and the harm caused by putting profits first. The news was a sharp blow to a tentative rebound that had investors eyeing the return of bull market for Hong Kong-listed tech stocks.

“This demonstrates the risk for those attempting to call the bottom with so much uncertainty still hanging,” said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Matthew Kanterman. “I don’t think the overnight news is a big departure from that which we already knew, but the reaction clearly signifies the skittishness of investors around any regulatory news.”

Investors remain torn between enticing valuations and China’s long-term economic prospects on the one hand, and on the other the difficulty of predicting how much further the government will go in its crackdown on private enterprise.

The risks and rewards of investing in the nation’s stocks is dividing some of the biggest names in global investing. Billionaire George Soros recently penned an op-ed in a Wall Street Journal with warnings of a “tragic mistake” while huge money managers like BlackRock Inc. are pushing to scale up their mutual fund businesses in China.

After edging toward a bull market, the Hang Seng Tech Index is now has 11% up from its Aug. 20 low, and around 40% below its February peak.

“We can see the negative news on the gaming sector also dragging down other tech names, with investors starting to consider the regulatory risks again rather than bottom fishing,” said Bu Jiajie, an analyst at China Galaxy International Securities. “Some tech stocks have had a good rebound in recent days and there is profit taking at the moment.”

Onshore, China’s CSI 300 Index closed little changed while the Shanghai Composite gained 0.5%.

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2021-09-09 09:15:38Z
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Hong Kong police raid museum commemorating 1989 Tiananmen victims - CNA

The Hong Kong Alliance is the latest target of a sweeping national security law that China imposed on the city last year to quash dissent after huge and often violent democracy protests.

The raid came a day after security police arrested Chow Hang-tung, vice-chairwoman of the alliance, and three other leaders for "not providing information" according to the national security law.

The four are currently detained for investigation.

Last month, police ordered the group to hand over financial and operational details, accusing it of working as a "foreign agent".

The request included the personal details of all members since its founding in 1989, all meeting minutes, financial records and any exchanges with other NGOs advocating for democracy and human rights in China.

On Tuesday, the day of the information handover deadline, alliance members handed police a letter saying the request was illegal, arbitrary and that no evidence of their wrongdoing had been presented.
 

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UK criticises Hong Kong arrests of Tiananmen vigil organisers as attempt to stifle dissent - South China Morning Post

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2021-09-09 05:16:31Z
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World wary of Taliban government as Afghans urge action on rights and economy - CNA

Foreign countries greeted the makeup of the new government in Afghanistan with caution and dismay on Wednesday after the Taliban appointed hardline veteran figures to top positions, including several with a US bounty on their heads.

As the newly appointed ministers and their deputies set to work after they were named late on Tuesday, acting Premier Mohammad Hasan Akhund urged former officials who fled Afghanistan to return, saying their safety would be guaranteed.

"We have suffered heavy losses for this historic moment and the era of bloodshed in Afghanistan is over," he told Al Jazeera.

Tens of thousands of people left after the Taliban seized power in mid-August following a lightning military campaign, many of them professionals fearing reprisals because of their association with the Western-backed government.

In Kabul, dozens of women took to the streets again to demand representation in the new administration and for their rights to be protected.

More broadly, people urged the leadership to revive the Afghan economy, which faces steep inflation, food shortages exacerbated by drought and the prospect of international aid being slashed as countries distance themselves from the Taliban.

The United States underscored its wariness on Wednesday. "This is a caretaker Cabinet," White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters. "No one in this administration, not the president nor anyone on the national security team, would suggest that the Taliban are respected and valued members of the global community."

The Islamist militant movement swept to power in a victory hastened by the withdrawal of US military support to Afghan government forces.

The Taliban's announcement of a new government on Tuesday was widely seen as a signal they were not looking to broaden their base and present a more tolerant face to the world.

The group has promised to respect people's rights and not seek vendettas, but it has been criticised for its heavy-handed response to protests and its part in a chaotic evacuation of thousands of people from Kabul airport.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington was assessing the Cabinet announcement. "But despite professing that a new government would be inclusive, the announced list of names consists exclusively of individuals who are members of the Taliban or their close associates, and no women," he said during a visit to a US air base in Germany that has been a transit point for evacuees from Afghanistan.

The European Union voiced its disapproval at the appointments, but said it was ready to continue humanitarian assistance. Longer-term aid would depend on the Taliban upholding basic freedoms.

Saudi Arabia expressed hope the new government would help Afghanistan achieve "security and stability, rejecting violence and extremism."

The new acting Cabinet includes former detainees of the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay, while the interior minister, Sirajuddin Haqqani, is wanted by the United States on terrorism charges and carries a reward of US$10 million.

His uncle, with a bounty of US$5 million, is the minister for refugees and repatriation.

MORE PROTESTS

The last time the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, from 1996 to 2001, women were banned from work and girls from school. The group carried out public executions and its religious police enforced a strict interpretation of Islamic law.

Taliban leaders have vowed to respect people's rights, including those of women, in accordance with sharia, but those who have won greater freedoms over the past two decades are worried about losing them.

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2021-09-08 21:55:00Z
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