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Minggu, 30 Mei 2021

Malaysia to shut all malls, allow only 17 essential service sectors to operate during total lockdown - CNA

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian government said on Sunday (May 30) that all malls will have to be shut, while 17 essential service sectors will be allowed to operate during the impending two-week "total lockdown".

These sectors include healthcare, telecommunications and media, food and beverage, utilities as well as banking.

The government will also allow companies under 12 manufacturing sectors to continue operating, such as food and drink manufacturing, medical devices, textiles for producing personal protection equipment as well as oil and gas. They will need to operate at 60 per cent capacity.

In a press conference, Senior Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said: "We hope the manufacturing sector will follow the government's orders, because we have given the condition that only 60 per cent could work."

"But I've read social media posts and found employers who forced their employees to exceed the 60 per cent capacity," he added. Mr Ismail Sabri said that employees could report such breaches to the human resource ministry and the police.

Shopping malls will need to close, except supermarkets and premises dealing in food and beverage and basic necessities, the minister added.

A statement by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry also said: "The manufacturing and manufacturing related services sectors that are allowed to operate is to ensure minimal disruption to the supply chain of critical parts, components and finished products."

"This is essential to support the continued operations of critical infrastructures and front-liners such as security, healthcare systems, information and communications and as well as ensure adequate supply of basic necessities for the Rakyat (people)."

The Sunday announcement came after the Prime Minister's Office announced on Friday that Malaysia would be undergoing a "total lockdown" from Jun 1 to Jun 14.

Malaysia's COVID-19 numbers have continued to surge, with a record 9,020 new cases and 98 deaths on Saturday. On Sunday, there were 6,999 new cases. There are now more than 560,000 cases nationwide.

Putrajaya has assured people that there would be sufficient food stocks to last throughout Phase 1 of the total lockdown. However, there have been reports of lines of people flocking to buy necessities and goods in anticipation of Tuesday.

READ: Flow of goods and supplies between Malaysia and Singapore to continue during FMCO - Gan Kim Yong

MORE VACCINATION CENTRES PLANNED, PRIVATE CLINICS TO ADMINISTER JABS

Earlier on Sunday, Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation Khairy Jamaluddin said in a press conference that more vaccination centres will be opened in the coming month to speed up the vaccination process.

The first among these will be five mega vaccination centres around the Klang Valley. “Three will be in Selangor and two will be set up in Kuala Lumpur," he said, adding that the set up would begin on Jun 7.

FILE PHOTO: People receive AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia May 5, 2021. REUTERS/Lim Huey Teng

Mr Khairy, who is also the coordinating minister for the COVID-19 Immunisation Taskforce said 1,000 private general practitioner (GP) clinics will be joining the National COVID-19 Immunisation Program by Jun 30.

He added that 500 of these clinics will begin administering vaccines starting Jun 15.

"I estimate that GPs and private hospital vaccination centres can contribute and administer 40,000 doses in a day, and 400,000 doses (in total) by Jun 30” he said, adding that this would be subject to the supply of the vaccines.

Explaining that there were currently 2,500 GP clinics registered under the immunisation program, Mr Khairy said the government will be paying the private practices to administer the vaccines.

Besides that Mr Khairy also shared that Malaysia will officially start rolling out drive-through vaccinations for the public after a successful pilot project in a university in Kota Baru, Kelantan .

“We did it in Universiti Sains Malaysia in Kubang Kerian and it was successful. We will now allow other states to start this for the public too," said the minister.

Prior to the total lockdown, the government had begun tightening restrictions under a nationwide movement control order, dubbed "MCO 3.0" which started on May 12 and will last until Jun 7.

Among the restrictions under MCO 3.0 include 80 per cent of public sector employees needing to work from home, and 40 per cent for the private sector. Businesses can only operate from 8am until 8pm daily.

BOOKMARK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its developments

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2021-05-30 10:22:09Z
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Taiwan has not 'given up hope' of getting BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine: Health minister - CNA

TAIPEI: Taiwan has not given up hope of eventually getting COVID-19 vaccines from Germany's BioNTech, Health Minister Chen Shih-chung said on Sunday (May 30), a deal that Taipei's government has blamed China for not being able to complete.

After recording just a handful of daily infections for months, Taiwan is dealing with relatively large numbers of community transmissions, though infection rates are starting to fall.

It has only vaccinated around 1 per cent of its more than 23 million people but has almost 30 million shots on order, from AstraZeneca, Moderna and two domestic firms.

