Month: December 2020

• On 12 October, the Malaysian National Security Council decided to impose "conditional movement control orders" in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya from 14 to 27 October. The Malaysian government has decided to extend the current movement control measures in place in Kuala Lumpur to most parts of the country in view of the continued spread of the New Guinea epidemic. Since mid-October, the Malaysian government has imposed conditional movement control orders in Sabah, Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, where the epidemic is deteriorating rapidly, restricting people from travelling across the region, closing schools and other places, and banning many social activities, but allowing most economic activities to continue as normal.
• The government has decided to implement a conditional action control order for Kedah, Malacca and other states during the period from November 9 to December 6.The Malaysian Defence Minister said the Conditional Movement Control Order would help the health authorities to implement targeted screening measures and reduce the movement of people in order to contain the spread of the disease. He also noted that the Conditional Movement Control Order, which was scheduled to end on November 9 in Kuala Lumpur and other places, will be extended until December 6, meaning that most of Malaysia will be under movement control.
•  On 9 November, a four-week conditional movement control order was introduced in seven Malaysian states, including Kedah and Malacca, until 6 December. According to reports, the Malaysian government said that in view of the continued spread of the new crown epidemic, it has decided to extend the implementation of the movement control currently in force in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur and other places to most parts of the country. Notes on the latest announced control order (SOP).
  : Cross-continental and cross-county travel will no longer be prohibited; except in areas where Enhanced Movement Control Orders (EMCOs) are being implemented.
  : The restriction of two persons per vehicle will be removed and travel will now be allowed according to the number of persons the vehicle can accommodate.
  : Persons travelling to Sabah must obtain a Covid-19 swab test three days prior to travel and only those who test negative will be allowed to enter the country. The CMCO for Sabah has also been extended until 20 December.
  : From 7 December, there will be no more roadblocks and road closures, but social distance measures will be more strictly enforced.
• Malaysia extends movement control measures against epidemic in Kuala Lumpur and other areas KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 5 -- Malaysian Defence Minister Ismail Sabri bin Yaakob, who is in charge of coordinating measures to control the epidemic, said at a press conference on Dec 5 that the existing operational control measures in the capital Kuala Lumpur and some areas will be extended until Dec 20 to control the spread of the new crown epidemic. The Minister said that according to the health department's health risk assessment, the number of cases in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Sabah is still increasing rapidly, so the government decided to extend the conditional movement control order, which was scheduled to expire on December 6 in Kuala Lumpur, most of Selangor and Sabah, until December 20. According to the Ministry of Health on the 5th, the country has seen 1123 new confirmed cases in the past 24 hours, with a cumulative total of 71,359 cases; 1,143 new cured cases, with a cumulative total of 60,204 cases; and 4 new deaths, with a cumulative total of 380 deaths. Most of the new confirmed cases are from Kuala Lumpur, Sabah and Selangor. According to the health department's recommendation, the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) will no longer be in force in the rest of the country from December 7, except for Kuala Lumpur, Sabah, Selangor and a few other areas, and the epidemic checkpoints at the borders of the relevant states will also be removed on the 7th, allowing people to travel across the states. Since mid-October, the Malaysian government has been implementing conditional movement control orders in Sabah, Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, where the epidemic is deteriorating rapidly, with specific measures such as restricting cross-regional travel and closing schools, but allowing most economic activities to continue as normal. As the outbreak spread, the Conditional Movement Control Order was extended to most parts of the country in early November.

• The Philippine Department of Health informed on the 11th that as of 16:00 local time on the 11th, the country had 1672 new confirmed cases of new crowns in 24 hours, with a cumulative total of 40,416 confirmed cases; 49 new deaths, with a cumulative total of 7710 deaths. Philippine Health Department Undersecretary Vergilay said the epidemic continues to moderate overall, but is still spreading rapidly in individual provinces and cities in the centre and south.
• The epidemic in the Philippines peaked in August this year and has since shown signs of easing, with the average number of new cases per day decreasing significantly. According to the Ministry of Health, the average daily number of new cases in the Philippines is about 1,900 since November, a further downward trend compared to the average of about 4,100 new cases in August, 3,000 in September and 2,200 in October. The rate of positive tests for the new coronavirus has also continued to decline, and since November, the rate of positive tests for the virus in the Philippines has remained at around 6%, compared to around 13% in mid-August. A total of 5.11 million samples have been tested to date, with an average positive rate of 9.4%.
• Philippine Health Secretary Francisco Ducay said on 9 September that the number of new cases per day has been declining for some time, an encouraging trend that is also attributable to the government's improved virus detection capacity and the construction of a large number of isolation facilities over several months, and that the government hopes the easing trend will continue. He urged the Filipino people to continue to wear masks, maintain social distance and avoid gathering, and to overcome complacency so that efforts to combat the epidemic are not undone. According to the World Health Organisation, the Philippines has the second highest cumulative number of confirmed new cases and deaths in Southeast Asia.

10 December 2020 Vietnam's major cities welcome Christmas without forgetting to guard against epidemics and safety Even though Christmas is still 2 weeks away, we can now walk around many streets in the capital Hanoi and feel the strong atmosphere of the birth festival. It is worth mentioning that the people are celebrating the Christmas season while at the same time keeping up with the epidemic prevention rules and making every effort to ensure a safe festive season. As the Newcastle Pneumonia epidemic has been evolving in Ho Chi Minh City in recent times, residents are aware of the epidemic when they go out. People are wearing masks, washing their hands with hand sanitiser, keeping a safe distance between people and avoiding crowded activities in public places such as tourist attractions, shopping areas and shops. Although the outbreak of Newcastle Pneumonia remains complex and unpredictable, Ho Chi Minh City residents still feel a deep sense of a warm and peaceful Christmas approaching.