A Chinese ship was back in the part of the South China Sea claimed by Vietnam, days after China sank a Vietnamese fishing boat — adding to fears that Beijing might use the coronavirus pandemic to distract from its maritime maneuvers.The ship, Haiyang Dizhi, returned to Vietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone before 6 p.m. Vietnam time Tuesday, according to Marine Traffic, a commercial service that tracks vessels and cargo.The biggest source of tension between the two nations has long been the disputed South China Sea, which the United States considers one of the most likely sites in the world for a future military skirmish.The Chinese ship’s arrival threatens to escalate tensions after the sinking of the Vietnamese vessel on April 2.The Haiyang Dizhi is the same ship that spent months last year seeming to explore Vietnam’s oil-rich part of the sea. Vietnamese ships tailed the vessel for months around the exclusive zone, until it left in October.Vietnam appeared to be rid of the Haiyang Dizhi problem, until this week. The Vietnamese government did not immediately comment on the arrival of the ship, which China sent less than two weeks after it sunk a Vietnamese boat with eight fishermen on board. The fishermen returned to safety.The United States has accused China of using the COVID-19 “distraction” for a maritime advantage.”We call on the PRC (People’s Republic of China) to remain focused on supporting international efforts to combat the global pandemic and to stop exploiting the distraction or vulnerability of other states to expand its unlawful claims in the South China Sea,” said Morgan Ortagus, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State.This week’s ship incursion marks another apparent attempt by China to gain an edge in the sea while the world is busy with the pandemic, some Vietnamese citizens say.”The Chinese are taking advantage of the opportunity that Vietnam is focusing on fighting the Wuhan Virus to carry out a plot to steal territory,” Le Cam said on Facebook, referencing the Chinese city where the coronavirus was first identified.FILE – A billboard in front of the Ho Chi Minh City skyline reminds residents of Vietnam’s territorial claims in the South China Sea. (Ha Nguyen/VOA)For its part, China says it is defending its territory. The Global Times, a newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, said Vietnam is using South China Sea tensions to “shift the spotlight from the recent domestic pressure and its ineptitude in handling” COVID-19.A Vietnamese government official called the claim laughable and worthy of a satirical comedy.China has been criticized for withholding information that could have helped the world curb the pandemic sooner.Human Rights Watch China Director Sophie Richardson blasted “the shocking death tolls, fear, and uncertainty that people across China have endured from the coronavirus.”Despite the toll that COVID-19 has taken on China’s population, economy and foreign reputation, the nation wants to show it is strong, analysts say. They agree that China’s recent sea maneuvers are meant to show that the virus will not weaken its claim to the sea, parts of which are also claimed by Malaysia, the Philippines and Taiwan, in addition to Vietnam.”China does not want to appear weak and invite claimant states or outside states to change the status quo in the South China Sea,” said Carlyle Thayer, professor at the University of New South Wales Canberra.According to Marine Traffic, the Haiyang Dizhi has departed from Vietnamese-claimed waters. As of Wednesday, the ship’s whereabouts are unknown.
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Category: East
East news. East is the direction toward which the Earth rotates about its axis, and therefore the general direction from which the Sun appears to rise. The practice of praying towards the East is older than Christianity, but has been adopted by this religion as the Orient was thought of as containing mankind’s original home
Search for COVID-19 Vaccine Heats Up in China, US
Three potential COVID-19 vaccines are making fast progress in early-stage testing in volunteers in China and the U.S., but it’s still a long road to prove if they’ll really work.
China’s CanSino Biologics has begun the second phase of testing its vaccine candidate, China’s Ministry of Science and Technology said Tuesday.
In the U.S., a shot made by the National Institutes of Health and Moderna Inc. isn’t far behind. The first person to receive that experimental vaccine last month returned to a Seattle clinic Tuesday for a second dose.
NIH infectious disease chief Dr. Anthony Fauci told The Associated Press there are “no red flags” so far and he hoped the next, larger phase of testing could begin around June.
A third candidate, from Inovio Pharmaceuticals, began giving experimental shots for first-step safety testing last week in the U.S. and hopes to expand its studies to China.
Initial tests focus on safety, and researchers in both countries are trying out different doses of different types of shots.
But moving into the second phase is a critical step that allows vaccines to be tested in many more people to look for signs that they protect against infection.
Last week, CanSino filed a report showing it aimed to enroll 500 people in this next study, comparing two doses of the vaccine to dummy shots. As of Monday, 273 of the volunteers had been injected, state media said.
Looking ahead, Fauci said if the new coronavirus continues to circulate widely enough over the summer and fall, it might be possible to finish larger studies slightly sooner than the 12 to 18 months he’d originally predicted — maybe toward “mid to late winter of next season.”
“Please let me say this caveat: That is assuming that it’s effective. See, that’s the big ‘if,'” Fauci stressed. “It’s got to be effective and it’s got to be safe.”
During a news conference in China, authorities also cautioned that the studies must be done properly.
“Although we are in an emergency, we cannot lower the standards of safety and effectiveness in the reviews of vaccines,” said Wang Junzhi, a Chinese biopharmaceutical expert. “The public is paying huge attention.”
The World Health Organization this week counted more than five dozen other vaccine candidates in earlier stages of development being pursued around the world. Many research groups are teaming up to speed the work; in an announcement Tuesday, vaccine giants Sanofi and GSK became the latest to partner on a candidate.
On the WHO’s list are a wide variety of ways to make vaccines — so if one approach doesn’t pan out, hopefully another one will.
CanSino’s vaccine is based on a genetically engineered shot it created to guard against Ebola. The leading U.S. candidates use a different approach, made from copies of a piece of the coronavirus’ genetic code.
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With Masks, Hand Sanitizer, and Gloves, South Koreans Vote During Pandemic
South Koreans stood in socially distanced lines, disinfected their hands, and wore face masks and gloves inside polling stations, as they participated in one of the world’s first major elections of the coronavirus era. Having already rapidly slowed the spread of the coronavirus, South Korea is implementing wide-ranging measures to ensure Wednesday’s parliamentary vote does not lead to a resurgence of the disease.People wearing face masks to help protect against the spread of the new coronavirus arrive to cast their vote for the parliamentary election at a polling station in Seoul, South Korea, April 15, 2020.Voters stood a meter apart on specially marked lines at polling stations, which were disinfected ahead of the election. Poll workers provided a mandatory squirt of hand sanitizer and disposable plastic gloves, while checking voter temperatures with contact-free thermometers.Those with symptoms casted ballots at separate booths. Voters in self-isolation were allowed to cast their ballots after regular voting ended later in the day.“Seoul has been safe, and I feel safe here, too,” said 56-year-old Jang Je-yeon, who cast a vote in central Seoul late Wednesday. “At first, I was a bit worried about being infected, but the polling stations have been thoroughly disinfected, and we received gloves and were kept apart from each other,” said, 22-year-old Jeong Geun-young, a first-time voter. South Korean National Election Commission officials wearing masks and face shields, sort out ballots for counting at the parliamentary election at a ballot counting office in Seoul, April 15, 2020.Final voter turnout was 63 percent, the highest for a South Korean parliamentary election in nearly two decades. South Korea’s experience could be instructive for other countries planning elections during a time of social distancing. Experts have warned that bringing millions of voters to the same locations could allow the disease to spread rapidlyPostponement: not an option
Some other countries where the virus has not been contained already have delayed elections. But postponing the vote was out of the question for South Korea, said Duyeon Kim, a senior adviser for northeast Asia at the International Crisis Group.“South Koreans have trauma from two authoritarian regimes between 1963-1988, so elections are particularly essential to their democracy,” she said. “Not even the Korean War stopped them from voting in the 1952 presidential race.” Referendum on Moon Wednesday’s vote effectively serves as a midterm referendum on South Korean President Moon Jae-in. Moon’s political fortunes have rebounded after he oversaw one of the world’s most effective coronavirus responses. FILE – Medical workers wearing protective gears comfort each other outside a hospital in Daegu, South Korea, Feb. 28, 2020.South Korea was initially one of the countries hardest hit by the virus. But it quickly became a global model for coronavirus containment, after the government implemented a mass campaign of testing, data-driven investigations of infection paths, and effective treatment and isolation of those exposed to the virus. The number of new daily infections in South Korea has recently slowed to about 30, and officials in Seoul are now considering how to begin reopening the economy.