The Chinese-claimed island has blamed Beijing for nixing a deal earlier this year for BioNTech vaccines, which China denies.

READ: Request to drop word 'country' preceded BioNTech vaccine deal collapse, says Taiwan

Chen told reporters that although talks for that shot had "somewhat hit the rocks", Taiwan "has not completely given up hope" of obtaining them.

Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co has a contract with BioNTech to sell the vaccines in Greater China, including to Taiwan, but Taiwan's government says it will only deal with Germany's BioNTech directly and does not trust vaccines from China.

Outside of Greater China, BioNTech has partnered with Pfizer.

Chen said that in late January, the COVAX vaccine-sharing scheme for lower-income countries had told Taiwan it could get shots from Pfizer, but on May 3 COVAX informed the government that would not be possible.

READ: Taiwan targets COVID-19 vaccination for 60% of population by October

Taiwan is under its second-highest level of curbs to stop the spread of infections, including limiting personal gatherings and closing entertainment venues.

Chen said the task was to ensure those measures were being properly enforced, adding, "At present there are no plans or intentions for a lockdown."

The government has come under fire from opposition parties for delays in testing and reporting positive cases, but Chen said that was now improving.

Taiwan reported 355 domestic COVID-19 cases on Sunday, down from 486 on Saturday. Total daily cases peaked on May 17 and have been falling since Friday.

Taiwan has reported 8,160 infections since the pandemic began, including 110 deaths.

BOOKMARK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its developments

Download our app or subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak: https://cna.asia/telegram

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2021-05-30 08:45:12Z
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Sabtu, 29 Mei 2021

'Very dangerous': Vietnam detects new UK-India 'hybrid' Covid-19 variant - AsiaOne

Authorities in Vietnam have detected a new coronavirus variant that is a combination of the Indian and UK Covid-19 variants and spreads quickly by air, the health minister said on Saturday.

After successfully containing the virus for most of last year, Vietnam is grappling with a rise in infections since late April that accounts for more than half of the total 6,856 registered cases. So far, there have been 47 deaths.

"Vietnam has uncovered a new Covid-19 variant combining characteristics of the two existing variants first found in India and the UK," Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long said, describing it as a hybrid of the two known variants.

"That the new one is an Indian variant with mutations that originally belong to the UK variant is very dangerous," he told a government meeting, a recording of which was obtained by Reuters.

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The Southeast Asian country had previously detected seven virus variants: B.1.222, B.1.619, D614G, B.1.1.7 - known as the UK variant, B.1.351, A.23.1 and B.1.617.2 - the "Indian variant".

Long said Vietnam would soon publish genome data of the newly identified variant, which he said was more transmissible than the previously known types.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified four variants of SARS-CoV-2 of global concern. These include variants that emerged first in India, Britain, South Africa and Brazil.

"At the present time, we have not yet made an assessment of the virus variant reported in Vietnam," Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO Technical Lead for Covid-19, said in an emailed statement. "Our country office is working with the Ministry of Health in Vietnam and we expect more information soon."

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From the WHO's current understanding, the variant detected in Vietnam was the B.1.617.2 variant, more commonly known as the Indian variant, possibly with an additional mutation, she said.

"However we will provide more information as soon as we receive it," Van Kerkhove added.

Long said laboratory cultures of the new variant showed the virus replicated itself very quickly, possibly explaining why so many new cases had appeared in different parts of the country in a short period of time.

The health ministry told the meeting the government was working to secure 10 million vaccine doses under the COVAX cost-sharing scheme, as well as a further 20 million doses of Pfizer's (PFE.N) vaccine and 40 million of Russia's Sputnik V.

The country of about 98 million people has so far received 2.9 million doses and aims to secure 150 million this year.

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2021-05-30 01:25:12Z
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15 years on, mud continues to gush in East Java villages as residents reel from odour and heat - CNA

SIDOARJO, East Java: Indonesian Muanisah, who goes by one name, recalled the day when she held her 40-day-old baby in despair as he had trouble breathing.

She was just about to have her breakfast on May 29, 2006 when she smelled a pungent odour, which she believed caused her baby to cry while gasping for air.

“He was yawning ... unable to breathe. I was afraid something wrong had happened to my child,” said Mdm Muanisah.

Unaware of what the smell was, she got out of her house but the odour was there too.

She decided to take public transport and seek refuge at her family’s house a few kilometres away where the air was clean. There, her baby could finally breathe normally again, she said.

