No quarantine needed for fully vaxxed travellers with Covid history

From tomorrow onwards, travellers who have been infected with Covid-19 but who have completed their vaccination do not need to undergo quarantine upon arrival in Malaysia.Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the government was still monitoring the borders and conducting compulsory screening tests and quarantine for travellers.“Upon their arrival in Malaysia, those who have contracted Covid-19 within 11 to 60 days and who have been fully vaccinated do not need to undergo mandatory quarantine,” he said in a statement today.However, he said they would need to undergo RTK Ag tests in the presence of government or private health workers stationed at the international entry points.Travellers who have yet to complete their vaccination or who are not vaccinated will need to undergo mandatory quarantine for seven days at the quarantine station prepared by the health ministry.Since December, the government had required international travellers to undergo quarantine at such stations regardless of vaccination status due to concerns over the global spread of the Omicron variant.They were also required to undergo screening several times throughout the quarantine period, and would only be released after the last negative test result.Khairy said the government has also laid out several conditions for travellers with a history of Covid-19 infection.Among others, they need to be fully vaccinated with proof of vaccination, and must show proof of infection 11 to 60 days before leaving for Malaysia. They must also produce “fit to travel” letters from the relevant hospital.“All related documents must be brought and shown to the flight and health authorities at the point of entry, if requested,” Khairy said.Travellers entering the country must also follow several SOPs in relation to the MySejahtera application.Among others, they are required to scan the QR code for overseas travellers, have their temperatures checked, and take an RTK Ag test in the presence of health workers.“For travellers who have not been infected with Covid-19, the current conditions still apply,” Khairy said.“The government will keep all parties informed of developments and any new conditions for travellers.”


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Malaysia signs joint declaration on expansion of trade agreement with Turkey

Malaysia and Turkey have signed a joint declaration on the expansion of the free trade agreement between the two governments to reinforce the mandate in pursuing the expansion of the agreement to include chapters on services, investment and e-commerce, the international trade and industry ministry (Miti) said today.In a statement, Miti said the agreement was signed between its minister, Mohamed Azmin Ali, and Turkey’s trade minister Mehmet Mus during its trade and investment mission to the country, as part of efforts to enhance bilateral trade and showcase Malaysia as an investment destination of choice.“The signing of the joint declaration marks a resolute commitment from both countries to continue taking the path of progressive liberalisation at a time when new forms of protectionism are taking root,” it said.Miti said a bilateral meeting between Azmin and Mahmet had discussed a wide spectrum of measures to enhance bilateral economic, trade and investment relations.“In particular, the discussions centred on the implementation of the Malaysia-Turkey Free Trade Agreement (MTFTA) and the way forward to advance negotiations to expand it.“Both ministers agreed to intensify efforts to conclude the text-based negotiations of the MTFTA expansion this year,” it added.Meanwhile, at a separate event, Azmin also witnessed the signing of a heads of agreement between Sapura Technics Sdn Bhd and Turkish Airlines Technic Inc in Istanbul, marking a strategic joint venture in maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) operations in Senai Airport, Johor Bahru.“The signing is a testament to the government’s efforts to further strengthen the ongoing business links between Malaysia and Turkey, as well as to enhance the advancement of Malaysia’s aerospace ecosystem to be a regional leader,” said Miti.Azmin meanwhile reiterated Malaysia’s clear and comprehensive exit strategy through the National Recovery Plan, adding that Malaysia is accelerating its immunisation programme, targeted to ensure that Malaysia will have a smooth and swift exit from the pandemic and advance along the trajectory of robust and sustained economic recovery.“He also offered assurance of Malaysia’s commitment to ensuring the ease of doing business through business-friendly policies and comprehensive measures to solidify economic cooperation.“Quality and high-impact investments from Turkey are also welcomed to further catalyse Malaysia’s value creation, in line with the country’s national investment aspirations,” Miti said.According to Miti, Turkey was Malaysia’s third largest trading partner and fifth source of import in the West Asia region in 2020.Total trade between the countries was RM9.62 billion with Malaysia’s exports to Turkey amounting to RM7.62 billion and imports totalling RM2 billion.


More than 7.1 million booster shots given as 18 deaths add to Covid toll

A total of 22,872,297 individuals or 97.7% of adults had completed their Covid-19 vaccination as of yesterday.According to the CovidNow portal, a total of 23,160,259 individuals or 98.9% have received at least one dose of vaccine.In terms of teenagers, a total of 2,761,997 individuals or 87.8% have completed their vaccination while 2,852,677 or 90.7% have received at least one dose.A total of 245,326 vaccine doses were administered yesterday, 2,747 as first doses, 3,859 as second shots and 238,720 as booster jabs.This brings the cumulative number of vaccine jabs administered under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme to 58,554,303, including 7,107,613 booster shots.Meanwhile, according to the ministry’s GitHub portal, a total of 18 deaths were recorded yesterday, with three cases each reported in Pahang, Perak and Selangor.Kedah, Melaka and Kuala Lumpur recorded two deaths each while Kelantan, Sabah and Terengganu had one death each.


Greek police fire tear gas as 7,000 protest vaccine rules

Around 7,000 people protested in Athens on Sunday against a new rule obliging health workers to get vaccinated against Covid-19, said police who fired tear gas to quell violence among the demonstrators.The rule change, which came into effect on Wednesday requires that all personnel working in hospitals be vaccinated.The demonstrators waved Greek flags and brandished placards declaring: “We are not against vaccines, but against fascism” and “Long live democracy”.“It’s amazing that I’m put on sick leave because I refuse to be vaccinated when for months I have helped to contain the epidemic, I have worked in very difficult conditions,” said Christos Bakakios, an ambulance driver who joined the protest.A nurse, who gave her name as Lina, said: “The Greek health system will collapse if they put all the caregivers who refuse to be vaccinated on furlough.”“The hospitals are already overcrowded. That would make no sense,” she added.Sporadic violence broke out in the evening. One group of demonstrators threw stones and bottles at the police who responded with tear gas, according to an AFP videographer on the spot.Greece’s government on Tuesday announced an array of new restrictions and the end, next month, of free testing for those who remain unjabbed against Covid-19 in an effort to boost vaccination rates.The government took the measures in part to encourage people to get vaccinated, as the contagious Delta variant of Covid-19 takes hold.At the moment 99% of seriously ill coronavirus patients, those intubated in hospital, have not been vaccinated.Retirement home workers have been obliged to get vaccinated since mid-August.Ten employees at a home in Volos, in the centre of the country, were recently suspended from work.More than 5.7 million of Greece’s 10.7 million inhabitants have been fully vaccinated against coronavirus.But the spread of the Delta variant continues to cause concern.On Sunday Greece registered around 1,500 new Covid cases.Over 13,600 people have died of the disease in the country since the pandemic began.


PAS to meet with top Umno leaders 'soon'

PAS will hold a meeting with Umno's top leaders soon to discuss their direction of cooperation for the 15th general election (GE15).
PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said the cooperation involved 27 parliamentary seats as well as seats in several states such as Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Penang which they had the potential to win if an agreement is formed between them.
"If not on all seats (agreement on cooperation between Umno and PAS), maybe in certain places. It is not impossible," he told a press conference in conjunction with the launch of the Selangor PAS election machinery in Banting last night.
However, he said any PAS discussions with parties outside the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition would be reported to the PN Presidential Council to find the best path for a political consensus.
PAS is a component of PN alongside Bersatu, Sabah STAR, SAPP and Gerakan.
Commenting on the three conditions given by Umno to PAS for a return to the negotiating table, Tuan Ibrahim said the consensus framework needs to discuss points of commonality. Yesterday, Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said that Umno would return to the negotiating table with PAS regarding cooperation in GE15 if PAS met three conditions. Zahid did not reveal what they were but said that they had been conveyed to the party.
Meanwhile, PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan in a statement today said the party welcomed Zahid's statement which expressed his openness to revive the ummah (Muslim) unification agenda following a meeting between the presidents of Umno and PAS on Sept 17.
"PAS reiterates its commitment to be together in all efforts towards achieving the unification of the ummah, especially among Malays and Muslims based on Verse 10 of Surah al-Hujurat which emphasises the issue of peace between Muslims who are at odds in some of their affairs," he said.
Takiyuddin said PAS still hoped that a true unification of the ummah could be realised between the main Malay and Muslim parties in the country.
"PAS hereby takes the stance of studying Umno's openness in this regard and will make a final decision before this weekend, taking into account the aspects of maslahah (the greater good) and the least mudhorat (risk)," he said.
He was responding to Zahid who also said that Umno had never closed the door on the unification agenda, including in the party's political cooperation with PAS.


