Covid and lockdowns surge in SE Asia

Malaysia Reports Record Daily Coronavirus Cases Amid Lockdown | Bloomberg - Yantoultra Ngui:
July 9, 2021 - "Malaysia on Friday reported the biggest single-day increase in new coronavirus cases since the outbreak began, even as authorities impose tighter movement restrictions in several areas to curb infections. The Southeast Asian nation added a record 9,180 Covid-19 cases, as well as 77 deaths... [On August 3 it added 17,105 cases - gd.] Although an accelerated vaccine roll-out has allowed the government to ease virus curbs in six states, providing some breathing space to the economy, much of the country remains under lockdown since June 1."
Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-09/malaysia-reports-record-daily-coronavirus-cases-amid-lockdown

Philippines to Reimpose Lockdown in Capital; Stocks Plunge | Bloomberg - Andreo Calonzo & Ditas B. Lopez:
July 29, 2021 - "The Philippines will place its capital region under a strict lockdown from Aug. 6 to Aug. 20 and implement additional movement restrictions in the interim to stem the spread of the coronavirus’ delta variant.... The Manila capital region, which accounts for about a third of the economy, will shift to the strictest restriction called enhanced community quarantine.... Most businesses will be shut, and only essential shops like supermarkets and pharmacies can fully operate while restaurants will only be open for take out and deliveries.... Only authorized persons will be allowed to go in and out of the capital region and surrounding provinces. Personal care services like beauty salons will be allowed at 30% capacity. Religious events aren’t allowed, except those held virtually."
Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-30/philippines-reimposes-lockdown-in-capital-for-2-wks-from-aug-6

Cambodia to impose COVID-19 lockdowns in areas bordering Thailand | Reuters - Prak Chan Thul:
July 29, 2021 - "Cambodia is set to launch a lockdown in eight provinces bordering Thailand from midnight on Thursday, in a bid to prevent the spread of the Delta variant of the coronavirus in the Southeast Asian country. Prime Minister Hun Sen signed an order late on Wednesday for the lockdown, which bans people from leaving their homes, gathering in groups and conducting business, except for those involved in operating airlines. Border checkpoints with Thailand will also be closed except to allow for the transport of goods and in emergencies, Hun Sen said, adding the lockdown was due to run until Aug. 12."
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/cambodia-impose-covid-19-lockdowns-areas-bordering-thailand-2021-07-29/

Vietnam to extend lockdown throughout southern region as COVID cases soar | Reuters:
July 31, 2021 - "Vietnam will from Monday extend strict curbs on movement in its business hub Ho Chi Minh City and another 18 cities and provinces throughout its south for another two weeks to help combat its worst COVID-19 outbreak, the government said.... The Southeast Asian country reported 8,624 new infections late on Saturday, with most of the confirmed cases detected in the south, especially Ho Chi Minh City where social distancing measures have been enforced since May 31.... The central coastal city of Danang also imposed movement curbs from Saturday until further notice. In the capital Hanoi, in the north, where a lockdown order will expire next weekend, authorities were considering extending restrictions."
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/vietnam-extend-lockdown-throughout-southern-region-covid-cases-soar-2021-07-31/

Thailand extends pandemic measures, expands lockdown areas | Reuters - Orathai Sriring & Panarat Thepgumpanat: 
August 1, 2021 - "Thailand on Sunday extended tighter containment measures in the capital and high-risk provinces probably until the end of August in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19 as the country deals with its biggest outbreak to date.... The restrictions, including travel curbs, mall closures and curfews, will be expanded to 29 provinces classified as 'dark red zone' from 13, Apisamai Srirangsan, spokeswoman for the government's COVID-19 task force, told a televised news briefing. The measures will start on Tuesday for 14 days and will be reviewed on Aug. 18, she said. 'If the situation does not improve and is still worrying, the curbs will be extended to Aug. 31,' she added.... Restaurants in shopping malls will be allowed to open only for deliveries, while construction camps can also resume under 'bubble and seal' measures.... The curbs [have] hit economic activity, and the finance ministry on Thursday slashed its 2021 economic growth forecast to 1.3% from 2.3% seen earlier."
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/thailand-extends-stricter-covid-19-measures-until-end-august-2021-08-01/