Amid the pandemic, Moon’s approval rating has surged above 50% — putting him in an unusually comfortable position for a South Korean president entering the second half of his single, five-year term in office. The coronavirus has largely overshadowed other issues plaguing Moon, including a sluggish economy, a corruption controversy involving his now-resigned justice minister, and an inability to advance talks with North Korea. North Korea: not a big factor In a reminder of how Moon’s outreach to Pyongyang has failed, North Korea launched a series of short-range missiles Tuesday, just a day ahead of the South Korean vote. North Korea often conducts military provocations ahead of South Korean elections — ostensibly to influence the vote or pressure the government in Seoul.
“This cycle, there has been less debate in Seoul about relations with Pyongyang because COVID-19 has taken up so much political bandwidth,” said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul. “The Kim regime, however, will not be ignored and may even be a bit annoyed about South Koreans practicing their democracy on [North Korean founder] Kim Il Sung’s birthday,” which also is on Wednesday, Easley added. FILE – People watch a TV screen airing reports about North Korea’s firing missiles with file images of missiles at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, April 14, 2020.North Korea has conducted five rounds of short-range missile tests this year, after conducting 13 rounds last year. The launches have received relatively little media coverage in South Korea, meaning they may not affect the vote.Turnout concerns There had been concerns the pandemic may persuade many of South Korea’s 44 million eligible voters to stay home.FILE – A South Korean man casts a ballot during early voting ahead of next week’s parliamentary elections, at a polling station in Seoul.Some of those concerns were allayed after the country saw a record number of early voters cast ballots last week — a factor that could prevent overcrowding on election day. And turnout did prove to be quite strong.But some problems couldn’t be fixed. Only about half of eligible South Korean voters living in foreign countries were able to vote, because of coronavirus-related lockdowns overseas. Additionally, COVID-19 patients being treated at hospitals or other facilities were able to vote by mail only if they applied during a five-day period in late March. Preserving democracy Despite those challenges, South Korea moved ahead with the election — setting an example for other countries that will try to preserve democracy, as well as voter health in future elections.”If we had postponed the election, we would have to fight COVID-19 without a legitimate government, which is far more dangerous than infection from voting booths,” said Lee Sang-sin, a research fellow who focuses on political science and public opinion at the Korean Institute for National Unification. “The best cure for the COVID-19 is, so far as we know, competent and responsive leadership.””So, it is not that South Korea is holding an election in spite of the virus,” he says. “We need an election to fight the disease now more than ever. Democracy is not a luxury. It is essential.”
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Asia Today: Japan Sees More COVID Patients And Dire Projection
About 850,000 people could be seriously sickened by the coronavirus in Japan and almost half of them could die if no social distancing or other measures are followed, according to a government-commissioned estimate released Wednesday.
Japan has the world’s oldest population, and the virus can be especially dangerous for the elderly. And there are concerns that Japan’s government has done too little to stave off high numbers of badly ill patients.
Japan’s current state of emergency is voluntary and doesn’t compensate workers for lost earnings. Japanese companies also have been slow to introduce remote work, and people have continued to use public transit to commute to large offices in the densely populated capital region.
Already, patients are being moved to non-specialist hospitals and even hotels as infections surge in the capital, where medical experts warn the health care system is on the brink of collapse.
The projection is a worst-case scenario, said Hokkaido University professor Hiroshi Nishiura, an expert on cluster analysis. He urged people to cooperate in the social distancing effort. “We can stop the transmission if all of us change our activity and significantly reduce interactions,” he said. The report projected 420,000 deaths if no preventive measures were taken.
Japan has more than 8,800 confirmed coronavirus cases and 131 deaths, including about 700 cases from a cruise ship that was quarantined at a port near Tokyo earlier this year.
The health ministry reported 457 new cases on Wednesday. Tokyo has about a quarter of Japan’s total cases.
In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region: South Korea Votes: Voters wore masks and moved slowly between lines of tape at polling stations after the government resisted calls to postpone South Korea’s parliamentary elections, seen as a midterm referendum on President Moon Jae-in. Long lines and record-high participation in early voting seemed to defy expectations of low voter turnout in the middle of a social-distancing campaign to slow infections.Vaccine Study Advances: Chinese scientists have started the second phase of a clinical trial of a coronavirus vaccine in the hardest-hit city of Wuhan in central China’s Hubei province. China Central Television reported 273 out of 500 volunteers have been injected with the vaccine candidate. The first phase of the vaccine clinical trial focused on its safety, while the second phase is studying its efficacy. China reported 46 new virus cases on Wednesday, 36 of them from overseas. Who Funding: Australia’s prime minister says he sympathizes with U.S. President Donald Trump’s criticisms of the World Health Organization but Australia will not stop funding the U.N. agency. Trump has ordered his administration to freeze funding for WHO, saying it didn’t deliver adequate early reports on the coronavirus and cost the U.S. valuable response time. “I sympathize with his criticisms and I’ve made a few of my own,” Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison told Perth Radio 6PR on Wednesday. “WHO is also an organization that does a lot of important work, including here in our own region in the Pacific, and we work closely with them so that we’re not going to throw the baby out with the bathwater here.” China said Wednesday it is “seriously concerned” about the U.S. funding freeze.US: China not Blocking Medical Supplies: The U.S. ambassador to China says he doesn’t believe Beijing is deliberately blocking exports of masks and other medical supplies to fight the coronavirus, and that the shipment of 1,200 tons of such products to the U.S. could not have been possible without Chinese support. Ambassador Terry Branstad also says the U.S. has concerns about how China initially handled the virus outbreak in the central city of Wuhan, but that such issues should be addressed after the pandemic has been brought under control. Chinese officials are believed to have delayed reporting the outbreak for several crucial days in January due to political concerns, allowing the virus to spread further. China has adamantly denied doing so, despite strong evidence. Nes Zealand Pay Cuts: Top New Zealand officials are taking a 20% pay cut for six months in acknowledgment of people’s sacrifices in dealing with the coronavirus. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says it applies to government ministers, chief executives of government organizations, and that opposition leader Simon Bridges had volunteered to join as well. She said it wouldn’t apply to any front-line staff such as doctors and nurses. Ardern’s salary of $286,000 is comparatively high for a country with only 5 million people.Mandatory masks: Singapore has made masks mandatory following a sharp spike in new cases. Most people not wearing masks can be fined $212, while repeated offenders could face stiffer penalties. Infections in the tiny city-state have surged beyond 3,200 after two straight days of sharp increases. Many were among foreign workers living in crowded dormitoriesVirus Tracking App: Australia’s prime minister expects a tracking app under development in the country will massively boost health authorities’ ability to trace coronavirus contacts if the government can overcome privacy concerns. Prime Minister Scott Morrison told Perth Radio 6PR on Wednesday his government is carefully working through privacy issues because at least 40% of Australians will need to download the app on their smart phones if it is to effective. The Australian app is based on Singapore’s contact tracing app, TraceTogether.Flight Ban Extended: Thailand has extended through April 30 a ban on international passenger flights to help control the coronavirus. The ban was initially ordered April 4 after chaos broke out at Bangkok’s international airport when more than 100 returning Thais reportedly refused to go directly to state-run quarantine centers. The original three-day ban has already been extended once. Strict regulations requiring prior certification by foreigners that they are virus free have effectively banned the entry of most foreign visitors. Thailand has a huge tourism industry and last year welcomed about 40 million visitors.Hong Kong Arrivals Plunge: Arrivals in Hong Kong plunged to a new low of 82,000 in March, a 99% drop from the same time last year as the city banned the entry of foreigners to curb the spread of the virus. The indefinite ban on incoming travelers was imposed March 25.Sneaking Out Of Quarantine: A man who repeatedly left a hotel to visit his girlfriend has become the first person in Australia to be jailed for breaching a coronavirus quarantine order. Jonathan David was sentenced to six months and two weeks in prison but will likely only spend one month behind bars. He was also fined $1,280. David returned home to Perth from the Australian east coast on March 28 and was directed to spend the next two weeks in quarantine in a hotel, a standard requirement for interstate travelers. But he repeatedly left and used public transport to visit his girlfriend.