Japan inflation hits four-decade high in October

Japanese inflation hit a four-decade high last month, government data showed Friday, fuelled by high energy costs and a weak yen and ramping up pressure on the central bank to move away from its ultra-loose monetary policies.
Core consumer prices excluding volatile fresh food rose 3.6% on-year in October, marginally higher than analyst expectations.
The reading marked the fastest pace since 1982, although it remains below the sky-high levels that have pummelled the US and other countries.
In reaction to the data, chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters the government "must protect people's livelihoods from these price rises".
"Price increases have continued for items closely related to daily life such as utilities and food, due to rising raw material prices and the weak yen," he said.
The government said last month it would spend US$260 billion (RM1.1 trillion) on an economic stimulus package that includes support for energy bills, which have spiked since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February.
"Policies targeting energy and food, which are the main causes of high prices" are included in the relief measures, Matsuno said as he vowed to "pass the extra budget as soon as possible".
Darren Tay, Japan Economist at Capital Economics, told AFP that the impact of inflation on the average consumer was "very real".
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has responded with an "aggressive" stimulus package because "he knows that his electorate is not too happy with rising prices", Tay added.
Economy 'on shaky footing'
When energy prices were not taken into account, October's inflation was a more moderate 2.5%, but still higher than in September.
The headline core consumer price index (CPI) has now risen for 14 straight months – putting pressure on the Bank of Japan to tweak its longstanding monetary easing policies.
The US Federal Reserve and other central banks have sharply hiked interest rates this year to tackle inflation.
But Japan, which since the 1990s has swung between periods of sluggish inflation and deflation, has gone against the grain and continues to keep interest rates at ultra-low levels as it tries to kickstart the torpid economy.
Although inflation is now higher than the two-percent targeted by the Bank of Japan for the past decade, it sees the recent price rises as temporary and says there is no reason to change course.
The starkly different approaches taken by the BoJ and the Fed have driven down the value of the yen against the dollar this year from levels of around 115 yen per dollar in March to 140 on Friday, having hit a 32-year low of 151 yen last month.
But while the bank keeps a close watch on inflation, Tay added: "I still don't think it's enough for them to change their policy at this point."
One reason is that Japan's latest growth data, released on Tuesday, showed a surprise contraction of the world's third-largest economy in the July-September quarter.
"That shows the bank very clearly that the economy is actually on much shakier footing than they might otherwise have expected," Tay said.
"The other thing is the global economy is probably going to enter a recession next year, in the first half," he added.
"We're basically looking at very weak economic conditions overall, and the Bank of Japan will not risk jeopardising the economy even further by tightening monetary policy at this point."


PN goes 10-0 with domestic trade and consumer affairs budget

The majority of MPs voted in favour of the allocation for the domestic trade and consumer affairs ministry, making it the tenth ministerial budget to be passed so far following the bloc vote for the international trade and industry ministry earlier today.The budget was passed by voice vote.Yesterday, the budgets for the energy and natural resources ministry, the agriculture and food industries ministry, and the rural development ministry were passed by voice vote.Allocations for five other portfolios were also previously passed: the plantation industries and commodities ministry, the foreign ministry, the national unity ministry, the finance ministry and the Prime Minister’s Department.The budgets for the Prime Minister’s Department and the finance and plantation ministries were passed by bloc vote while the two others were passed by voice vote.The budget for 2021 – RM322.5 billion, the country’s largest ever – was passed at the policy stage on Nov 26 in what was seen as a crucial test of support for Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.It was passed by voice vote after the opposition failed to garner enough support to force a bloc vote.


No haj pilgrims from Indonesia this year

Indonesia has decided not to send pilgrims for the 2021 haj session this year.“Because it is still a pandemic (Covid-19) and for the safety of the pilgrims, the government has decided that Indonesian pilgrims will not leave (for haj) this year,” Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas said at a press conference today.He added that the decision was also because the Saudi Arabian government had yet to extend an invitation for discussion on allocation of haj quota and the preparation of pilgrims from Indonesia.Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, more than 230,000 pilgrims from Indonesia performed the haj every year.


Almost 30,000 candidates didn't sit for SPM 2022, education ministry confirms

The education ministry confirmed that nearly 30,000 candidates who were registered did not sit for the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) 2022 examination, including private candidates who were registered to take only one or two subjects.
Deputy Education Minister Lim Hui Ying said the number according to the ministry's record is actually 29,663 out of a total of 407,637 registered candidates.
She added that there was no question of a discrepancy between the figures and the number mentioned by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim during the Cakna and Malaysia Madani Dialogue programme at the Dewan Canselor Tun Abdul Razak, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia recently.
"What the former education minister (Mohd Radzi Jidin) stated, that only 14,858 or 3.8% of the candidates did not attend the examination, were actually candidates who were registered to take six subjects including private candidates," she said during a question-and-answer session at the Dewan Rakyat today.
She was answering a supplementary question from Roslan Hashim (PN-Kulim-Bandar Baharu) regarding the discrepancy between the dropout figures for SPM 2022 mentioned by the prime minister and data from the education ministry.
Last Tuesday, Anwar had said that 30,000 candidates were recorded as not sitting for the SPM examination last year, but yesterday Radzi, who is also Putrajaya MP claimed that the prime minister had distorted the number.
Meanwhile, Lim said the education ministry will improve the teaching and learning system based on digital technology to meet the needs of the education system in the future.
She said, teachers will be given training and guidance in support of the implementation of the current education policy, including improving knowledge and skills in the digitalisation aspect of education, as well as developing competence independently, to meet the needs so as to carry out their duties.
"Based on statistics in the Malaysian Education Ministry's Training Management System until May 31, 2023, a total of 1,789 digital or ICT-related trainings have been carried out," she said.
According to her, the government has also provided 50,000 laptops to schools and educational institutions under the education ministry to help teachers educate, in line with the current digital technology modernisation.
Commenting further, Lim said her ministry also implements a service programme to help teachers integrate educational technology through video-sharing activities, webinars and tutorials using digital technology in delivering effective teaching.
"The teachers selected to provide support services consist of those who have been recognised by Microsoft, Google and Apple. This group is known as the Leading Teachers of the Digital Generation," she said.
She was answering a question by Wee Jeck Seng (BN-Tanjung Piai) regarding the help channelled to teachers to manage face-to-face and online learning when Malaysia was still in the Covid-19 transition to the endemic phase.


Mental health in spotlight in Hong Kong after violent attacks

A series of brutal attacks in Hong Kong is shining a light on mental health in a city that has suffered from particularly acute strains while lacking sufficient resources to provide proper care for all who need it, mental health groups say.
Violent crime is rare in the financial hub but this month two women were stabbed to death in a busy shopping mall by an attacker who police reported had a history of mental illness.
Days later, another knife-wielding attacker severely injured the manager of a McDonald's restaurant.
Also this month, a 29-year-old mother was arrested on suspicion of suffocating her three young daughters and in February, police charged four people in connection with the killing of a 28-year-old model, Abby Choi.
The policy and advocacy group Our Hong Kong Foundation says the state of the mental health of Hong Kong's more than 7 million people has deteriorated while support from the public care sector is not adequate to meet the need for help.
"The mental health status of the Hong Kong population has been worsening over recent years," the foundation said in a report, citing a World Health Organization index that measures well-being and a 2022 survey that found that depressive symptoms were widespread.
A city government spokesman, asked about the state of mental health, referred Reuters to a meeting the administration organised this month aimed at exploring more ways to address mental health problems and support people who suffer from severe mental disorders.
Mental health experts point to the Covid-19 pandemic as a major factor in the increase in mental health issues, as it has been in many places.
But in the case of Hong Kong, its lockdown rules that were among the world's toughest came after unsettling pro-democracy demonstrations that began in 2014, bringing bouts of chaos and culminating in sometimes violent anti-government protests in 2019.
While at the root of the protests was concern over what many see as the erosion of civil liberties in the former British colony as the Beijing government tightens its control, a high cost of living, growing income gap and the perennial problem of a lack of housing exacerbate the frustrations.
Many people in densely populated Hong Kong wait years for public housing, most young people live with their parents and many thousands are packed into subdivided units, known as “coffin cubicles”.
'Exhaustion'
Judy Blaine, a researcher and consultant on mental wellbeing, says it is the compounding of stresses that takes a toll on Hong Kong's people.
"We're dealing with a triple whammy people have had. Hong Kong's experience is just emotional exhaustion," Blaine said.
"There is an underlying sense of uncertainty, an underlying sense of fear coupled with a lack of autonomy to do anything about it. That's when people become more defensive."
A severe shortage of care workers complicates efforts to address the problem, health charities say.
Carol Liang, deputy CEO of the group Mind Hong Kong, said waiting times for cases deemed non-urgent can be as long as 90 weeks in the Hospital Authority system.
"There are only 7.55 psychiatrists and 8.15 clinical psychologists per 100,000 people in Hong Kong compared with the OECD averages of 18 and 53, respectively," she said, referring to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development global policy forum.


Indonesia's Sumatra checks for damage from 6.3 magnitude earthquake

Indonesia's disaster agency is assessing the impact of a strong earthquake that hit off the southern coast of Sumatra island late on Tuesday, it said in a statement, noting there had been no reports of damage or casualties by near midnight.
The 6.3 magnitude quake struck at 21:31 local time (1431 GMT), the country's meteorology and geophysics agency (BMKG) said, with its epicentre 80km south of the town of Manna in Bengkulu province, at a depth of 52km.
Manna is about 600km northwest of the capital Jakarta.
The tremor was felt for 2 to 6 seconds by residents along the southern coastline of Sumatra, prompting some to run out of their homes, disaster agency BNPB said in a statement.
"It was quite strong," a Bengkulu agency official, Septi, said.
Indonesia straddles the so-called "Pacific Ring of Fire", a seismically active zone, where different plates on the earth's crust meet and create a large number of earthquakes and volcanoes.
In February, a magnitude 6.1 earthquake killed more than 10 people when it struck inland near the western coast of Sumatra.


Daily cases creep past 6,300

Another 6,323 Covid-19 cases were recorded today, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 2,528,821.Another 5,337 patients recovered, bringing total recoveries to 2,435,459.Meanwhile 538 are in the ICU, including 503 confirmed Covid-19 patients.A total of 274 are in need of respiratory assistance including 191 confirmed Covid-19 cases.Of the 6,323 cases reported today, 97 (1.5%) are in Category Three and above. The remaining 6,226 (98.5%) are in Category One and Two.


Brazil hits record Covid-19 death toll in April

Brazil marked a grim milestone Saturday, as April became the deadliest month yet in the country’s Covid epidemic, authorities said.The South American giant recorded 67,977 deaths so far in April, making it the deadliest month yet before it ends, topping March’s 66,573 fatalities, the health ministry said.Just in the past 24 hours, Brazil recorded 3,076 deaths, with a seven-day average of 2,545 deaths per day.Meanwhile, 71,137 new infections were also registered on Saturday, with a daily average of more than 60,000 new cases in the last two weeks.Latin America’s most populous country has recorded over 380,000 deaths among its 212 million people.Only the US has been worse affected in absolute terms, but Brazil’s death rate per 100,000 inhabitants is the highest in both the Americas and the southern hemisphere.Despite the data, experts say the curve of infections and deaths is actually stabilising in Brazil.Brazilian public health institute Fiocruz reported Friday that “in the last two weeks there has been a stabilisation of cases and deaths from Covid-19, which characterises a new level of transmission”.The death rate should hover around 3,000 per day in the coming weeks, it said.Brazil has fully vaccinated only 5.8% of its population.The health ministry plans to complete vaccinating priority groups, comprising 77 million people, in September.