“They (authorities) just said there was a gas leak,” said Mdm Muanisah, who was 22-year-old at the time.

Within a few days, it became clear that the cause of the odour was a mud flow bursting in the middle of a paddy field in Sidoarjo, East Java, just 200m away from Mdm Muanisah’s house.

(ks) Mdm Muanisah — Muanisah is now working as a motorcycle taxi rider to support her family. (Photo: Kiki Siregar)

Now, 15 years later, the mud flow has buried thousands of homes, factories and shops. It is believed to be covering an area of more than 650ha currently and is showing no signs of stopping.

The Sidoarjo mud flow has disrupted the lives of about 60,000 people, forcing them to flee or adapt to the unpleasant conditions.

The mud flow also produces methane, a powerful greenhouse gas that causes global warming and leads to climate change.

A February study by senior researcher Adriano Mazzini et al showed that the mud flow releases 100,000 tonnes of methane yearly into the atmosphere. This is said to be the site with the highest methane emission ever recorded for a single natural gas manifestation.

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PEOPLE SUFFER FROM THE MUD FLOW

The cause of the mud flow is still a topic of debate until today.

Some argue that the eruption was triggered by a 6.3 magnitude quake two days earlier in Yogyakarta, some 260km away.

There are also people who believe that drilling by oil and gas company Lapindo Brantas nearby was the culprit. Others think that the combination of both events may have contributed to the mud flow.

READ: IN FOCUS: The fight against Jakarta’s devastating yearly floods

Mr Khudori, whose house was buried by the mud flow six months after it first emerged, is frustrated by the inconveniences.

“The smell was too strong … and it also affected the water, (I got) itchy, it was polluted, we can’t drink it. Previously, we could drink it before mud flow existed.

"After the emergence of the mud flow, sometimes if I take a shower, I’ll feel itchy. And the smell made me short of breath,” said Mr Khudori, who goes by one name.

The 54-year-old was forced to find a new home about 1.5km away.

“I can still smell it. Never mind 1.5km, even at the distance of 5km it can still be smelled during the rainy season.

“If it’s the rainy season, the smell of methane is very strong. Though when it is the dry season, it is not so obvious,” said Mr Khudori.

(ks) Mr Khudori — Khudori used to live 200m away from Sidoarjo mud flow. (Photo: Kiki Siregar)

He also observed that since the mud flow emerged, Sidoarjo has become hotter. “The mud flow releases heat,” the father of six said, adding that floods seemed to occur more now.

He said there is nothing he can do about the condition, apart from turning to bottled mineral water for consumption.

A 2017 study showed that the mud temperature, which was previously 100 degree Celsius, was 60 degree Celsius. Meteorological agency data showed that the average temperature in Sidoarjo has seen an increase of less than 1 degrees Celsius in the last 15 years.

READ: 'Everything dies' - Mining, climate change threaten livelihoods of Bintan's fishing communities

Mr Khudori, who used to work at a factory near the mud flow, now works as a motorcycle taxi rider with no fixed income as the mud had also buried his workplace.

Mdm Muanisah, whose house was buried by the mud in November 2006, has since rented a house about 5km away from the mud flow.

She said there is also nothing she can do about the complaints they have, apart from using a mask at home to repel the odour she occasionally smells.

“Even before COVID-19, I have gotten used to wearing a mask,” she said.

EMBANKMENT AND PIPES TO CONTAIN THE BURST

At its peak, the mud discharged was equivalent to about 25 Olympic-sized swimming pools daily, said authorities.

To ensure that the mud flow does not continue to bury the surroundings, an embankment and pipes have been built to divert the mud to a nearby river.

(ks) aerial view of Sidoarjo mud flow — Sidoarjo mud flow covers an area of about 650ha. (Photo: Boy Slamet)

The mud comprises 80 per cent water, said Mr Pattiasina Jefry Recky, head of Sidoarjo Mud Control Center (PPLS) which is the agency overseeing the mud flow.

“The mud from the burst is about 60,000 to 90,000 cubic metres per day. And we can flow about 30 million cubic metres per year into the Porong river, but that is not enough because we are dealing with quite a lot of problems.

“The ships which (pump the mud) are old ships, so we can't work more effectively,” he said.

(ks) Sidoarjo mud ship — One of the ships which pump the Sidoarjo mud into the Porong river. (Photo: Kiki Siregar)

In addition, the agency needs to ensure that the embankment is strong.

Mr Pattiasina said some geological experts predicted that the mud flow will ooze for at least 40 years.