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Why Filipinos Support President’s Extended Virus Containment Shutdowns Despite Economic Hardship
Shutdowns in the Philippines through April 30 to contain the coronavirus spread are expected to give President Rodrigo Duterte a new burst of public support despite economic hardships on a largely impoverished population. Duterte ordered in March that the National Capital Region be sealed off through April 14 and two weeks ago extended the order through April 30. The initial mandate came after officials discovered local transmission of the deadly coronavirus-induced respiratory disease COVID-19 that has infected 5,223 people in the Philippines and killed 335. Metro Manila, population 13 million, plus surrounding Luzon Island are subject to shutdowns and curfews through month’s end. Economic stimulus and public health aid expected to total $23 billion, up to 6% of GDP, in the Philippines is helping to ease discontent, analysts believe. They say the aid is reaching the poor as well as others after a rough, confusing start. In March, one group of slum dwellers in Metro Manila protested along a highway after not receiving food supplies as expected. Vice President Leni Robredo’s office, for example, had distributed food packages to health workers, hospitals and community centers, her office said in a statement March 18. “Of course, there are challenges, but it’s slowing working into the system, so that’s why they were confident in extending the lockdown to April 30,” said Jonathan Ravelas, chief market strategist with Banco de Oro UniBank. In a boost for Duterte, the Philippine Senate voted unanimously last month on a bill declaring a national state of emergency. The Senate gave Duterte special powers over the budget and government programs as related to coronavirus control, domestic media outlets reported.Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte undergoes testing for COVID-19 at the Malacanang Palace, Manila, Philippine officials say Duterte is being tested for the new virus after meeting with Cabinet officials who were exposed to infected people.Duterte – popular throughout his presidency that began in 2016 – has generated more popularity through televised “pep talks” about his government’s efforts, said Eduardo Araral, associate professor at the National University of Singapore’s public policy school. “I think the food and the money has started to trickle in,” Araral said. “Duterte’s approval rating is still resilient. He’s on top of things, so that probably has kept the anger from boiling.” Duterte said Monday he would consider a “gradual economic revival” aimed at helping people affected by shutdowns, according to a statement on the presidential office website. Shelter-in-place orders and mass business shutdowns have gripped much of the world since February as governments try to control virus caseloads by reducing social interaction. Groups outside the Philippines have opposed some of the restrictions. In India, migrant workers unable to return home protested Tuesday against an extension of the country’s lockdown. People asked to shelter at home in parts of the United States have defied the order. In Germany, the Constitutional Court banned a planned rally to advocate the right to assembly even during lockdown. Land, air and sea travel in the Philippine capital region is restricted through April 30 and anyone entering the metro area for work from its farther-flung suburbs is supposed to show proof of employment. Shopping malls, a major source of retail income and service jobs, are closed. The Southeast Asian country’s economy depends partly on consumer spending, which is growing because of job creation on the back of new investments in factories, infrastructure and call centers. Officials hope GDP growth will ease poverty that afflicts one in five Filipinos. GDP could stall at no growth this year, Ravelas said. Philippine officials have talked about replacing the lockdown next month with quarantines of infected communities or a phased-in lifting, people on the ground say. Public support could fade if harder restrictions last too long, analysts say. In government, “they’re very careful about how they’re going to proceed with things, because there might be some sensitivity to public sentiments and public reaction about how the administration is actually addressing the virus,” said Herman Kraft, political science professor at University of the Philippines Diliman.
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US Returns $300 Million Allegedly Stolen From Malaysia
The U.S. says it has returned $300 million to Malaysia that was stolen from the country’s state-owned investment fund in part of an elaborate corruption scheme. The U.S. Justice Department said Tuesday the money came from assets forfeited by Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low. A U.S. federal judge handed down a series of judgements last year ordering Low and his family to forfeit more than $700 million in assets located in the United States, Britain and Switzerland. Low has been accused of siphoning money from the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) fund and using it to buy high-priced items. These include luxury homes, art and jewelry, a boutique hotel in Beverly Hills, California, and numerous business investments, including the Hollywood feature film “The Wolf of Wall Street.” The U.S. Justice Department says it now has recovered more than $600 million in funds stolen from 1MDB, which was created by former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak to promote economic development. U.S. prosecutors say Najib and his associates looted at least $4.5 billion from the fund between 2009 and 2015. The accusations against Najib led to the stunning 2018 defeat of his ruling coalition, which had been in power since Malaysia’s independence in 1957. Najib also is facing numerous criminal charges in connection with his role in the scandal.
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Coronavirus Poses Major Threat to North Korea’s Fragile Health System
North Korea is among a handful of countries in the world claiming to be free of COVID-19. The country is also among the most ill-prepared for a coronavirus outbreak.”I do think the North Korean government is very well aware of how weak their health care system is,” said Katharina Zellweger, director of KorAid, a Hong-Kong-based non-governmental organization. “They’re afraid they can’t cope with an outbreak, and this is why all these measures were put into place so early.”Zellweger, who has been providing humanitarian aid to North Korea since 1995, spoke during a conference call Monday hosted by the Wilson Center.She explained that North Korea sealed off its border with China at the end of January, quarantined foreigners and enforced domestic travel restrictions.Crumbling medical systemNorth Korea ranked 193th out of 195 countries surveyed, followed by Somalia and Equatorial Guinea, in the Global Health Index, in a study released last October by Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.FILE – Volunteers carry out disinfection work during an anti-virus campaign in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this image released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), March 4, 2020.The index gauged each country’s level of preparedness for a major infectious disease outbreak. North Korea scored “nil” in the category of infection control practices and the availability of equipment.”The system of testing and diagnosing an infectious disease is nonexistent in North Korea. Only a few hospitals can conduct blood tests,” a Western expert familiar with the medical system in Pyongyang told VOA. The expert requested anonymity.”North Korea’s medical system is fragile and weak, and they’re only able to treat only a handful of critically ill patients,” Kee Park, a lecturer at Harvard Medical School, said at a forum hosted Tuesday by the U.S. Institute of Peace.Park, who has been working alongside North Korean doctors for the past 13 years in medical aid programs, cited epidemic modeling by Imperial College London to explain how COVID-19 cases in North Korea will quickly exceed hospital capacity.Upholding North Korea’s claims of virus-free status, Park said he thinks “the North Koreans succeeded in flattening the curve and maybe completely squashed it,” but he still advises Pyongyang to “continue to apply the comprehensive preventive measures until treatment and vaccine becomes available.”Economic blowIn a recent report, the World Food Program put North Korea among 49 poor countries at risk of facing devastating economic consequences from the coronavirus. Aid workers say a negative impact is already being felt on the ground.FILE – People review information explaining the COVID-19 coronavirus at the Phyongchon District People’s Hospital in Pyongyang, North Korea, April, 1, 2020.”Spring and early summer have always been a difficult period with (food) stocks depleting — the so-called barley season,” Zellweger said. “And now with trading at nearly a halt, long quarantine for cargo, international transport problems, a possible lack of fertilizer supplies, seeds, plastic sheeting and other agricultural inputs, add additional pressure.”Scott Snyder, director of the U.S.-Korea Policy Program at the Council on Foreign Relations, cautions that North Korea’s COVID quarantine measures may give more control to the regime.”Quarantine increases the scarcity of goods and in turn increases internal dependency on the leadership. … Scarcity, I think, also indirectly serves the state’s desire to reassert centralized economic control over distribution and availability of goods,” Snyder said.Other experts point to potential regime instability after the outbreak.”My fear is that a coronavirus outbreak in North Korea could have devastating effects on the Korean people, on the military and on (the) regime elite, which can lead to internal instability for the regime,” said David Maxwell, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, at the forum hosted by the U.S. Institute of Peace.William Kim contributed to this report.