Residents exit royal town as clock ticks towards conditional lockdown in Klang

There have been increased movements out of Klang by residents who fear they will be stuck in their homes, ahead of a two-week conditional lockdown which takes effect at midnight.Checks by MalaysiaNow in Klang revealed that not many were critical of the government’s decision to impose a conditional movement control order (CMCO) following the recent record of some 40 new Covid-19 cases.Still, many residents do not plan to remain in the royal town, with long queues already building up at police stations of those applying to travel for their routine commutes.There are also more vehicles on the roads leading out of town.Traffic was a snarl from Kampung Jawa, one of several areas which will come under CMCO, towards Jalan Kebun and the Setia Alam toll plaza, among the main exits from Klang.There was also a 10km gridlock from Port Klang to Persiaran Raja Muda on the way to the Federal Highway bound for Kuala Lumpur.Many who spoke to MalaysiaNow said the memories of the first phase of the MCO which saw the closure of businesses, schools and workplaces, was still vivid.Shafik Ahmad, an engineer with Petronas who lives in central Klang, said he had applied to work from home.“I told my wife to take the children to our home town. That is better than being stuck in Klang. They can also spend more time with our folks in the home town,” he told MalaysiaNow.Ahmad Badlishah also plans to bring his family out of Klang, to stay with his sibling in Seri Kembangan.He said leaving Klang would enable him to commute to work “without going through restrictions and procedures by the authorities”.Under the CMCO, those who wish to travel to work within the Klang Valley must produce a letter from their employers to the South Klang district police headquarters.People wait to be screened for Covid-19 at a clinic in Klang, which will come under conditional lockdown at midnight.Meanwhile, several major supermarkets in the town have seen an increase in shoppers looking to stock up for the next two weeks.But the scene is unlike the panic buying spree which occurred in March, days before the government declared the MCO.At the Aeon Big in Bukit Tinggi, shoppers were seen standing patiently in long lines, and there was no jostling for essential items.“We must stay calm,” said Haslina, among hundreds of shoppers met at the hypermarket.“We are still allowed to go out to get our daily needs,” she added.Business operators had feared a second wave of income loss under the CMCO, but their worries were short-lived as the National Security Council has said they will be allowed to operate as usual.International Trade and Industry Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali today said he had briefed the council on the importance of Klang’s economic sector.But he warned that businesses which failed to adhere to health SOPs would have their operations immediately terminated.


Explosions shake Russian-held Crimea, Ukraine hints at role

Explosions rocked an ammunition depot and disrupted trains in Russian-annexed Crimea on Tuesday, the latest such incident in a region Moscow uses as a supply line for its war in Ukraine.
Moscow's senior representative in the region, Sergei Aksyonov, confirmed that two people were wounded, railway traffic halted and about 2,000 people evacuated from a village near the military depot - but he skirted talk of a cause.
Ukraine hinted at involvement which, if true, could show it has new capability to strike deeper into Russian territory, potentially changing the dynamic of the six-month war.
The Crimean peninsula on the Black Sea, which Russia seized from Ukraine in 2014 in a move unrecognised by most countries, is the base of Russia's Black Sea Fleet and popular in the summer as a holiday resort.
Last week, blasts at a military air base on Crimea's western coast caused extensive damage and destroyed several Russian war planes. Moscow called that an accident, though simultaneous blasts left craters visible from space.
In Tuesday's incident, an electricity substation also caught fire near the town of Dzhankoi, according to footage on Russian state TV. It showed large explosions on the horizon which authorities said came from the ammunition detonations.
Russia's RIA news agency said seven passenger trains had been delayed and that rail traffic on part of the line in northern Crimea had been suspended. That could disrupt its ability to support troops in Ukraine with military hardware.
Ukraine has not officially confirmed or denied responsibility for explosions in Crimea, though its officials have openly cheered incidents in territory that, until last week, appeared safe in Moscow's grip beyond range of attack.
On Tuesday, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak tweeted cryptically: "A reminder: Crimea (as a) normal country is about the Black Sea, mountains, recreation and tourism, but Crimea occupied by Russians is about warehouse explosions and high risk of death for invaders and thieves. Demilitarisation in action."
Kyiv aims to disrupt Russian supply lines ahead of a planned Ukrainian counter-attack.
Like the air base, the ammunition depot is out of range of the main rockets Western countries acknowledge giving Ukraine, raising the prospect that it has acquired new capability.
Nuclear blame game
With the war raging since Feb 24, attention has also focused in recent days on shelling in the vicinity of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southern Ukraine. Both sides have blamed each other for risks to Europe's largest nuclear facility, which Russia has seized though Ukrainian technicians operate it.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of using the site as a shield for attacks and risking a nuclear catastrophe. He wants new sanctions on Moscow's nuclear sector.
Russian officials say it is their enemies who are shelling.
Reuters could not immediately verify battlefield reports.
The conflict has caused millions to flee, killed thousands, and deepened a geopolitical rift between Moscow and the West.
Russia calls its invasion a "special military operation" to demilitarise its neighbour, protect Russian-speaking communities and push back against the Nato military alliance's expansion.
Ukraine and Western backers accuse Russian President Vladimir Putin of waging an imperial-style war of conquest.
Putin accused the US of trying to "drag out" conflict in Ukraine by supporting the Zelensky government. Washington also wanted to extend a "Nato-like system" into the Asia-Pacific region after "a thoroughly planned provocation" with US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Chinese-claimed Taiwan this month, Putin told a conference.
Even as the biggest attack on a European state since 1945 ground on, there was progress on a grain deal to ease a global food crisis created by the conflict.
The ship Brave Commander left the Ukrainian port of Pivdennyi, carrying the first cargo of humanitarian food aid bound for Africa from Ukraine since Russia's invasion.
Ukraine's grain exports have slumped because of the closure of its Black Sea ports, driving up global food prices and sparking fears of shortages in Africa and the Middle East.
On the battlefield, the sides reported no major changes to positions.
Ukraine reported continued Russian shelling and rocket attacks in the Donbas eastern area, and success in repelling attempted Russian advances near the Lysychansk oil refinery in the Luhansk region of the Donbas.


LDP, SPRINT Highway to implement open payment system for toll, too

Five more highways have agreed to participate in the open toll payment system to begin in mid-September.
Works Minister Alexander Nanta Linggi said they are the Damansara-Puchong Expressway  (LDP), SPRINT Highway, Shah Alam Expressway (Kesas), SMART Tunnel and Kuala Lumpur-Putrajaya Expressway (MEX).
"As I have said before, the open payment system will be implemented in phases involving various concession companies.
"Negotiations on this are an ongoing effort by the ministry and need to be done to ensure the successful implementation of the multi-lane fast flow (MLFF) system," he said in a Facebook post today.
Nanta previously announced that six highways, along with the Butterworth-Kulim Expressway, would implement the open payment system to allow users to pay toll using other means.
He said this would bring the total number of highways involved to 11.
Nanta also announced that the Sungai Besi Expressway would be the first location for the implementation of MLFF proof of concept (POC).
"This will be done at the end of October to evaluate the MLFF system before it is implemented at all highways in Malaysia.
"The ministry is also in negotiations with other concession companies to get another highway for the implementation of the MLFF POC. I will announce the location of the second POC in the near future," he said.


New infections at 190 as death toll stays unchanged

Another 190 Covid-19 cases were recorded yesterday, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 5,042,585.
There were 177 recoveries, taking total recoveries to 4,996,409.
There are now 9,219 active cases, of which 8,888 or 96.4% are undergoing home quarantine.
Meanwhile, 0 (0%) are at quarantine centres while 325 (3.5%) have been hospitalised.
A total of six are in ICU with three in need of respiratory assistance.
No new deaths were reported, leaving total deaths unchanged at 36,957.