"It has only been 15 years. If the drainage and embankment protection is safe, then it is safe.

"We're only afraid of the rainy season because our embankment is an earthen-filled dam. It was built in a rush back then. For us technical people, a technical embankment should not be like that."

READ: Death threats, intimidation not a deterrence to scientist's mission to save Indonesia forests

He said that the embankment is 11m high. "And most likely it can’t be more than that. We are afraid that if it is higher, it will collapse because the carrying capacity is not strong," he added.

PROPOSALS TO MAKE USE OF THE MUD FLOW

Mr Mazzini, who is a senior researcher at the Centre of Earth Evolution and Dynamics (CEED) of the University of Oslo, said the Sidoarjo mud flow is something between a magmatic volcano and a mud volcano.

Mr Mazzini, who has studied the mud flow since 2006 and has visited the site numerous times, concluded that the mud flow is connected to the active Arjuno-Welirang volcanoes about 20km away.

(ks) Sidoarjo mud flow May 2021 — Sidoarjo mud flow has buried thousands of homes, factories and shops. (Photo: Kiki Siregar)

The conclusion was made because the gas and water from the mud flow and the volcanoes are the same.

His latest study, which was conducted with his colleagues using a combined method of ground-based and satellite observations, showed that the methane concentration in Sidoarjo is very high compared to other parts of East Java. Most of the methane originates from the mud flow, according to the study.

Government agencies told CNA they do not know how much gas methane has been released by the mud flow.

Mr Pattiasina of PPLS said there have been plans to make lithium batteries out of the mud, but as of now it is still being discussed.

(ks) PPLS Sidoarjo mud flow — Head of Sidoarjo Mud Control Center (PPLS) Pattiasina Jefry Recky showing a map of Sidoarjo mud site. (Photo: Kiki Siregar)

Head of Sidoarjo’s environment and sanitation agency Sigit Setyawan said the agency had planned to work with an energy company to produce biomass from the mud as an alternative source of renewable energy since 2019.

“However, the plan was constrained by the COVID-19 pandemic,” he told CNA.

He added that the agency also proposed to plant productive crops on the land buried by the mud, which the government has bought from locals as the area was too dangerous to live in.

GOVERNMENT HAS TO DO MORE: ENVIRONMENT NGO

Mr Anung Suprayitno, head of the meteorological, climatological and geophysical agency (BMKG) Malang, said that even though the mud flow has existed for 15 years, more data is needed to conclude its impact on the climate.

The agency, which oversees the management of meteorological and climatological data throughout East Java, said it does not know the full extent of Sidoarjo mud flow's contribution to greenhouse gas emission.

(ks) Sidoarjo mud flow drainage — The Sidoarjo mud flow is flushed into Porong river. (Photo: Boy Slamet)

While meteorological data in the last 15 years shows that the temperature at Sidoarjo has increased by less than 1 degree Celsius and rainfall has increased in a small amount, Mr Suprayitno said the agency does not know if the mud flow is an reinforcing factor that accelerates the local scale of climate change.

Mr Rere Christanto, who is the director executive of environmental non-governmental organisation Walhi East Java, said that there has been an increase in disasters over the past few years in East Java especially floods and landslides.

The Sidoarjo mud flow is part of a site that accounts for the largest emission of methane gas, and hence it has a big role to play in the build-up of greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere, he said.

READ: Planting crops, building wells - Local volunteers take the lead to prevent yearly peatland fires in Indonesia's Riau

He said it is important that the government acknowledges this and does more than discharging the water sludge into the Porong river.

The government has to analyse the mud and look into the possible extent and danger of its content, he said.

"Now, if we have a threat map, we can imagine what actions the government can take and then take precautions. How large the area is and where. For example, the community can be given masks to wear.

"But it won't happen if the government doesn't want to admit (that the site releases huge amounts of methane)."

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2021-05-29 23:15:00Z
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Vietnam detects hybrid of Covid-19 variants identified in India and Britain - The Straits Times

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2021-05-29 16:15:11Z
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Malaysia reports daily record of 9020 new COVID-19 cases - CNA

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia reported 9,020 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday (May 29), its highest daily toll since the start of the pandemic.

This is the fifth straight day of record new infections, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 558,534, of which 76,218 are currently active or infectious.

There are 844 patients in intensive care, a new record for the fifth consecutive day, with 430 requiring respiratory support.

Malaysia also reported 98 new deaths, bringing the total fatalities to 2,650.