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US Military Dismisses Threat from Latest North Korean Missile Test
The highest-ranking military officer in the United States is downplaying the latest missile launch by North Korea, even though it could be a few more days before military analysts are done with their assessments. “I don’t think it is particularly provocative or threatening to us,” Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters during a briefing at the Pentagon Tuesday. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley testifies to Senate Armed Services Committee, March 4, 2020, on Capitol Hill in Washington.“These were not any particularly big missiles,” he said, adding that the timing of the launch might have more to do with events playing out in Pyongyang. “It may be tied to some celebrations that are happening inside North Korea as opposed to any deliberate provocation against us,” Milley said. The missile launches earlier Tuesday came on the eve of a holiday marking the birthday of Kim Il Sung, North Korea’s founder and the grandfather of current leader Kim Jong Un. Early reports from the South Korean military suggested the test involved two types of missiles: short-range cruise missiles launched from North Korea’s east coast and air-to-ground missiles fired from a fighter jet. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said its assessments of the launch were also ongoing, and that it was in contact with U.S. officials. Despite failing to get much of a reaction from top U.S. military officials, there may be reason to take notice of North Korea’s actions, some officials and analysts warn. Tuesday’s test is the fifth in a string of short-range missile launches carried out by Pyongyang this year. And it came just a day before South Koreans are to go to the polls to vote on the 300-member National Assembly. Some analysts have suggested the missile launch could be part of a last-ditch effort to influence the election, though others believe North Korea may simply be wanting attention. “This (election) cycle, there has been less debate in Seoul about relations with Pyongyang because COVID-19 has taken up so much political bandwidth,” according to Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul. U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as they meet at the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas, in Panmunjom, South Korea, June 30, 2019.The U.S., under President Donald Trump, has been trying to engage with Pyongyang to get the North to give up its nuclear weapons program, something U.S. intelligence officials have repeatedly said is unlikely. Those talks stalled last year, but Trump and Kim have continued to correspond. North Korea’s state-run news agency said Trump sent a letter to Kim last month, offering to help the country battle the coronavirus pandemic. But in the face of the latest missile test, U.S. officials found themselves using familiar language. “We are aware of media reports and are currently assessing the situation,” a senior administration official said when asked about the North Korean test launch. “We continue to call on North Korea to avoid provocations, abide by obligations under U.N. Security Council Resolutions and return to sustained and substantive negotiations to do its part to achieve complete denuclearization,” the official added. Bill Gallo contributed to this report.
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Popular Malaysian Burger Chain Tries to Keep the Sizzle During Harsh Economic Times
Some customers come for the beef burger known as the Hangover topped with hash browns, mushrooms and maple-flavored syrup. Others crave the Juicy Lucy with its cheddar cheese-stuffed patty wrapped with beef bacon.“This place makes my mouth water,” said Jimmy Chan, after leaving the restaurant with burgers for himself, his wife and two children.Chin Ren Yi, 39, co-founded myBurgerLab in 2012. He spent his summers as a university student in the United States, where the famed In-N-Out Burger inspired him to open his own burger business, which has grown into a six-branch chain.Following Malaysia’s movement restriction’s enacted in response to the coronavirus, myBurgerLab co-founder Chin Ren Yi says his six-branch restaurant chain is operating at 20% to 30% below the break-even point. (Dave Grunebaum/VOA)“We do have our traditional Western burgers, including a simple cheeseburger,” Chin said. “However, we also play around with creative flavors.”
Behind all the sizzle is concern that this business could soon fizzle. Due to the coronavirus, myBurgerLab, like so many businesses around Malaysia and the world, is dealing with an economic climate that threatens its survival.Malaysia’s nationwide movement restrictions require restaurants to close by 8 p.m. each night. Chin says the early closing means fewer sales. The restaurant’s tables and chairs are empty because eateries cannot let customers dine in. Patrons can order takeout — more than 90% of myBurgerLab’s orders are for delivery, compared to 35% before movement restrictions were initiated. The delivery companies take a 20%- to 30% commission.“We are right now 20%- to 30% below the break-even mark,” Chin said. “It basically spells bad news for us.”myBurgerLab’s combination of traditional Western-style burgers as well as creative flavors have made it a hit with greater Kuala Lumpur’s middle class crowd. (Dave Grunebaum/VOA)The company has already reduced costs. Senior managers took pay cuts ranging from 10- to 25%. Chin said since the movement restrictions started last month, about half of his 200 part-time hourly employees — mostly university students — have chosen not to work. To keep the restaurants open, full-timers from the back office are dividing their time between working from home and helping out in the branches.“We have our finance people, our operation guys, even HR people working on the ground,” Chin said. “Either doing cashiering, doing griddle — which is flipping burgers or assembling burgers.”Under ordinary circumstances, finance manager Cassandra Poon would calculate numbers and push papers on her desk. On a recent afternoon, however, she was behind the counter, taking customer orders.“I repeat your order,” Poon said. “One Juicy Lucy, awesome fries and one soda.”Finance manager Cassandra Poon now spends a couple days of a week taking orders at the register and assembling burgers at the counter instead of just sitting behind her desk. (Dave Grunebaum/VOA)She was also in the kitchen placing lettuce on buns while waiting for the made-to-order burgers to finish cooking.“I would say compared to working in the office and working in the store — (the) office would mentally stress you out,” Poon said. “But in the store, it’s physically stressing you out.”A Malaysian government stimulus program will pay part of the salaries for some of the restaurant’s full-time staff. The company took out a low-interest loan as well. Despite this, unless there is a significant boost to the bottom line, Chin said his restaurants might go bankrupt.“So, if everything stays status quo, right now we can probably survive until late May or early June,” he said.Chin said the business would be losing less money now if he closed all his shops and just paid the rent. Chin said he decided to remain open because “it’s not responsible. We still have people to take care of. We still need to give it a fight. Eight years is a lot of hard work. While we still have ammunition, we should continue to fight,” he said.
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China Reports Exports Fell Further in March Amid Shutdown
China’s trade improved in March but was below last year’s levels. Forecasters warned Chinese exporters face another slump as the coronavirus pandemic depresses global demand.
Customs data reported Tuesday showed exports sank 6.6% from a year earlier to $185.1 billion, an improvement over the 17.2% contraction in January and February. Imports declined 0.4% to $165.2 billion, recovering from a 4% fall in January and February after Beijing started reopening factories and stores.
Exports to the United States fell 20.8% to $25.2 billion while imports of American goods declined 12.6% to $9.9 billion. Measured by volume, Chinese imports rose more than the financial figures indicated due to declining prices for oil and other commodities.
The ruling Communist Party is trying to revive Chinese industries, but their key export markets in the United States and Europe have closed stores and told shoppers to stay home.
The recovery in exports is likely to be short-lived,'' Julian Evans-Pritchard of Capital Economics said in a report.Foreign demand will slump this quarter as COVID-19 weighs on economic activity outside of China.” Trade was poised for a boost after Beijing and Washington removed punitive tariffs on some of each other’s goods in a truce signed in January. But that was offset by Chinese anti-virus controls that shut down much of the world’s second-largest economy in late January.
The ruling Communist Party is trying to revive industry after declaring victory over the virus that emerged in central China in December. Factories, shopping malls, restaurants and office buildings have reopened, but anti-disease controls including fever checks still are in place.