A game of numbers for DAP's Malay candidates gamble

Analysts say DAP's chances of winning in seats where it has fielded Malay candidates for the 15th general election (GE15) will boil down to the ratio composition of voters in that particular constituency.
DAP's strategy, which came amid surveys claiming a drop in Malay support for its umbrella coalition Pakatan Harapan (PH), has seen it field nine candidates for parliamentary seats and four at the state level.
In Johor, it is fielding Sheikh Umar Bagharib Ali (Ayer Hitam), Fatin Zulaikha Zaidi (Mersing), and Shazwan Zdainal Abidin (Pontian).
In Kedah, it is fielding Zulhazmi Shariff (Jerai), and in Pahang, Tengku Zulpuri Shah Raja Puji (Lipis) and Young Syefura Othman (Bentong).
The remaining candidates for parliamentary seats are Ahmad Tarmizi Mohd Jam (Gerik) in Perak, Syahredzan Johan (Bangi) in Selangor and Syerleena Abdul Rashid (Bukit Bendera) in Penang.
At the state level, meanwhile, DAP is fielding Zulpuri and Muhammad Khairil Khalid in Pahang, and Abdul Aziz Bari and Badrul Hisham Badarudin in Perak.
The gamble is seen as particularly big in seats such as Bentong and Ayer Hitam – in Ayer Hitam, for example, Sheikh Umar is up against MCA's number one man, party president Wee Ka Siong.
DAP came close to unseating Wee at the 2018 general election, when it fielded Liew Chin Tong who lost by a margin of just 303 votes.
Political analyst Ahmad Atory Hussain said Malay DAP candidates stood a chance of winning in seats where the ratio of Chinese voters is higher than 65%.
Atory, of Universiti Sains Malaysia, however cautioned that this would depend on the candidates fielded by other parties.
"If the Chinese vote is split by Chinese candidates, DAP's Malay candidates might lose," he said.
In Ayer Hitam, more than 50% of the voters are Malay. In Lipis, meanwhile, a new seat for DAP and seen as a Barisan Nasional (BN) stronghold, Malays make up 78% of the electorate followed by the Chinese (16%), Indians (5%) and others (1%).
DAP, a party most often associated with the Chinese, had tried before to field Malay candidates in what was perceived as an attempt to gain more non-Chinese support.
In the Teluk Intan by-election in 2014, for example, it fielded Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud against then Gerakan president Mah Siew Keong. Mah won what turned out to be a tight race, with 50.30% of the votes against Dyana's 49.70%.
Objectives
Political analyst Tang Ah Chai said there were likely two objectives for DAP in naming Malay candidates for seats.
"First, to slowly change its Chinese-majority impression to that of a multiracial party, and second, to make naming Malay candidates a norm for future elections," he said.
He said this would contribute to its efforts to deepen its multiracial impression among the public.
But whatever the fate of DAP's Malay candidates at the upcoming election, both Tang and Atory agreed that MCA's comeback since the 2018 polls did not guarantee the same wave of success for the BN component this time around.
MCA suffered nationwide losses at the 14th general election, leaving Wee the only MP from the party.
The following year, the party gained another MP in the Tanjung Piai by-election which saw Wee Jeck Seng winning with a majority of over 15,000 votes.
BN also scored a victory in the Johor election in March, which saw MCA winning several state seats held by DAP such as Yong Peng, Paloh and Pekan Nanas.
Tang said MCA might have a slightly better chance this weekend in seats like Labis, Ayer Hitam and Tanjung Piai.
"But what happened in the previous elections won't necessarily happen again," he added.
"In other constituencies such as those in the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor area, MCA will have zero chance – in Penang, too."
Atory meanwhile said MCA would find it difficult to regain support amid DAP's success in rallying the Chinese vote.
"A voter turnout of less than 65% made MCA win a few seats in the Johor election," he said.
"But if it's a voter turnout of more than 75%, BN might lose. So BN's victory in Johor is not a yardstick for the Nov 19 polls."


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The last known Jew in Afghanistan is shutting the synagogue and leaving

For over 15 years he has lived alone in his synagogue in Kabul, rarely leaving the rundown building, always peering out at the warring factions battering the city. But he has survived.However, now the last known Jew in Afghanistan is packing up and moving to Israel, marking the end of an estimated 2,000-year-old Jewish community which has traditionally existed in a fractious relationship with the locals but never entirely left.By 2004, where once there had been thousands, there were just two Jews left in Kabul, Isaac Levy and Zabulon Simantov, living at separate ends of the dilapidated Kabul synagogue.They regularly denounced each other to the authorities, and both spent time in Taliban jails. Then in January 2005, Levy died of natural causes.Now the man who has been known as the last Jew in Afghanistan for well over a decade is leaving for Israel, fearing that the US military’s promise to leave the country will leave a vacuum that will be filled again with radical groups such as the Taliban.Simantov, 61, plans to leave after this year’s High Holidays season in the autumn.“I will watch on TV in Israel to find out what will happen in Afghanistan,” he told the Arab News.A carpet and jewellery seller, he was born in the western Afghan city of Herat, near the border with Iran. Decades ago it was home to hundreds of Jews.After fleeing to Tajikistan for an undisclosed time, he returned to Afghanistan with a new wife and settled in Kabul.His wife, a Jew from Tajikistan, and their two daughters left for Israel in 1998 but Simantov stayed in Kabul to tend to its only synagogue.Through decades of violence and political turmoil, including a period of Taliban rule when the “scholars” confiscated his Torah, and through the country’s war with the US, he tried to keep the building from falling down.“I managed to protect the synagogue of Kabul like a lion of Jews here,” he told the Arab News.Without him to function as caretaker and congregation, the synagogue will close.He is concerned about what will happen when the US military and its allies finally withdraw.“If the Taliban return, they are going to push us all out with a slap in the face,” he told Radio Free Europe last week in a programme about the exodus of the country’s remaining minority populations.That broadcast wasn’t his first brush with fleeting fame.The cantankerous relationship between himself and Levy, his last neighbour, was dramatised in a play inspired by reports of the two which appeared in international news media following the US-led invasion of Afghanistan and the overthrow of the Taliban regime.The play, entitled “The Last Two Jews of Kabul”, was written by playwright Josh Greenfeld and staged in New York City in 2002.Simintov’s departure will mark the final departure of the actual last Jew of Kabul and with him Afghanistan’s Jewish heritage.


12 polling stations opened in Baram as voting resumes after weather delay

Twelve polling stations were opened for voting in Baram today after polling there was suspended due to bad weather on Nov 19.
Election Commission (EC) secretary Ikmalrudin Ishak in a statement today said the time for the casting of votes would be from 7.30am to 12.30pm or 2pm, depending on the respective centres.
The polling stations are at SK Long Naah, SK Long Luteng, Rh TK Matthew Belulok Lalo, Kpg Lepo Gah, SK Long Sait, SK Long Tungan, SK Long Moh, SK Long Mekabar, SK Long Jekitan, SK Long Lamei, SK Lio Mato and SK Long Banga.
Rh TK John Jau Wan in Long Semiang has also been opened as an additional voting station.
On polling day last Saturday, the EC announced the suspension of polling in 11 of the 194 voting stations for the constituency following bad weather.


Afghan Taliban administration, Myanmar junta not allowed into United Nations for now

A decision on whether the Afghan Taliban administration and the Myanmar junta can send a United Nations ambassador to New York has been postponed for a second time, but could be reconsidered in the next nine months, according to a UN credentials committee report.
The 193-member UN General Assembly is on Friday due to approve the report, which also deferred a decision on rival claims to Libya's UN seat. The nine-member UN credentials committee includes Russia, China and the US.
The deferment of the decisions leaves the current envoys in the seats for their countries, diplomats said.
Competing claims were again made for the seats of Myanmar and Afghanistan with the Taliban administration and Myanmar's junta pitted against envoys of the governments they ousted last year. UN acceptance of the Taliban administration or Myanmar's junta would be a step toward the international recognition sought by both.
The UN General Assembly last year backed postponing a decision on the credentials of Myanmar and Afghanistan.
A rival claim was also made this year for Libya's UN seat - currently held by the Government of National Unity in Tripoli - by a "Government of National Stability" led by Fathi Bashagha and backed by a parliament in the country's east.
The UN credentials committee met on Dec 12 and agreed, without a vote, to "postpone its consideration of the credentials" for Myanmar, Afghanistan and Libya "and to revert to consideration of these credentials at a future time in the seventy-seventh session," which ends mid-September next year.
The Taliban seized power in mid-August last year from the internationally recognised government. When the Taliban last ruled Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001, the ambassador of the government they toppled remained the UN envoy after the credentials committee deferred its decision on the seat.
Myanmar's junta seized power from Aung San Suu Kyi's elected government in February last year.


Only 40% of Malay youth would vote if GE15 is held now, study finds

Only 40% of Malay youth in the country would turn out to vote if the 15th general election (GE15) is held in the near future, research by an independent pollster shows.Merdeka Center said this was a low percentage as the youth comprise about 58% of the electorate as a whole.The study, conducted with NGO Sisters in Islam, was carried out from Oct 30, 2021 to Jan 25, 2022. It saw the participation of 1,216 Malay respondents aged 15 to 25 through face-to-face interviews across the country, including in Sabah and Sarawak.According to demographic data for 2022 from the statistics department, a total of 12.2 million people aged 18 to 40 are eligible to vote, with 5.8 million new voters automatically registered after the introduction of Undi 18.The study also found that only 33% of Malay youth are interested in politics, with trust in government administration at about 69%.The rest said they had lost interest in the challenges and political issues in the country, with 52% of the belief that the country was on the wrong track.At a session to present the findings of the study in Kuala Lumpur yesterday, Merdeka Center director Ibrahim Suffian said a survey conducted 12 years ago had shown that 66% believed Malaysia was on track to becoming a developed country.The latest study had contained questions similar to those in the 2010 survey, and covered the same target group.Merdeka Center also identified some of the challenges faced by the youth in dealing with issues arising after the Covid-19 pandemic, especially in terms of the economy and employment.Ibrahim said the main concern for the group was job security, with 48% worried about losing their current jobs and being unable to find new work.Other areas of concern included the environment (43%), corruption (40%), an influx of refugees and immigrants (35%) and mental health (30%).“The views given by the youth in this latest study are driven by their experiences and challenges over the past few years, including the spread of an epidemic, economic uncertainty and political turmoil,” Ibrahim said.“This has affected their confidence about the future and their views of the country’s direction.”Ibrahim said many Malay youth were also sceptical of the political process and saw politicians as “transactional” in nature.Azmil Tayeb of Universiti Sains Malaysia meanwhile said the same trend could be seen among his students who were increasingly losing faith in the political process.He said they were instead shifting to volunteer work and the organisation of community programmes with the local people.