Indonesia extends lockdown after Covid-19 cases decrease | Straits Times - Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja:
August 2, 2021 - "Indonesia has extended its partial lockdown for a week, after the month-long restrictions successfully lowered the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Java and Bali.... The ongoing lockdown that began on July 3 covers parts of Java and Bali, and 15 other cities and regencies in places such as Sumatra and Sulawesi. It has led to the suspension of most activities and closure of non-essential public places, including malls, places of worship and parks. Java and Bali now report less than half the number of daily confirmed cases reported in mid-July, health minister Budi Sadikin said in an earlier media briefing on Monday. Mr. Budi conceded however that other regions have begun to see surging infections, but noted that these areas were less densely populated compared with Java and Bali, and similar control measures could be applied there."
Read more: https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/indonesia-extends-lockdown-after-covid-19-cases-decrease

COVID-19 lockdown in Laos extended till Aug. 18 | Xinhua:
August 3, 2021 - "The Lao government has decided to extend the current nationwide lockdown to Aug. 18 as ... COVID-19 cases continued to rise. Deputy Head of the Prime Minister's Office, Thipphakone Chanthavongsa, told a press conference in Lao capital Vientiane on Tuesday that the lockdown will be extended as the COVID-19 situation in Laos is not yet fully under control and the situation in neighboring countries remained risky. The current nationwide lockdown, imposed on July 19, was set to expire on Tuesday."
Read more: http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/asiapacific/2021-08/03/c_1310104966.htm

Coronavirus returns to countries that suppressed it

2nd wave of coronavirus in countries around Asia prompts fresh lockdowns | Global News - Stephen Coates, Reuters:

July 27, 2020 - "Countries around Asia are confronting a second wave of coronavirus infections and are clamping down again to try to contain the disease....

"Hong Kong is expected to announce further restrictions on Monday including a ban on restaurant dining and mandated face masks outdoors, local media reported. The measures, which are expected to take effect from Wednesday, would be the first time the city has completely banned dining in restaurants.

"Australian authorities warned a six-week lockdown in parts of the southeastern Victoria state may last longer after the country registered its highest daily increase in infections. Most of Australia is effectively virus-free but flare-ups in the two most populous southeastern states have authorities scrambling to prevent a wider national outbreak.

"In Japan, the government said it would urge business leaders to ramp up anti-virus measures such as staggered shifts, and aimed to see rates of telecommuting achieved during an earlier state of emergency. 'At one point, commuter numbers were down by 70 to 80 per cent, but now it’s only about 30 per cent,' Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said late on Sunday.... Japan has avoided mass infections but a record surge in cases during the past week in Tokyo and other urban centers has experts worried....

"Vietnam is evacuating 80,000 people, mostly local tourists, from the central city of Danang after three residents tested positive for the coronavirus at the weekend, the government said on Monday. The Southeast Asian country is back on high alert after the government on Saturday confirmed its first community infections since April, and another three cases on Sunday, all in Danang.

"In the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte is ... weighing whether to re-impose stricter lockdown measures after easing them saw a dramatic surge in infections and deaths, with 62,326 cases reported since the first lockdown was relaxed June 1....

"North Korean state media reported on the weekend that the border town of Kaesong was in lockdown after a person who defected to South Korea three years ago returned this month with symptoms of COVID-19. If confirmed, it would be the first case officially acknowledged by North Korean authorities.... [In] South Korea ... Saturday’s 113 infections were the highest on a single day since March 31.

"Papua New Guinea halted entry for travelers from Monday, except those arriving by air, as it tightens curbs against infections that have more than doubled over the past week. Traditional border crossing were suspended from July 23, police chief David Manning said in a statement distributed on Monday. PNG has fluid borders with Indonesia, the Federated States of Micronesia and the Solomon Islands with people regularly crossing on foot or in small boats."