The global economy faces mounting downward pressure. Uncertainties are on the rise,'' said a customs agency statement.China’s foreign trade is encountering bigger difficulties.”
In the first three months of the year, exports tumbled 13.3% to $478.2 billion. Imports were off 2.9% at $465 billion.
Measured by volume, Chinese imports rose more than the financial figures indicated due to declining prices for oil and other commodities.
Oil imports rose 5% from a year earlier, natural gas increased 1.8% and iron ore gained 1.3%, a customs spokesman, Li Kuiwen, at a news conference.
Soybean imports rose 6.2% from a year earlier to 17.8 million tons, Li said. Li did not say what share of the total was from the United States. Soybeans are the biggest U.S. export to China. Beijing temporarily suspended purchases due to their tariff war but resumed them late last year.
Until the virus outbreak, Chinese trade had been unexpectedly resilient despite Beijing’s tariff war with President Donald Trump over its technology ambitions and trade surplus. Last year’s exports rose 0.5% over 2018.
China told exporters to pursue other markets in Asia, Europe and Africa after Trump slapped punitive duties on their goods starting in 2018. Beijing retaliated by raising tariffs on American soybeans and other goods.
Some of those penalties were rolled back after the two sides signed a “Phase 1” agreement in January. Washington canceled additional planned tariff hikes and Beijing promised to buy more American farm exports.
Chinese imports usually surge after the Lunar New Year holiday as factories restock after shutting down for two weeks or longer.
This year’s rebound was postponed after the holiday was extended by at least one week — more in some places — to keep factories and offices closed as authorities tried to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
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N. Korea Fired Multiple Short-range Cruise Missiles Into Sea: S. Korea Military
North Korea launched what were believed to be multiple short-range cruise missiles into the sea between the Korean peninsula and Japan on Tuesday, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said, the latest in a series of weapons’ tests by the reclusive state. South Korea’s military is monitoring for more developments, and South Korean and U.S. intelligence officials were conducting more analysis of the launch, the JCS said. The missiles flew about 150km (93 miles), JCS told reporters. Several military aircraft also appeared to have been involved in the drill. North Korea has been conducting weeks of military drills, including several launches of short-range ballistic missiles in recent weeks. Last month, it fired nine ballistic missiles in four rounds of tests, according to analysts. On Sunday, North Korean state media reported leader Kim Jong Un had visited an airbase and observed drills by the country’s fighter jets and attack aircraft.
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Vietnam’s Virus Checkpoints Screen for Fevers, Limit Urban Movement
Vietnam’s cities have set up checkpoints in their fight against COVID-19, in some cases conducting virus tests on all who enter as they ramp up measures to prevent a second or third wave of the virus from hitting the nation.
The northern city of Hai Phong was the latest to ramp up restrictions, beginning Saturday, when the People’s Committee issued a regulation suspending new permits that allow drivers to transport goods in and out of the city.
The committee joined larger cities Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Danang in setting up checkpoints to more closely monitor the flow of people and goods through its borders.
Bigger cities went a step further. Photos from government media show municipal officials in blue plastic body suits screening all drivers with contactless thermometers to check for fever at the borders.
“We have won each battle, but the whole battle is still ahead,” Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam said.
Authorities are ramping up measures out of concern that people will become complacent since Vietnam was able to limit the first wave of COVID-19 to fewer than 100 reported cases in February.
One sign of this is the presence of motorbike drivers racing in Ho Chi Minh City, taking advantage of the empty roads since the Southeast Asian nation began lockdown on April 1.
Although there is a national restriction of public gatherings of more than two people at a time, illegal motorbike racing also is happening in the capital city of Hanoi along with gatherings around lakes and other public places, particularly among young people.The central beach town of Danang is among those in Vietnam that set up checkpoints to limit movement. (VOA News)The Hanoi People’s Committee said Monday it has asked police to fine those who go out without approved reasons. The committee has issued a regulation to penalize those who violate quarantine, fail to submit health declaration forms, recycle used masks, produce fake medical products, or price gouge products in high demand. Pharmacies in the capital are also required to inform authorities of possible coronavirus cases.
There are “still many people going out during the period of social distancing, while many world health experts warn that not distancing will lead to unpredictable consequences,” the committee said in a statement. It warned people if they do not stay inside, “in the near future, there will be a high risk of infection for the community with new cases.”
Out of Vietnam’s 265 cases of COVID-19, Hanoi has the most at 114 cases, about twice as many as Ho Chi Minh City. So far, the nation has reported no deaths. Its mobility restrictions are among the strictest in Southeast Asia, with Thailand also checking temperatures at checkpoints, and the Philippines using checkpoints to ensure people aren’t traveling unless they have documented permission.
To increase compliance with the stricter measures, Hanoi has them announced over the city’s public speakers on the street, while Ho Chi Minh City has officials drive around in vehicles equipped with speakers to make the announcements.
Private companies are participating in domestic efforts to encourage confinement, as well. When people make phone calls, all the major phone service providers play a recording asking people to stay inside before they connect the calls. Restaurants and supermarkets have increased delivery service.
One bank, Standard Chartered Vietnam, has introduced cash incentives for e-commerce, food delivery and pharmacy transactions to encourage people to stay home. It also offered some customers interest payment waivers and loan restructuring.
“We understand that individuals and businesses in Vietnam are facing unprecedented challenges,” said Nirukt Sapru, chief executive officer of Standard Chartered Vietnam. “We hope that the relief measures will help our clients get through this stressful period.”
Some street vendors are still riding bicycles around town, selling baguettes and fruit, and motorbike races can still be heard on the road. However, most Vietnamese are broadly supportive of the stricter measures. For instance, the national lockdown was set for April 1-15, but Linh Son Ngo said he would support an extension.
“Although I really want to talk to people already, if it is necessary then extending for one more week is OK,” he said via Facebook.
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Taiwan’s WHO Ambitions Get Boost from Coronavirus Success
Taiwan’s long-running campaign for a role in the World Health Organization is getting fresh backing in response to its successful handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has included assistance to other suffering nations.The public in Taiwan, considered a breakaway Chinese province by Beijing, were ecstatic when the European Union, in a break with past policy, included an image of Taiwan’s flag on a Twitter posting last week expressing appreciation for a donation of face masks.”Our flag has appeared on the EU’s official tweet,” Taiwan’s Central News Agency gushed.A worker packs surgical masks on the production line in a factory in Taoyuan, Taiwan, April 6, 2020.It was a breakthrough of sorts for Taiwan after decades of being blocked from any significant role in the WHO by China, which opposes any action that would appear to confer nation status on the autonomously ruled island. Beijing has long been accused of using its economic and political power to pressure member countries to support its stand.The issue has become more immediate in the face of COVID-19 which has caused about 1.9 million reported infections and more than 118,000 reported deaths worldwide. Despite having one of the world’s best records in fighting the disease Taiwan has been excluded from WHO emergency meetings on the crisis.However, Taiwan officials are encouraged by U.S. President Donald Trump’s signing last month of the Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative (TAIPEI) Act, designed to bring pressure on countries whose actions serve to undermine Taiwan’s alliances.Taiwanese army soldiers wearing protective suits spray disinfectant on a road to prevent community cluster infection, in New Taipei City, Taiwan, March 14, 2020.Amid the diplomatic back-and-forth, Taiwan has made its case by simply doing a better job than almost any country of containing the coronavirus. Despite its close proximity to China – where the contagion began – and being one of the first places to be affected, it has held its caseload to just 393 people with a mere six deaths.Speaking electronically to a conference at the A medical staff collects a sample for testing during a drill organized by the New Taipei City government to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, in Xindian district, Taiwan, March 14, 2020.Medical institutions were “rearranged,” he said, enabling the establishment of “160 testing facilities around the country,” along with “134 facilities to treat milder cases, or 50 large regional centers for more severe cases.” In order to prevent in-hospital outbreaks, Wu said, hospitals “were clearly demarcated internally.”The minister also cited Taiwan’s national health insurance policy, “which has 99% of the population enrolled,” as key to enabling health authorities to trace patients’ contacts and to permitting an equitable society-wide distribution of medical supplies.Each adult citizen, upon showing proof of citizenship, is allotted nine face masks every two weeks, which come at a cost of 17 cents apiece, and can be obtained at local pharmacies, and now even vending machines. Children are allotted a higher number of masks.At the heart of Taiwan’s success story, Wu said, is its chosen way of governance. He contrasted the democratically ruled island with rule on the mainland by the Communist Party of China, which has been accused of failing to promptly report the initial contagion and is still suspected of hiding its full extent.“I would say the most important factor is transparency and honesty,” Wu said. “[While] we in Taiwan cannot afford to conceal or to lie, Chinese communists are institutionally incapable of telling the truth.”