Biden, Xi at loggerheads on Taiwan in lengthy virtual summit

US President Joe Biden and China’s Xi Jinping traded strong warnings on the future of Taiwan at a virtual summit meant to establish “guardrails” against conflict between their rival superpowers.The video-link summit, which took place late Monday in Washington and early Tuesday in Beijing, lasted a “longer than expected” three and a half hours, a senior US official told reporters. “The conversation was respectful and straightforward.”While the goal was to settle an increasingly volatile relationship between the giant economic and geopolitical competitors, tension over Taiwan – a self-governing democracy claimed by China – loomed large.Chinese state media reported after the summit that Xi cautioned Biden that encouraging Taiwanese independence would be “playing with fire.”“Some people in the US intend to ‘use Taiwan to control China.’ This trend is very dangerous and is like playing with fire, and those who play with fire will get burned,” he was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency.The White House readout after the summit was considerably more measured, but between the lines, Biden’s pushback against Beijing’s increasingly aggressive posture toward Taiwan was clear.“On Taiwan, President Biden underscored that the US… strongly opposes unilateral efforts to change the status quo or undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” the White House statement said.The statement reiterated longstanding US policy that does not recognise Taiwan’s independence but supports defence of the island.According to the US official, who asked not to be identified, there was “extended discussion of Taiwan” during the summit.Biden also raised “concerns” over wider issues of human rights abuses and mass repression against the Uighurs in the northwest region of Xinjiang.The two leaders have spoken by phone twice since Biden’s inauguration in January but with Xi refusing to travel abroad because of the pandemic, an online video meeting was the only option short of an in-person summit.Avoid veering into conflictThe White House emphasised it did not expect – or get – any concrete changes out of the summit. Rather the goal was to build on earlier contacts with Xi to manage a relationship that is too big to fail.Speaking from the White House to Xi on a television screen, Biden said it was their “responsibility as leaders of China and the US to ensure that the competition between our countries does not veer into conflict, whether intended or unintended.”“We need to establish some common sense guardrails,” he said.Instead, the aim should be for “simple, straightforward competition,” Biden said, promising a “candid” discussion.Xi, speaking from Beijing, called Biden “my old friend,” but said their countries had to work more closely.“We face multiple challenges together. As the world’s two largest economies and permanent members of the UN Security Council, China and the US need to increase communication and cooperation,” he said, speaking through an interpreter in brief public remarks, before they went behind closed doors.Both Biden and Xi emphasised the need for working together on major global issues, especially Covid-19 and climate change.“A sound and steady China-US relationship” is needed “for safeguarding a peaceful and stable international environment,” Xi said.Biden gets domestic boostRelations between the superpowers plummeted during the presidency of Donald Trump, who launched a trade war with China while assailing Beijing’s response to an international probe into the origins of the Covid pandemic in the Chinese city of Wuhan.Biden has recast the confrontation more broadly as a struggle between democracy and autocracy.He got a boost Monday when he signed into law a US$1.2 trillion infrastructure package, the biggest of its kind in more than half a century. Biden describes the initiative as an important step in catching up with years of intensive Chinese government investments, thereby proving that democracies can compete.“The world is changing,” he said in a White House speech. “We have to be ready.”While the day-to-day tone is less erratic than in the Trump era, tension over Taiwan in particular is threatening to escalate into dangerous new territory.China has ramped up military activities near Taiwan in recent years, with a record number of warplanes intruding into the island’s air defence zone in October.The US says it supports Taiwan’s self-defence but is ambiguous about whether it would intervene to help directly.In the brief comments made in front of reporters, Xi referred to each country needing to “run our domestic affairs” but did not mention US criticism of Beijing’s saber-rattling around Taiwan, mass human rights violations or other sore points.China’s foreign ministry on Monday put the onus on Biden to improve relations.“We hope that the US will work in the same direction as China to get along with each other,” foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters.


No more MCOs despite Covid spike, says recovery council

National Recovery Council chairman Muhyiddin Yassin today reiterated the government’s assurance that there would be no further implementation of movement control order despite the fierce spike in Covid-19 infections due to the ultra contagious Omicron variant.Replying to questions after a press conference, he said there would be “no turning back”.“There is no turning back anymore,” he said. “I think the experience that we have will be enough to help us manage our situation.”He added however that the public must always remember and comply with the SOPs set by the health ministry.The country had been placed under a series of movement controls meant to curb the spread of Covid-19 since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020.The restrictions saw businesses shut and employees told to work from home, with only essential services allowed to remain open.Schools were shut and interstate travel was banned, in a move only reversed in October last year.Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said last month that the government had no plans to impose another lockdown to restrict movements and businesses.He also said that a further easing of SOPs might be on the cards once the vaccination programme, including the administration of booster jabs, is complete, adding however that this would depend on the health ministry’s advice.


EU fails to agree on Russian oil price cap, say diplomats

European Union governments failed to agree on Monday on a price cap on Russian seaborne crude oil, as Poland insisted that the cap had to be set lower than proposed by the G7 to cut Moscow's ability to finance its invasion of Ukraine, diplomats said.
"There is no deal. The legal texts have now been agreed, but Poland still can't agree to the price," one diplomat said. No new date for talks has been set yet, diplomats said, even though the price cap mechanism is to enter into force on Dec 5.
If there was no agreement on the G7 price cap idea by next Monday, the EU would implement harsher measures agreed at the end of May - a ban on all Russian crude oil imports from Dec 5 and on petroleum products from Feb 5, Polish diplomats said.
Hungary and two other landlocked central European states secured exemptions from that ban for the pipeline imports they rely on.
The Group of Seven (G7) nations has proposed a softer version of the EU ban to keep oil supply to the global economy steady, because Russia supplies 10% of the world's oil.
It proposed that the EU and other global customers keep buying Russian crude, but only if its price is at or below a G7 agreed level. That would cut the Kremlin's revenues.
The G7 has proposed a cap of US$65-70 (about RM293) per barrel, but Poland and some others argue this will not hurt Moscow because Russian crude is already trading below that range at US$63.50 URL-E.
With Russian production costs estimated at around US$20, Moscow has a very large profit from its oil exports. Poland, Lithuania and Estonia have been pushing for a price cap of US$30 per barrel.
"The Poles are completely uncompromising on the price, without suggesting an acceptable alternative," the EU diplomat said. "Clearly there is growing annoyance with the Polish position."
Malta, Cyprus and Greece were worried the G7 cap proposal was too low, hitting their large shipping industries, but diplomats said they got some concessions in the legal texts and were no longer an obstacle to a deal.
The idea to enforce the G7 cap is to prohibit shipping, insurance and re-insurance companies from handling cargoes of Russian crude around the globe, unless it is sold for less than the price set by the G7 and its allies.
Because the world's key shipping and insurance firms are based in G7 countries, the price cap would make it very difficult for Moscow to sell its oil for a higher price.


Cash aid no fix for poverty, says economist

An economist says that giving cash handouts to those in the lower-income bracket will not help tackle the larger problem of poverty in the country, as the practice which began under the administration of Najib Razak appears set to continue under current prime minister Anwar Ibrahim.
Najib, who like Anwar, held the posts of both prime minister and finance minister, introduced the payments then known as Bantuan Rakyat Malaysia or BR1M in his budget for 2012.
While it was welcomed by those in the B40 or Bottom 40 group, the practice was criticised by other politicians including Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Anwar himself, who was the opposition leader at the time.
But despite the brickbats, the giving of handouts continued long after the collapse of Najib's Barisan Nasional government six years later.
Mahathir's Pakatan Harapan administration, which ruled for the next 22 months, rebranded the payments as Bantuan Sara Hidup (BSH).
Under Muhyiddin Yassin's government, which came next, the handouts were renamed Bantuan Prihatin Nasional.
The payments were rebranded yet again under the government of Ismail Sabri Yaakob, when they became known as Bantuan Keluarga Malaysia.
Under Anwar's administration, they were renamed Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah (STR).
Phase One of the STR payments began on Jan 17. In all, a total of RM1.67 billion is expected to be spent on the handouts.
Speaking to MalaysiaNow, however, economist Lee Heng Guie said such payments were only enough to provide their recipients with short-term relief.
Lee, the executive director of the Socio-Economic Research Centre, said while the government was still responsible for the welfare of the B40, its main goal should be to ensure that those in this income bracket do not remain there forever.
He said this meant that the government would need to prioritise efforts to ensure sustainable economic growth, and continue to create job opportunities in addition to finding ways to lower the cost of goods.
"It would be better to help them find jobs or ways to earn an income by improving their skill sets," he said.
"It doesn't make sense to encourage this kind of aid every year."
As for now, Lee said, such aid was still necessary, especially as the people struggle to regain their footing after the Covid-19 pandemic.
But he said that many, economists included, had reservations about the aid scheme given the country's fiscal position and the fact that the national debt and liabilities had hit RM1 trillion.
Cash aid aside, he said, there were also other forms of assistance such as subsidies that needed to be covered through funds allocated in the annual budget.
"This is why it's important to ensure that only those who truly need it receive this aid," he said.
"The question is, how is the government going to do that? That is where the real challenge lies."
Throughout the years, concerns have been raised about how the government's cash aid is spent, with reports of recipients using it on even non-essential items such as cigarettes.
In 2017, meanwhile, a recipient who was unemployed at the time claimed to have bought drugs with his BR1M money, further fueling debate about the abuse of the aid scheme.
Even the voucher booklets given under Najib's administration were embroiled in controversy due to reports of recipients selling them at a discount simply to obtain some cash in hand.
Lee said this was why the government needed to ensure that the distribution of aid was done based on accurate data evaluation.
He also advised the setting of clear criteria for recipients.
Jeniri Amir, a senior fellow at the National Professors Council, said that politically, such aid could be seen as a populist measure to win the hearts of the people.
He said giving cash handouts allowed leaders to boost their reputation and image, as well as that of the ruling government.
"Politicians know that this is the best way to win the people over," he said.
"And for the opposition, it is political ammunition to tarnish the government's image," he added, referring to Mahathir's stand on BR1M before it was rebranded as BSH.
"But the people love it. Who doesn't like money?" he said.
"This is the easy way to help the people, even though in reality, it is not the best way."


Tough job market in 2021 to see more fresh grads turning to civil service?