Read more: https://globalnews.ca/news/7220628/asia-second-wave-coronavirus-lockdowns/

Why the death penalty will not win the Drug War

The Evidence Is In: the Death Penalty Won't Win the Drug War - Foundation for Economic Education - Working for a free and prosperous world:

March 6, 2018 - "This week, Axios released a story revealing that President Trump privately supports the theory that imposing the death penalty upon drug traffickers will help reduce the demand for illegal drugs. This belief is flawed in several ways, but it was apparently presented to him by the President of Singapore where there is a mandatory death sentence for the crime.....

"Harm Reduction International released the most comprehensive study on this issue in 2015. Iran executes, by far, more people for drug crimes than any other country. There are roughly 5,000 people on death row for this crime, yet Iran has one of the highest rates of opiate addiction in the world.... The opiate addiction rate of Iran is slightly surpassed by Pakistan, which also has the same policy and roughly 100 people awaiting the death penalty for this crime. China executes the second highest number of people for drug trafficking ... but it is also arguably the world’s top producer of synthetic drugs, such as fentanyl, flakka, and the precursor for methamphetamine....

"Trump reportedly believes that this policy has been a success in the Philippines [yet] the Philippines has one of the highest rates of amphetamine use in the world despite President Rodrigo Duterte’s well-publicized war on drugs.... The Philippines doesn’t officially have the death penalty for drug trafficking. However, Duterte has supported the extrajudicial murder of suspected addicts and dealers by government forces. Human Rights Watch estimates that 12,000 people have been killed, including 4,000 victims directly murdered by the police....

"Duterte sanctioned the murder of the one person, Rolando Espinosa, who was willing to testify and name hundreds of public officials involved in drug trafficking.... Espinosa was murdered in his jail cell by a group of police officers. Those officers were subsequently advised by Duterte to plead guilty so he could pardon them and they’ve since been reinstated at their jobs....

"Saudi Arabia has the third highest rate of execution for drug traffickers. Overall, Saudi Arabia has a fairly high rate of amphetamine usage, particularly a drug known as “Captagon,” even though trafficking, along with possession, is punishable by death.... [A] Saudi prince ... was arrested in Beirut in 2015 with two tons of Captagon pills.... [A]nother Saudi royal ... Prince Nayef Bin Sultan Bin Fawwaz al-Shaala ... was indicted in 2002 for transporting a two-ton cocaine shipment from Venezuela to Paris. However, Saudi Arabia doesn’t have an extradition treaty with the U.S. or France and Prince Nayef ... remains free in Saudi Arabia....

"With that said, the U.S. government has been a catalyst for similar hypocrisy. Former Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN) wrote [an] op-ed in 1990 advocating the death penalty for drug traffickers. Fortunately for Burton, Congress didn’t fall in line because his son was arrested four years later for trafficking seven pounds of marijuana. He received preferential treatment from the court in the form of probation.... Nonetheless, his son was busted five months later in the possession of 30 marijuana plants, but he, once again, was let off easy with a misdemeanor plea bargain.... Likewise, former Rep. Duke Cunningham (R-CA) was also a supporter of the death penalty for drug trafficking..... Cunningham once pleaded to a judge for mercy on his son after he was arrested flying a planeload of 400 pounds of marijuana.

"However, arguably the worst hypocrite is Donald Trump ... a recent report by Global Witness found that the Trump Ocean Club in Panama was a money laundering hub for Colombian narco-terrorists....

"Trump adamantly supported the legalization of drugs, long before he made a serious run at the presidency. In 1990, Trump asserted to an audience at a luncheon of The Miami Herald, that our country needed to end the war on drugs. 'You have to legalize drugs to win that war,” said Trump. He also pointed to the core of the issue; our politicians lack the 'guts' to make the necessary changes."

Read more: https://fee.org/articles/the-evidence-is-in-the-death-penalty-wont-win-the-drug-war/
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