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Indonesian Neighborhood Uses ‘Ghosts’ to Scare People Back Home
A neighborhood in Indonesia’s central Java province has deployed a group of volunteer “ghosts” to patrol the streets and scare people into staying home in compliance with the region’s stay-at-home rules designed to curb the spread of the COVID-19 virus.Leaders in the Kepuh village neighborhood in Sukoharjo say residents lacked awareness of the coronavirus threat and had been ignoring rules requiring them to stay in their homes.A group of volunteers — working in coordination with local law enforcement —pocong developed the idea of dressing up “pocong,” or “shroud ghosts,” from Indonesia and Malaysian folklore.They wrap themselves in white cloth resembling corpses wrapped in burial shrouds and roam the neighborhood of about 5,000 people, ‘scaring” people into going home — or at least providing a reminder of the stay-at-home rules.When the patrols first began in early April, organizers told Reuters news agency that the effort initially backfired, when reports of their efforts on social media brought more people out to see the ghosts. The volunteers changed their schedules and began carrying out surprise patrols. Their efforts have proven effective.While some villages and residential areas like Kepuh imposed lockdowns, Indonesian President Joko Widodo resisted a nationwide lockdown.Reuters reported that as of Sunday, Indonesia reported 4,241 cases of COVID-19, with 373 dead. The country has the highest official death toll in East Asia after China.
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Japan’s Leader Slammed Over ‘Stay Home’ Shutdown Tweet
Perhaps the best that can be said about a “stay home” Twitter posted by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is that it’s given bored copycats sitting at home waiting out the coronavirus ample inspiration.
It certainly appears to have rubbed many people frustrated by Abe’s handling of the crisis the wrong way.
Abe, like U.S. President Donald Trump, has faced accusations his moves to counter the coronavirus were too little, too late. Until late March, Abe’s administration was still insisting the Tokyo Olympics would go ahead as planned in July. It’s now been postponed until July 2021.
Abe declared a month-long state of emergency in Tokyo and six other prefectures deemed at highest risk of an explosion of coronavirus infections just last Tuesday. The government asked people in those areas — later expanded to all of Japan — to stay at home.
But the “stay home” message has incensed many who note most Japanese cannot remain at home because the government’s social distancing policy is voluntary and doesn’t come with compensation for cash-strapped workers.
The video posted on Twitter, on a split screen accompanied by a guitar-playing popular singer, shows Abe sitting at home looking bored. Abe reading a book. Abe cuddling his dog, sipping from a cup and flipping channels with a remote.
“You cannot see your friends or organize drinking parties, but your actions are surely saving many lives,” says the video’s written message. “Everyone please cooperate.”
The sight of Abe, heir to a wealthy political dynasty, in such genteel surroundings hasn’t resonated with families being asked to stay cooped up in cramped apartments and with workers still having to commute since many Japanese companies have been slow to switch to remote work. Some people have lost their jobs or had their salaries cut.
“An elegant tweet despite a national crisis,” blared a headline in the Nikkan Sports tabloid. “Abe the aristocrat!!”
Many on Twitter mocked Abe with their own satirical versions of his poses, including one who did so in the nude, “stay home” messages written in marker on his bare chest and tummy, his privates camouflaged with props including a Chinese lion dance head he cuddled as if it was his pet.
“Who does he think he is?” said one commentator. “He is so out of touch.”
“It was an extremely visual way of understanding the prime minister’s lack of awareness, and I’m just appalled,” tweeted Takanori Fujita, a professor at Seigakuin University who runs a non-profit support group for the homeless, jobless or others in financial difficulties.
Abe’s April 1 announcement that the government would deliver a pair of old-fashioned gauze masks to each of Japan’s 50 million households was received with disbelief by some who thought it was an April Fools’ Day joke.
Abe, who took office for a second time in December 2012, has survived numerous scandals to become Japan’s longest-serving post-World War II prime minister.
Local leaders are pushing him to be more pro-active in fighting the pandemic. Leading the pack is Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike, who like New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, has been holding daily updates, hers on YouTube.
The tug of war between Abe and Koike is more low key than the occasional New York-style sparring between Trump and Cuomo, whose state has been ravaged by the pandemic. The dynamics, also, are somewhat different. In general, Koike shares the same nationalist, conservative policy stance as Abe.
But like Cuomo, Koike is articulate and to the point. She does not stray from facts, and she has one mission: to protect Tokyo.
The day after Abe announced the Olympics postponement, Koike raised the alarm over surging cases in the capital, which accounts for about a fifth of all Japanese business activity and is the hub of a wider metropolitan area that is home to about a third of all Japanese.
As of Sunday, Japan had 114 coronavirus deaths and 7,255 confirmed cases, not including 712 from a cruise ship that was quarantined near Tokyo for weeks. Tokyo prefecture alone has a total of 2,068 cases.
Koike, who is facing a July election, successfully lobbied Abe to include in his shutdown requests nightclubs, pachinko parlors, game centers and internet cafes — all considered likely hot spots for spreading the virus. She didn’t win a concession on shutting barber shops and beauty salons.”Izakaya” Japanese-style pubs are merely being asked to close at 8 p.m. instead of in the wee hours.
Abe and other leaders have resisted closures, wary of the likely damage to the economy. Abe’s government said it wanted to wait two weeks before deciding whether to call for shutdowns of nonessential businesses. Koike went ahead with business closures beginning Saturday, promising to pay small businesses 500,000 yen ($4,600) in compensation, and those with multiple outlets 1 million yen ($9,200).