As Malaysians turn the page on yet another year of Covid-related challenges, wage workers especially newcomers to the labour market may look more to the civil service as a means of landing a secure job amid lingering economic concerns on both the national and global scale.Fresh graduates have been among the worst hit by the economic turmoil that arose in the wake of Covid-19, with entire countries locked down as governments struggled to keep infections at bay.Over the past two years, many businesses have shuttered while even those which survive have done so by the skin of their teeth.And for new graduates venturing into the job market for the first time, things have been tough – starting, first and foremost, with the pay.The government had pledged to create 500,000 new jobs this year through the JanaKerja scheme, reskilling and upskilling programmes, and apprenticeship opportunities for fresh graduates through the MyStep programme.As of Nov 30, it had managed to create some 497,000 jobs – over 99% of its target for the year.Yet the question of salary remains, with some government leaders receiving a backlash for their remarks on the matter.In April, for instance, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of the economy, Mustapa Mohamed, said graduates should be grateful for employment even if the pay is low.He also said the low wages were due to a weak job market as a result of the economy shrinking 5.6% in 2020.The Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) said even the RM2,000 offered by the government through MyStep had been welcomed by fresh grads.For them, it said, it is the security seen as accompanying such jobs that is the more attractive factor.“Many unemployed graduates are interested in being employed under MyStep even though it is for the short term and the pay is lower,” MEF president Syed Hussain Syed Husman said.“This is because graduates see MyStep as the avenue for them to gain experience in government and GLC or GLIC environments. They use MyStep as a stepping stone to move on to permanent civil service jobs later,” he told MalaysiaNow.While the RM2,000 salary may appear meagre especially for those living in urban areas in the Klang Valley, Syed Hussain said other considerations are also taken into consideration.Aside from job security, they include competitive salaries, allowances and benefits such as medical benefits which cover the entire family, pensions, housing and car loans, and scholarships for further study.But at the end of the day, Syed Hussain said, job security remains one of the most important factors despite the rise of other opportunities seen as a way to earn a quick buck such as e-sports and content creation.“Such activities do not provide a continuous stream of income and make it difficult for long-term commitments, including financial commitments.“Employment stability is one of the most important factors contributing to interest among the younger generation to join the civil service,” he said, adding that public servants are not likely to be retrenched or dismissed.According to government statistics, while the number of Malaysians employed increased for the third month in a row in February with 33,000 entering the labour force, the unemployment rate for those aged 15 to 24 increased by 0.4% in February to 13.9%, pushing the total number to 347,600 compared to 295,300 in January.According to Syed Hussain, this and the wage situation for fresh graduates might remain unchanged for the foreseeable future.He said many employers are not ready to increase wages for their workers as the economy is still not back on track.He said many employers are also in “survival mode”, a situation compounded by the recent floods which hit Selangor especially hard.“Malaysians need to understand that the employment market cannot absorb the number of graduates we produce each year,” he said.“Major recruitment happens mainly due to retirement and the expansion of businesses, but these factors will not create more jobs in the existing economic pie.”The only way forward, he said, is to bring in more foreign direct investments for new industries to create more employment opportunities for graduates.But he stressed that the low pay for graduates is likely a temporary phenomenon, adding that things would fall into place once the situation returns to normal.


Parliament dissolved, paving way for GE15 this year

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob today announced the dissolution of Parliament, paving the way for an early general election in a move opposed by a number of his own Cabinet members.
He said he had had an audience with Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah at noon yesterday to present his request for the dissolution of Parliament.
"In accordance with Article 40(2)(b) and Article 55(2) of the Federal Constitution, His Majesty the Yang di-Pertuan Agong acted according to His Majesty's discretion by granting my request, that the 14th Parliament be dissolved today, Oct 10, 2022," he said.
"I recommend that the heads of state governments except Sabah, Sarawak, Melaka and Johor, to take appropriate action to dissolve their respective legislative assemblies on the same date as the parliamentary general election, although some states have decided not to dissolve their state assemblies," he added.
"This should be carried out simultaneously to ensure that the people are not burdened, in addition to ensuring the smoothness of the democratic process and to save costs."
He added that the determination of dates for the nomination of candidates, election day and other related matters would be subject to the decision of the Election Commission.
Ismail's announcement ended more than two years of talk on the holding of polls, during which time the country experienced a change of governments and prime ministers at an unprecedented pace.
An election must be held within 60 days of Parliament's dissolution.
Since the last general election in 2018 which saw the historic fall of Umno as the ruling power, Malaysia has seen three prime ministers, none of whom served more than two years amid the economic and political challenges caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
During that period, four state elections were also held, although political analysts are still unable to predict any fixed pattern from some seven million Malaysians automatically registered as new voters.
The call for an early election, ahead of Parliament's expiry of term next year, had been heavily championed by Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and a number of party leaders.
Six state governments under Pakatan Harapan and Perikatan Nasional, however, had opposed any move for an early election, saying they would not dissolve their state assemblies until next year, in a break from the tradition of simultaneous polls at the federal and state levels.
They are Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Penang, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu. Meanwhile, four states held their elections in the past year.


Facebook to pay US$650 million settlement over US privacy dispute

A US federal judge has given final approval to Facebook’s US$650 million payment to settle a privacy dispute between the social media giant and 1.6 million users in the state of Illinois.“We are pleased to have reached a settlement so we can move past this matter, which is in the best interest of our community and our shareholders,” a Facebook spokesman said in a statement to AFP.The decision was issued on Friday, according to documents seen by AFP on Sunday.Chicago attorney Jay Edelson sued Facebook in 2015, alleging it illegally collected biometric data to identify faces in violation of a 2008 Illinois privacy law.At the end of January 2020, Facebook agreed to pay US$550 million after it failed to get the lawsuit – filed as a class action in 2018 – dismissed.But in July 2020, the judge in the case, James Donato, ruled that the amount was insufficient.During the trial, it emerged that Facebook was violating Illinois law by storing biometric data – digital scans of people’s faces, in support of its face-tagging feature – without users’ consent.In 2019, Facebook proposed that the facial recognition feature be optional only.According to Donato, the regulation is “a landmark result” and represents a “major win for consumers in the hotly contested area of digital privacy”.“It is one the largest settlements ever for a privacy violation,” he commented, noting that plaintiffs will receive at least US$345 each in compensation.


PN to use new logo in GE15

Perikatan Nasional (PN) will be introducing a new logo for its use in the 15th general election (GE15).
PN chairman Muhyiddin Yassin said this followed the suggestion made at the PN Supreme Council Meeting about two weeks ago to modify its logo.
"The current logo is already good, but we will improve on it and there will be symbols to be used.
"A suitable logo will be introduced and the Election Commission will be notified of this," he said in Ipoh yesterday.
This comes after PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang reportedly said that the party would be using a new, suitable symbol for its candidates in the coming election.
Muhyiddin said PAS had given notice of its wish to look for a more suitable logo for PN, and that it was being worked out by the coalition’s secretary-general, Hamzah Zainudin.
On July 3, PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man reportedly said that a decision on the use of the PN logo in GE15 had not yet been finalised.


Defence ministry satisfied with progress of LCS project

The defence ministry is satisfied with the progress of the littoral combat ship (LCS) construction project, with one of the six ships expected to be ready next year, says its minister Mohamad Hasan.
He said his visit to the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) base in Lumut today found that overall, the construction of the ships, which will be implemented in stages according to suitability, was on schedule.
"For the first ship, it is now 70% (complete). There is only one more block to complete, and it won’t take long.
"The engine, propeller, and gearbox have been installed. Only the electrical equipment and weapons (have yet to be installed).
"I am confident that this first ship will be ready in 2024 before undertaking seawater testing and being commissioned," he told a press conference after the visit.
Mohamad was previously reported as saying that the defence ministry would realise the construction of the LCS project for the RMN to strengthen its defence of the national waters.
Mohamad said he would continue the efforts implemented by the defence ministry, the Malaysian Armed Forces, the finance ministry, the economy ministry as well as the Armed Forces Fund Board in realising the completion of the LCS.
He also said that he had consulted the finance ministry, economy ministry and defence ministry, in order to explain the actual situation regarding the LCS issue.
The Public Accounts Committee, in a report on Aug 4 last year, said the government had paid RM6.083 billion to Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd in a deal allegedly signed via direct negotiation, but not a single vessel had been delivered to date.
On Oct 2 last year, former defence minister Hishammuddin Hussein was reported as saying that the construction of the LCS project would resume as soon as negotiations ended in December 2022.
Asked about the status of the other ships, Mohamad said they were currently 22% to 48% complete in terms of the installation of electrical and electronic equipment, weaponry and various other technical matters.
"I was informed that the other ships will take two to three years to complete. Some need to be checked in terms of leaks, artillery, and ECU (electronic control unit). We hope that all previous problems will be resolved.
"This includes the issue with middlemen which is almost resolved. From now on, we will deal directly with vendors only.
"There are also some who ask why we continue with this LCS project (despite the ongoing economic uncertainty). My answer is simple, matters pertaining to national sovereignty and defence cannot be compromised.
"You can say whatever you like but the defence ministry remains focused on this," he said.