Of the new confirmed cases, there are five imported infections while the rest are local cases.

In its update on Saturday, the health ministry reported 5,527 new recovered cases, taking the total recoveries to 479,666.

The number of individuals who have completed two COVID-19 vaccine doses in Malaysia has surpassed the one million mark, with more than 1.01 million people vaccinated as of Friday, said Health Minister Adham Baba.

Dr Adham, in his tweet on Saturday said more than 1.77 million individuals had received the first dose, bringing the total number of COVID-19 vaccine recipients in the country to nearly 2.8 million.

He said that the five states with the highest number of people who have completed the two doses of vaccine were Selangor at 138,063 people, followed by Sarawak at 96,450, Kuala Lumpur with 94,397 people and Johor at 88,240.

As of Friday, 48.6 per cent or more than 11.7 million individuals had registered to receive vaccine shots, with Selangor continuing to record the highest registrations at nearly 3.16 million people.

"TOTAL LOCKDOWN" TO START ON JUN 1

Malaysia will close all economic and social sectors by implementing a "total lockdown" throughout the country, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced on Friday night.

The first phase of the lockdown will last from Jun 1 to Jun 14. Only essential economic and service sectors listed by the National Security Council will be allowed to operate during this phase.

READ: Malaysia to enter 'total lockdown' from Jun 1 to Jun 14 as daily number of COVID-19 cases hits new record

"This decision was made after taking into account the current situation of COVID-19 transmission in Malaysia with daily case numbers exceeding 8,000 and active cases exceeding 70,000," said a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office on Friday.

The emergence of more virulent COVID-19 variants also influenced the National Security Council's decision to implement the lockdown.

With the sharp rise in the daily number of COVID-19 cases, hospitals' capacity to treat patients throughout the country are "becoming more limited", the statement added.

If phase 1 of the lockdown is successful in reducing daily COVID-19 cases, the government will implement a four-week phase 2 lockdown, allowing the reopening of a few economic sectors that do not involve large gatherings.

"Once the phase 2 lockdown ends, the next step is phase 3, which is implementing a movement control order (MCO) similar to the current one in effect, where social activities are not allowed and nearly all economic sectors are allowed to operate subject to strict standard operating procedures and limited physical presence at workplaces," said the Prime Minister's Office.

BOOKMARK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its developments

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2021-05-29 11:37:30Z
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Myanmar's shadow government parades new armed force - CNA

YANGON: The underground government set up by opponents of Myanmar's military junta said its first batch of recruits have finished training for a new defence force, releasing video of them parading in uniform.

The National Unity Government had announced it would form a People's Defence Force to challenge the army, which seized power on Feb 1, ousting elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and plunging the country into chaos.

The video of the graduation ceremony was released on Friday (May 28) in the name of Yee Mon, the shadow government's defence minister.

"This military is established by the official civilian government," an unidentified officer says at the ceremony. "The People's Defence Force must be aligned with the people and protect the people. We will fight to win this battle."

READ: Southeast Asian states want to drop proposed UN call for Myanmar arms embargo

A junta spokesman did not answer calls seeking comment.

The military authorities say the National Unity Government is treasonous and that both it and the People's Defence Force have been designated as terrorist groups.

The video shows around 100 fighters marching on a muddy parade ground in the jungle. They march in new camouflage uniforms behind the flags of the new force, red with a white star. They are not shown carrying weapons.

Nearly four months after the coup, the army is still struggling to impose order.

READ: Millions in Myanmar struggle to buy food as coup price hike bites

Anti-military protests take place daily in many parts of the country, strikes by opponents of the junta have paralysed business and fighting has flared with ethnic armed groups that oppose the junta and new militias formed to oppose it.

Two homemade bombs exploded in the main city of Yangon on Saturday, apparently targeting a police post and an army truck, the Mizzima news service said. It said one person speaking to the soldiers had been wounded in the second incident.

The junta's forces have killed more than 800 people since the coup, according to figures cited by the United Nations. More than 4,000 people have been detained.

Junta leader Min Aung Hlaing says the civilian death toll is nearer to 300 and has said around 50 members of the police have been killed. He gave no figure for soldiers. Groups fighting the armed forces say they have inflicted scores of casualties.

The army justified its coup on the grounds of fraud in an election swept by Aung San Suu Kyi's party in November. The allegations were rejected by the previous electoral commission.

Aung San Suu Kyi, 75, is on trial on a series of charges that her lawyers say are politically motivated.

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2021-05-29 08:01:48Z
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