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COVID-19 Cases Near Zero in Taiwan, But Restrictions Remain
Taiwan is reporting just one to six new COVID-19 cases per day. Schools, offices and restaurants are operating all but normally. But the island’s government is expected to wait until the global pandemic improves before easing restrictions that have helped contain the spread of the virus but hurt a big swathe of the economy.Just one new case surfaced on April 5. Every other day since March 26, Taiwan’s Central Epidemic Command Center has reported two to six new cases with no threat of a widespread community outbreak. Monday’s case total reached five, bringing the overall count to 393 including six deaths and 114 recoveries.FILE – People wear face masks to protect against the spread of the coronavirus in Taipei, Taiwan, Tuesday, March 31, 2020.Officials will probably keep enforcing disease control measures until the crisis overseas gets better, said Huang Ching-tai, a professor and doctor in the infectious diseases department of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital. Continued enforcement would help ensure no one flies in with the virus and spreads it around, he said.“Taiwan’s situation presently counts as being pretty good, and we all feel relaxed, but to look at the whole world’s situation, there’s no obvious letting up,” Huang said.“So actually, if we’re ok now, to ensure that tomorrow and next day are just as good for us, we need to keep up our cautiousness and not neglect it,” he said. “We don’t really want to consider saying the epidemic has been lifted.”Control measures include a temporary ban on foreign visitors and required 14-day quarantine for all arrivals including transit passengers. Most of Taiwan’s cases are citizens who flew back from infected countries. Schools in Taiwan check students daily for signs of fever and restrict extracurricular activities. Shops, banks and office complexes are asking customers to stay 1.5 meters apart or wear facemasks — which are universal in Taiwan anyway. Indoor events must not exceed 100 people.FILE – Youths wearing face masks to protect against the spread of the new coronavirus walk on a street in Taipei, Taiwan, March 30, 2020.Taiwan has kept its caseload low compared to many Asian neighbors by stopping flights early on from infected parts of China, the coronavirus origin, and tracing the contacts of confirmed patients.The government’s Health and Welfare Minister Chen Shih-chung declined to say Monday when Taiwan might lift restrictions but said the island has entered a “stable stage” and an “observation period”. Invention of a COVID-19 vaccine would be a plus, he added.“How we can stabilize the health situation and let everyone trend back to a normal life is something we’re always thinking about,” Chen said.Taiwan’s service industry is struggling under the control measures and losing more business as people hesitate to go out, said Liang Kuo-yuan, president of the Polaris Research Institute research organization in Taipei.FILE – A vendor wears face mask to help curb the spread of the coronavirus and waits for customers at a night market in Taipei, April 8, 2020.In the food, beverage and lodging industry, 2,693 people were put on unpaid leave in the final two weeks of March, more than any other sector, according to Ministry of Labor figures.Companies that organize events are doing little business, partly due to the ban on indoor meetings of more than 100 people. Tourism operators are seeing no clients from normal sources such as Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia due to the curb on foreign visitors. Taiwanese scared to go out take business away shops and restaurants.Consumers worry someone could fly into Taiwan and spark a wider outbreak, Liang said, and local media have fanned those fears. Government rules on facemasks and social distancing scare people further, he added.“Some types of businesses will probably get better, for example if a department store is big and has a lot of space, then people will dare to shop there,” Liang said. “But if you say a restaurant, if it’s inside a packed room, then I believe it still won’t be liked.”
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North Korea Says it Will Boost Anti-Virus Efforts
North Korea says it will intensify its efforts to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. The rubber stamp Supreme People’s Assembly received a report Sunday about the regime’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report Monday by the state-run KCNA. Photographs released by KCNA showed hundreds of lawmakers sitting near each other without wearing protective face masks. North Korea has reported no cases of novel coronavirus infections since it began spreading across the border in neighboring China, the epicenter of the virus. The government in Pyongyang put thousands of people, including foreign diplomats, under quarantine. The report was released a day after supreme leader Kim Jong-il met with his State Affairs Commission in Pyongyang, according to KCNA. Kim has reportedly made several personnel changes to the country’s high-ranking decision-making body over the weekend, including the addition of Ri Son Gwon, a former senior army commander who was promoted to foreign affairs minister earlier this year.
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Spain Allowing Some Workers to Return to Jobs
Spain is loosening some of its coronavirus restrictions Monday with workers in the manufacturing and construction sectors allowed to go back to work. With the threat of spreading the virus still present, companies are required to provide employees with protective equipment and make sure they maintain the recommended two meters of spacing from other workers. Spain has been one of the hardest-hit countries with more than 165,000 confirmed cases and 17,000 deaths. Much of the country has been on lockdown for about a month. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Sunday the pandemic is a threat not only in terms of its impacts on health, but also economically and socially. “Therefore, the response requires combining measures that prevent contagion, that allow the recovery of our health system and that at the same time prevent paralysis and the collapse of our economy with the harmful effects it may have on employment in our country,” Sanchez said. The balance between how long to keep in place stay-at-home measures and when to send people back to work to restore economic function is one being weighed by governments all over the world. South Korea’s Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Monday officials were discussing potential new guidelines that would keep in place social distancing rules while allowing some “economic and social activity.” Couples enjoy the view while practicing social distancing during the global spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at an observatory near “N Seoul Tower” located atop Mt. Namsan in Seoul, South Korea, April 7, 2020.South Korea has seen its number of daily new cases steadily fall, with the government reporting Monday 25 new cases. U.S. President Donald Trump has signaled his desire for economic activity to return to normal as soon as possible. His administration has advised people to stay home if they can through the end of the month, while the governors of most of the country’s 50 states have gone further and ordered lockdowns with exceptions for activities such as exercise and grocery shopping. Top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci said during a CNN interview Sunday that he thinks some of those measures could be lifted as early as next month. “We are hoping that, at the end of the month, we could look around and say, OK, is there any element here that we can safely and cautiously start pulling back on? If so, do it. If not, then just continue to hunker down,” Fauci said. He added that a key piece will be the ability to quickly identify anyone who becomes infected, isolate them, and track down who they have been in contact with, and that any reopening efforts would depend on the specific situation in different parts of the country. As of early Monday, there were 1.85 million confirmed cases worldwide, with 114,000 deaths, according Johns Hopkins University statistics. The United States accounted for more than 550,000 cases.
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Indonesia’s Anak Krakatau Volcano Shoots Ash, Lava
Indonesia’s Anak Krakatau volcano spewed a column of ash 500 meters (1,640 feet) into the sky in the longest eruption since the explosive collapse of the island caused a deadly tsunami in 2018, scientists said Saturday.Closed-circuit TV from Indonesia’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation showed lava flares Friday night.The agency said that the volcano was continuously erupting until Saturday morning. A level 2 alert status remained in place, the second-highest on a scale of four.There were no casualties reported. The 2018 eruption caused a tsunami along the coasts of Sumatra and Java, killing 430 people.Anak Krakatau, which means Child of Kratakau, is the offspring of the famous Krakatau volcano, whose monumental eruption in 1883 triggered a period of global cooling.
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Stay Home – Australians Urged to Continue COVID-19 Social Distancing
Australian officials say the Easter holidays will be a critical part of efforts to contain the coronavirus. While the curve of new infections continues to flatten, officials have warned against complacency. Much of Australia is in lockdown, and the state of Victoria has extended its state of emergency for another month.Officials have a grim message: Stay at home. Australians have been told not to attend religious services or congregate with extended family and friends for Easter or Passover this holiday weekend. Traveling for vacations has also been prohibited, and extra police patrols have been deployed to ensure compliance. Many beaches remain closed, as have pubs, cafes and cinemas.In New South Wales state, senior officers have said that going away for Easter was not a valid reason to leave the house, and fines do apply.In his Easter message, Prime Minister Scott Morrison urged the community to do the right thing.“Easter in Australia will be different this year, as it will be all around the world,” he said. “It is still true that we will be able to gather together in our immediate family, but there will not be the opportunity for that extended family gathering, special times I know, as well as going off to church and our religious services. The coronavirus means this Easter will be different and we will be staying at home, and it is important because we cannot undo the tremendous progress we have made together in recent times. So this Easter we are staying at home. Do not travel. Do not go away.”Freedoms in Australia are restricted as never before as it confronts the pandemic. The federal government has banned Australians from flying overseas. Citizens returning home must go into mandatory quarantine in a hotel for 14 days, often supervised by the military.Repatriation flights are helping Australians who have been trapped overseas. This weekend groups have returned from India and a cruise liner off South America.Medical experts say the closure of Australia’s borders, mass testing for COVID-19 and strict physical distancing measures are working. The government has warned, however, it was “very dangerous and unrealistic” to loosen restrictions on movement ahead of medical advice.The economic impact of COVID-19 continues to hit. There are fears that some universities could collapse as fees from lucrative international student enrollments dry up. In response, officials have guaranteed there will be no funding cuts to Australia’s universities under a financial relief package for higher education.So far, Australia has more than 6,200 confirmed COVID-19 cases. Fifty-nine people have died with the virus.