Pandemic reversing women’s contribution to economic growth

Shelly Mohamed and Suria Mahmood are both educated, accomplished professionals in their 40s, married, with late-teenage children.They, like tens of thousands of other Malaysian working women, have seen their lives disrupted by the pandemic. Both have been working from home for the last seven months.But the effect has been quite different for each of them, they tell MalaysiaNow.Shelly, a marketing manager with a government-linked company, has adjusted well to working from home. While her entrepreneur husband takes care of the grocery shopping, Shelly finds time, amid multiple Zoom meetings with colleagues, to attend webinars and do workouts at home via virtual classes.Suria, a tech equities specialist, is always exhausted. Her banker husband plays no active part in their domestic life. He doesn’t cook, clean, go grocery shopping or take any part in child-raising. She’s frank about where the reason for her fatigue lies: at home, not with her employers.The pandemic has unexpectedly resurrected an issue many hoped had been relegated to history.“For decades, women’s participation in the workforce was stuck at 45-48% until the government saw the importance of women as participants in the labour force.”Workplaces will revert to being majority-male environments post-pandemic for the simple reason that when office jobs are scarce, women are still regarded as the ones who should be at home with a dripping mop in one hand and a baby on her hip.The argument, in a report by LeanIn.org released last week, is that while the pandemic rages on with little hope of an early end in sight, it will entrench the idea of the woman tapping at Excel sheets on her laptop at the kitchen table, while a saucepan boils on the stove and the youngest wants to know when Daddy’ll be home.The other danger is that employers will once again see women as “burdens” because they need to take leave for maternity and to attend to family matters.Universiti Malaya professor of Gender Studies, Shanthi Thambiah, warns of long-term ripple effects on economic growth and wealth creation if Malaysian policymakers turn a blind eye to this pandemic-related phenomenon.“Malaysian women make up 55% of the labour force,” she tells MalaysiaNow.“For decades, women’s participation in the workforce was stuck at 45-48% until the government saw the importance of women as participants in the labour force.”That participation is not a matter of chickenfeed.According to one IMF analysis, from 2001 to 2008 female employment contributed just 4% to Malaysia’s economic growth, but from 2011 to 2016 the figure had jumped to 11%.In short, until the pandemic, women in the workforce were significant drivers of economic activity and wealth creation in Malaysia, and if policymakers fail to acknowledge this after the pandemic, the downside may not be limited to an economy that is slow to restart.Women’s overall contribution is not just a matter of the fact that women make up a significant proportion of cheap labour in Malaysia, which is no doubt part of the allure for foreign companies setting up factories here.“Women are not homogeneous,” Shanthi says. “Women in the formal sector and the civil service are a privileged lot. Women down in the informal sector who have lost their employment in this pandemic are being pushed into domestic roles to do housework and care work.”Shanthi emphasises that the responsibility of making sure that children stuck at home during the pandemic are still getting an education, falls on women, regardless of their employment situation.“The more educated the woman, the more pressure on her to make sure her children are not only learning but also performing,” she says.So, if pandemic-raised children are hindered in their learning because dads are not helping exhausted work-from-home mums, we may even see a generation of school-leavers ill-equipped to contribute to Malaysia’s future growth.“This is a middle-class phenomenon,” Shanthi tells MalaysiaNow, “but in every economic crisis, including the 1997 Asian financial crisis, we see that the retrenchment of female workers is much higher than that of males, because society still sees men as the main providers.”The pandemic, she says, is increasing that inequality.


Chinese cyber-espionage unit on US hacking spree, says report

At least 30,000 US organisations including local governments have been hacked in recent days by an “unusually aggressive” Chinese cyber-espionage campaign, according to a computer security specialist.The campaign has exploited recently discovered flaws in Microsoft Exchange software, stealing emails and infecting computer servers with tools that let attackers take control remotely, Brian Krebs said in a post at his cyber security news website.“This is an active threat,” White House spokesman Jennifer Psaki said when asked about the situation during a press briefing.“Everyone running these servers needs to act now to patch them. We are concerned that there are a large number of victims,” she added.After Microsoft released patches for the vulnerabilities on Tuesday, attacks “dramatically stepped up” on servers not yet updated with security fixes, said Krebs, who cited unnamed sources familiar with the situation.“At least 30,000 organizations across the US – including a significant number of small businesses, towns, cities and local governments – have over the past few days been hacked by an unusually aggressive Chinese cyber espionage unit that’s focused on stealing email from victim organisations,” Krebs wrote in the post.He reported that insiders said hackers have “seized control” of thousands of computer systems around the world using password-protected software tools slipped into systems.Microsoft said early this week that a state-sponsored hacking group operating out of China is exploiting previously unknown security flaws in its Exchange email services to steal data from business users.The company said the hacking group, which it has named “Hafnium”, is a “highly skilled and sophisticated actor”.Hafnium has in the past targeted US-based companies including infectious disease researchers, law firms, universities, defense contractors, think tanks, and NGOs.In a blog post on Tuesday, Microsoft executive Tom Burt said the company had released updates to fix the security flaws, which apply to on-premises versions of the software rather than cloud-based versions, and urged customers to apply them.“We know that many nation-state actors and criminal groups will move quickly to take advantage of any unpatched systems,” he added at the time.Microsoft said the group was based in China but operated through leased virtual private servers in the US, and that it had briefed the US government.Beijing has previously hit back at US accusations of state-sponsored cyber theft. Last year it accused Washington of smears following allegations that Chinese hackers were attempting to steal coronavirus research.In January, US intelligence and law enforcement agencies said Russia was probably behind the massive SolarWinds hack that shook the government and corporate security, contradicting then-president Donald Trump, who had suggested China could be to blame.Microsoft said Tuesday the Hafnium attacks “were in no way connected to the separate SolarWinds-related attacks”.


Like Kuala Langat reserve, Sg Buloh plant nurseries need holistic solution

The shocking degazettement and the surprise re-gazettement of the Kuala Langat North Forest Reserve (KLNFR) has been an amusement of sorts as, having stirred a hornet’s nest of protests from NGOs and state representatives, the Selangor government dropped the proposal like a hot potato and decided to heed the hue and cry of the people.Selangor is already a developed state and should now focus more on enhancing the quality of life of its people by opting for a developmental and environmental balance. This was the primary reason why opposition reached a crescendo forcing the Selangor government to backtrack.What Selangor needs most now is enhancement of the quality of residential living especially in the provision of parks, playgrounds, open spaces, clean and pleasant environs and efficient municipal services instead of an endless urban sprawl that eats away at the last vestiges of suburban greenery.Selangor needs more urban greenery to make the surroundings pleasant and also do its part to cope with climate change. It must be noted that the weather has changed for the worse in the Klang Valley as can be seen by the torrential downpours resulting in frequent flash floods and the high incidences of lightning due to the excessive heat emanating from the urban areas.It is here that horticulture can play a very important role in re-greening and rehabilitating unused and barren spaces of the concrete jungle. Turfing, planting saplings, shrubs, palms and trees reduce the urban heat and decrease the rain run-off and soil erosion not to mention creating an eye-pleasing colourful landscape.Needless to say the horticultural industry is an important one for Selangor. Selangor’s horticultural industry took root during the 1960s when the Sg Buloh Leprosarium inmates took to planting a wide variety of plants and flowers to earn an extra income and the annual Open Day saw large numbers of customers from the new housings areas and townships such as Petaling Jaya, Damansara, Shah Alam, Ampang, Kepong and others start snapping up the products on sale.This was a humble but impactful start to Selangor’s horticultural industry centred in Sg Buloh. The Sg Buloh Leprosarium with its lush hillside greenery, waterfalls and streams was dubbed the Valley of Hope by the British administration who needed a secluded site for the hospital. It was from this Valley of Hope, which can be dubbed Selangor’s own home-grown “Silicon Valley” that Sg Buloh’s famous horticultural industry began to take shape and grow vibrantly in the following decades.However, the Sg Buloh horticultural industry now faces a daunting prospect and bleak future brought about by development. About 100-200 nurseries in the Kota Damansara Green Lane, Jalan Hospital and nearby areas have been issued with eviction notices by various property and infra-structure developers.This problem had been anticipated for a long time and many appeals were made to the Selangor government to use this opportunity to set up a horticultural hub that can be the pride of the state, a revenue spinner and a tourist attraction that could could draw visitors, domestic and foreign. The horticultural hub will also ensure proper commercial growth of the industry and contribute much for beautification, landscaping and rehabilitation efforts of the state and country. The nurseries supply a wide variety of plants and trees and their customers include the forestry department, housing developers, highway operators, urban planners, landscapers, agrobusinesses, fruit farmers and others.It was bearing all these in mind that the former menteri besar Khalid Ibrahim took the initiative to find a holistic solution for the Sg Buloh horticultural industry to ensure its long-term growth. His administration issued a directive to the Selangor Land and Mines Office1qq stating that the department explore ways to include the horticultural nurseries in the future development of the RRI.The RRI was subsequently sold to the EPF by the federal government and nothing was done to make the directive a reality in resolving the nurserymen’s predicament. The menteri besar’s directive has, legally speaking, the force of a promissory estoppel and it is the state government’s responsibility to implement it if feasible. Subsequent state governments cannot simply wash their hands of the problem.If the RRI cannot be utilised for a nursery hub then an alternative site should be chosen and the onus is on the present state government as the eviction notices will take effect soon. Many meetings have been held on this issue of a horticultural hub but the state administration is simply clueless about finding an alternative site. The horticultural nursery owners and operators, now mostly comprising senior citizens, are looking on helplessly at the sunset of their hard-earned industry.It is hoped that this issue will be brought up in the next session of the Selangor state legislative assembly and an urgent solution found. The nurserymen may not have the collective strident voice or political clout of those who opposed the KLNFR degazettement, but nevertheless their problems are equally important and need to be resolved by the state government headed by Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari.The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Ex-Ultra Kirana director admits giving Zahid cash every month for 4 years