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Thai Provinces Ban Alcohol Sales Ahead of New Year to Curb Coronavirus Spread
Most of Thailand’s provinces have banned sales of alcoholic beverages, heeding a central government call to discourage festive celebrations for the Thai New Year as the country seeks to limit the spread of the coronavirus.Thailand is among Southeast Asian countries that are canceling or scaling back traditionally boisterous Buddhist New Year celebrations amid the global pandemic.The Thai New Year or water-splashing Songkran celebrations are usually held April 13-15, but this year the government has postponed the holidays that would normally be taken then.A 10-day ban on the sale of wine, beer and spirits in Bangkok went into effect on Friday. Forty-seven of Thailand’s 77 provinces have implemented bans to April 15 or until the end of the month, the interior ministry said in a statement.Bangkok, which typically closes off streets during April for traditional water fights, has called off the activities and urged businesses and malls to do likewise. The government has also urged Thais to refrain from traveling back to their hometowns as they would normally do for the New Year.On Saturday, Thailand reported 45 new coronvirus cases and two deaths, bringing its total to 2,518 confirmed infections and 35 deaths.
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Filmmaker Obayashi, Who Portrayed War’s Horrors, Dies at 82
Nobuhiko Obayashi, one of Japan’s most prolific filmmakers who devoted his works to depicting war’s horrors and singing the eternal power of movies, has died. He was 82.The official site for his latest film, “Labyrinth of Cinema,” said that Obayashi died late Friday.Obayashi was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2016, and was told he had just a few months. But he continued working, appearing frail and often in a wheelchair.”Labyrinth of Cinema” had been scheduled to be released in Japan on the day of his death. The date has been pushed back because of the coronavirus pandemic, which has closed theaters.”Director Obayashi fought his sickness to the day of the scheduled release of his film. Rest in peace, director Obayashi, you who loved films so much you kept on making them,” the announcement said.The film was showcased at the Tokyo International Film Festival last year, which honored him as a “cinematic magician” and screened several of his other works.Obayashi stayed stubbornly true to his core pacifist message through more than 40 movies and thousands of TV shows, commercials and other video.His films have kaleidoscopic, fairy tale-like imagery repeating his trademark motifs of colorful Japanese festivals, dripping blood, marching doll-like soldiers, shooting stars and winding cobblestone roads.”Labyrinth of Cinema” is an homage to filmmaking. Its main characters, young Japanese men who go to an old movie theater but increasingly get sucked into crises, have names emulating Obayashi’s favorite cinematic giants, Francois Truffaut, Mario Bava and Don Seigel.Obayashi’s “Miss Lonely,” released in 1985, was shot in seaside Onomichi, the picturesque town in Hiroshima prefecture where Obayashi grew up and made animation clips by hand.His other popular films include his 1977 “House,” a horror comedy about youngsters who amble into a haunted house, and “Hanagatami,” released in 2017, another take on his perennial themes of young love and the injustices of war that unfolds in iridescent hues.Obayashi was a trailblazer in the world of Japanese TV commercials, hiring foreign movie stars like Catherine Deneuve and Charles Bronson, highlighted in his slick film work that seemed to symbolize Japan’s postwar modernization.He was born in 1938, and his childhood overlapped with World War II, years remembered for Japan’s aggression and atrocities against its neighbors but also a period during which Japanese people suffered hunger, abuse and mass deaths. His pacifist beliefs were reinforced by his father, an army doctor, who also gave him his first 8-millimeter camera.His works lack Hollywood’s action-packed plots and neat finales. Instead, they appear to start from nowhere and end, then start up again, weaving in and out of scenes, often traveling in time.During an Associated Press interview in 2019, Obayashi stressed his believe in the power of movies. Movies like his, he says, ask that important question: Where do you stand?”Movies are not weak,” he said, looking offended at such an idea. “Movies express freedom.”He said then he was working on another film, while acknowledging he was aware of the limitations of his health, all the work taking longer.At the end of the interview, he said he wanted to demonstrate his lifetime goal for his filmmaking. He showed his hand, three fingers held up in the sign language of “I love you.””Let’s value freedom with all our might. Let’s have no lies,” said Obayashi.Obayashi is survived by his wife Kyoko Obayashi, an actress and film producer, and their daughter Chigumi, an actress.A ceremony to mourn his death was being planned, according to Japanese media, but details were not immediately available. The Tokyo city and central government have requested that public gatherings are avoided because of the pandemic.
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Vietnam Expedites Shipment of Medical Suits to US
Vietnam has shipped nearly half a million protective suits to the United States, marking a quick turnaround in bilateral talks to deal with the significant U.S. shortage in medical equipment, and resulting in a tweet of thanks from the U.S. president.
“This morning, 450,000 protective suits landed in Dallas, Texas,” U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday in a post on Twitter. “This was made possible because of the partnership of two great American companies—DuPont and FedEx—and our friends in Vietnam. Thank you!”
The U.S. embassy in Hanoi said a second shipment of 450,000 suits from Vietnam would follow “to address the urgent need for protective equipment for frontline providers responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.”
Vietnam is still working to keep COVID-19 under control domestically. It has had 251 people infected in total and has recorded no deaths as of Friday. That relative stability has allowed it to send medical aid to nations such as Laos, Spain and now the U.S. FILE – Vietnam’s Deputy Foreign Minister To Anh Dung hands a box of protective masks to Italy’s Ambassador to Vietnam Antonio Alessandro as Vietnam donates medical supplies to Europe amid the coronavirus pandemic, in Hanoi, Vietnam, April 7, 2020.The aid stands in contrast to worries elsewhere the pandemic is encouraging protectionism, with nations trying to limit exports of medical supplies. The limits around the world range from Moscow suspending exports of personal protective equipment, to the White House telling 3M not to sell surgical masks abroad.
Americans are more familiar with buying “Made in Vietnam” garments and footwear, given the Southeast Asian nation’s large manufacturing base. It is that manufacturing capacity that makes it possible for firms such as Dupont to speed up production of protective coveralls in Vietnam. Dupont said it took 10 days to finish the protective suits and fly them from Hanoi to Dallas — a process that usually takes 90 days and includes transport on a container ship.
Vietnam also is in good shape with supplies of other medical goods, like face shields and shoe covers, according to a source familiar with the matter.
“This international operation enables the DuPont plant in Vietnam to produce TYVEK suits and ship them to the Strategic National Stockpile, allowing us to deploy suits to where health care workers need them most,” said U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar.
Previously, it was unclear how the national stockpile would be used. Presidential adviser Jared Kushner said at a press briefing last week the supplies are “not supposed to be states’ stockpiles that they then use.”
The Health and Human Services Department said Wednesday, however, it would work with “states, territories, tribal nations and certain cities” to get the suits from Vietnam to “the health care facilities and workers most in need.”
Hospital workers in the United States have complained of shortages of protective clothing, ventilators, and other crucial medical supplies.
The government of Vietnam said on its official website it was supplying the medical suits this week because “the United States currently has a great demand” and Vietnam aimed to show its “spirit of mutual support to partner countries, including the United States.”
“This is also Vietnam’s participation and contribution to the global effort to push back the COVID-19 epidemic,” the government said.
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Southeast Asian Ministers Endorse Pans for Pandemic Fund
Southeast Asian foreign ministers have endorsed the setting up of a regional fund to respond to the coronavirus pandemic and discussed a planned video summit of their leaders with counterparts from China, Japan and South Korea.
The Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said Friday that the top diplomats of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations linked up by video Thursday in a meeting led by Vietnam.
The ministers endorsed several collective steps to fight the pandemic, including the establishment of a COVID-19 ASEAN response fund, the sharing of information and strategies and ways to ease the impact of the global health crisis on people and the economy, the department said in a statement.It did not provide details. pandemic, three Southeast Asian diplomats told The Associated Press. The diplomats spoke on condition of anonymity due to a lack of authority to discuss the high-level meeting.
In Thursday’s discussion, Philippine Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. stressed the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea amid the contagion, the department said.
The Philippines has expressed solidarity with Vietnam after a Vietnamese fishing boat was reportedly rammed and sank by a Chinese coast guard ship in disputed waters near the Paracel islands in the South China Sea.
Vietnam and the Philippines and two other ASEAN member states, Brunei and Malaysia, have been locked in longstanding territorial disputes with China and Taiwan in the strategic waterways, one of the world’s busiest,
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