A former director of Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd (UKSB) told the Shah Alam High Court today that his company had made cash payments in Singapore dollars on a monthly basis to former deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi from 2014 to 2018 in relation to the foreign visa system (VLN) contract.Harry Lee Vui Khun said the payments to Zahid which started in late 2014 at S$200,000 per month increased to S$520,000 per month some time in 2017.“If I recall correctly, the payment of S$200,000 per month began in late 2014 and continued until mid-2015. Around that time, we went to his (Zahid’s) house in Country Heights, Kajang, and at that meeting, Zahid requested that the monthly contribution be increased. After discussing with Wan Quoris and David Tan, we agreed to a sum of S$300,000 per month.“Later in 2017, Zahid requested to see us at his private residence. At that meeting also, Zahid requested that the monthly payment be increased due to the upcoming general election.“After discussing with Wan Quoris and David Tan, we agreed to increase the amount from S$300,000 to S$520,000 per month,” he said, reading from his witness statement during examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Abdul Malik Ayob at the trial of Zahid, who is facing 40 corruption charges.The 15th prosecution witness said they came up with that figure because Zahid had mentioned that the Umno divisions needed financial support.“In our discussion, we agreed to a sum of about RM10,000 per division for the 100-odd Umno divisions and after conversion, the total sum came up to S$520,000 per month,” he said.The third prosecution witness, former home ministry immigration affairs division deputy secretary Siti Jalilah Abd Manap, previously told the court that Zahid had extended the UKSB contract for the VLN project even though the existing contract was valid for three more years.When asked a supplementary question by deputy public prosecutor Raja Rozela Raja Toran, if he could recall how many times he had delivered cash money between 2014 and 2018, he replied: “70% of the process was done by me… 40 times in four years.”Raja Rozela: Can you recall, who did you go with to deliver the money at Country Heights, Kajang (Zahid’s house)?Lee: With Wan Quoris and David Tan.Raja Rozela: In your statement, you said that the money was handed over by you alone, but you went together (with Wan Quoris n David Tan), why?Lee: I’m not sure, but from day one it had been set that way (meeting with Zahid) and I just followed.Zahid, 69, faces 33 charges of receiving bribes amounting to S$13.56 million from UKSB for himself as home minister to extend the contract of the company as the operator of the OSC service in China and the supply VLN system, as well as to maintain the contract agreement to supply the VLN integrated system to the same company by the home ministry.On another seven counts, Zahid was charged with obtaining for himself S$1,150,000, RM3 million, 15,000 euros and US$15,000 in cash from the same company in connection with his official work.He was charged with committing the offences at Seri Satria, Presint 16, Putrajaya and Country Heights Kajang between October 2014 and March 2018.The trial before judge Mohd Yazid Mustafa continues later today.


EU warns will block AstraZeneca vaccine exports

The European Union (EU) warned Thursday that it will ban drugs firms from exporting coronavirus vaccines to the UK and other countries until they make good on their promised deliveries to the bloc.EU chief Ursula von der Leyen’s stark warning – which could hit UK-based AstraZeneca first – came after a video summit of all 27 EU leaders and stoked fears that cross-Channel rivalry could damage global efforts to combat the pandemic.Some leaders stressed that an embargo should be a last resort if negotiations for a better way of sharing vaccine production come up short, but von der Leyen and France’s President Emmanuel Macron adopted an uncompromising tone.“I think it is clear that first of all the company (AstraZeneca) has to catch up, has to honour the contract it has with the European member states, before it can engage again in exporting vaccines,” von der Leyen told a news conference.The focus of the latest row is an AstraZeneca plant in the Netherlands, which Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government claims as part of the British vaccine supply chain.Macron declared his firm support for the commission’s plan, declaring “an end to naivety”.“I support the idea that we should block all possible exports for as long as the labs don’t respect their commitments to Europeans,” he said.The Netherlands and Belgium, centres of EU vaccine production, are skittish at talk of an embargo, fearful that disruption to global supply chains could hurt other firms’ production.“The supply chains are so intricate, they’re so intertwined, so it’s not automatically a good thing if this new instrument is to be applied,” Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said, citing the example of a Belgian plant making BioNTech/Pfizer vaccines that relies on raw materials from Britain.But Rutte also told reporters he warned Johnson that the Netherlands would enforce any EU decision to halt exports – even as he hoped for a quick resolution.“Luckily at least the two (sides) are talking and it seems, I think, on Saturday or soon after they could come to an agreement,” Rutte told reporters.“That would be very helpful, because we are friends, the UK and the rest of Europe, and we need each other.”London was alarmed by von der Leyen’s decision this week to tighten Europe’s export control mechanism to give the Commission more leeway to block exports if EU vaccine supplies are at stake.Johnson is also concerned that a ban that extends beyond UK-based AstraZeneca’s disputed supply could also block BioNTech/Pfizer vaccines produced in Belgium.Tempers frayThat would imperil Britain’s vaccination drive, which has so far proved more successful than those of EU member states, which have been hit by a massive shortfall in deliveries.As tempers frayed this week, a joint statement by the British government and the commission on Wednesday said both sides were looking for ways to cooperate towards a “win-win” compromise, but no details were given.While Britain accuses the European Union of vaccine “nationalism”, von der Leyen noted that the bloc was “the region that exports the most vaccines worldwide”.She said that, since the beginning of December, companies in the EU had sent 77 million doses of Covid vaccines out of the bloc – with an EU official noting that more than a quarter of those went to Britain.But von der Leyen said the next three months will see overall vaccine supplies more than triple and the EU – population 450 million – is on track to see 70% of adults fully vaccinated by mid-September.AstraZeneca is expected to deliver 30 million doses to the EU in the first quarter, a pledge already radically reduced from the 120 million doses it was initially contracted to provide.Vaccine war?Another sensitive issue is the distribution of vaccines within Europe.A group of six smaller states led by Austria demanded more doses after they missed an earlier opportunity to secure a bigger share of costlier vaccines by betting on the cheaper – but unreliably supplied – AstraZeneca one.But after the talks, Rutte said Austria does not seem in “bad shape at the moment” and member states had asked ambassadors to find a solution for harder-hit Bulgaria, Croatia and Latvia.


New Caledonia, 20,000km from Paris, votes to stay part of France

Voters in New Caledonia have rejected full independence from France again, avoiding what would have been an embarrassing loss of face for Paris.The South Pacific archipelago north of New Zealand and 20,000km from France, voted 53.26% to remain, a narrower margin of victory than in a similar 2018 poll.President Emmanuel Macron said: “Voters confirmed their wish to keep New Caledonia a part of France. I salute this show of confidence in the Republic.”New Caledonia was colonised by France in 1853. Under French rule the indigenous Kanaks were confined to reserves and discriminated against by European colonial settlers.Even now, the Kanak people tend to be of lower socio-economic status than the Europeans and other settlers, many of whom originate from Southeast Asia.The majority of Kanaks support independence but descendants of colonial settlers remain loyal to Paris.The population of nearly 300,000 depends on yearly French subsidies of over €1.3 billion (RM6 billion), the exploitation of massive nickel deposits and tourism.This year the islands have isolated themselves from the outside world because of Covid-19. There have been 27 cases reported so far.The vote contrasts with Barbados where this year the people voted to remove Queen Elizabeth as head of state.


Malawi runs out of vaccines as second jabs due

Delays in coronavirus vaccine shipments to Malawi have caused health facilities to run out of doses as hundreds are due to receive a second shot, the health minister said Saturday.The southern African country has so far received 300,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine from the United Nations, 102,000 from the African Union and 50,000 donated by India.Inoculations started in April and the country was expecting a second UN shipment of 900,000 by the end of May, four weeks before the first vaccinated Malawians would be due a second dose.But Health Minister Khumbize Kandodo said that batch had been delayed by a recent surge in coronavirus cases in India, the world’s main AstraZeneca supplier, which forced the country to temporarily halt major vaccine exports to meet local demand.“The situation in India has delayed the supply,” Kandodo told AFP on Saturday, adding that the vaccines would only arrive in July or August.Hundreds of people seeking to get vaccinated were turned away from Malawi’s main Kamuzu Central Hospital in the capital Lilongwe this week.“The hospital has told us that there is nothing they can do because they simply do not have vaccines,” taxi driver Geoffrey Ngwale told AFP on Friday, distraught by the inability to receive a second dose on time.The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention warned in April that India’s vaccine supply delay would undermine inoculation plans on the continent.Africa has been slower than other regions in immunising its population against coronavirus.Only 2% of Africans had received at least one vaccine jab at the start of June, compared to 24% of the world’s population, according to the World Health Organization.Malawi hopes to inoculate around 11 million people – 60% of the population – by the end of 2021.But just over 380,600 people in Malawi have received a first shot so far, of which more than 33,200 are now fully vaccinated.Widespread vaccine hesitancy has also hindered the roll out.The government was forced to destroy 17,000 expired vaccines last month due to low turnout.


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Covid-positive air passengers are still trying to board their flights

After 47 passengers on a Vistara flight from Delhi to Hong Kong on April 4 tested positive for Covid-19 on arrival, Hong Kong banned all flights from India.New Zealand has just done the same for all Indian flights and Macau has imposed a 28-day quarantine for arrivals from India which many will say seems lenient in comparison.All of the passengers aboard the Vistara flight would have had to submit current Covid-19 negative tests to have been able to board their flight in the first place.This indicates that either: their test results were fake; they were asymptomatic before boarding; or they caught the virus during the flight.Many authorities are asking what this means for the reopening of international air travel, and how they can ensure that passengers can fly with confidence.For India is not the only country where infected passengers flying or trying to fly is a problem.Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) General Manager Ed Monreal has appealed to Filipinos to stop taking risks with their and other passengers’ health, reports the Manila Bulletin.Based on MIAA records, a total of 138 passengers have been intercepted this year at the different security and airline checkpoints of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), Manila’s main international airport, for having positive reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test results in the period from Jan 1 to April 15, 2021.“Let us not take chances. The airport security and airline check-in staff will always check on your requirements,” Monreal said.The passengers denied boarding gave a handful of reasons why they still went to the airport to catch their flights despite being potential Covid-19 spreaders.The most common excuse passengers try, according to authorities, is that they only learned about their test results upon arriving at the airport.Others claimed that they brought their test result with them but did not bother to look at it.Others claimed they were told to proceed to NAIA and wait for their test results there.Monreal expressed deep concern over this “utter disregard for safety guidelines”.He advised passengers to be responsible travellers.


Over 85% of adults fully vaccinated as total jabs cross 43 million

Over 85% of adults had been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as of yesterday, with 19,945,616 people or 85.1% completing their vaccine regimen.Meanwhile 94% of the adult population or 23,178,045 have received at least one shot, including of the single-dose CanSino vaccine.In terms of total population, 61.1% are now fully vaccinated and 71% have received at least one dose.A total of 329,722 doses of vaccine were administered yesterday, taking the cumulative number of jabs given through the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme to 43,028,919.