The pandemic\nhas seen South East Asian states pursue a less than uniform approach in virus\nresponse measures, with divisions most exposed on food security<\/a>. Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand\nquietly welcomed in the New Year, with COVID-19 preventing the usual festive\ncelebrations. This week Muslims across the region prepare to enter the holy\nmonth of Ramadan under very different circumstances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this update we look back on the week that was, Monday 13 April to Sunday 19 April 2020:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Cambodia<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The United\nNations has condemned Phnom Penh\u2019s \u2018Law on\nGoverning the Country in a State of Emergency\u2019<\/a>, unanimously passed on Friday by\nCambodia\u2019s one-party National Assembly. Rhona Smith, the UN Special Rapporteur\non human rights in Cambodia stated that emergency legislation \u201cshould be guided\nby human rights principles and should not, in any circumstances, be an excuse\nto quash dissent or disproportionately and negatively impact any other group\u201d.\nThe government lifted the inter-province travel ban<\/a> early, in an effort to ease travel\ncongestion during the Khmer New Year. In a move to stop coronavirus spreading,\nauthorities are preparing to quarantine 15,000 garment workers<\/a> in school-rooms who defied the\ninter-province travel ban\u2014some have already been fired<\/a>. The Labour Ministry spokesperson\nconfirmed that workers would isolate for 14 days without wages. Meanwhile, the\neconomic crisis caused by the coronavirus worsens, with new clothes piling up on Cambodia\u2019s\nfactory floors<\/a>. There\nare estimates that more than half of the Kingdom\u2019s 500 garment factories will\nhave to suspend operations by the end of April. The Asian Development Bank forecasts economic growth in Cambodia<\/a> to drop to 2.3% this year from 7.1%\nlast year due to the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Indonesia<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Indonesia continues\nto reassess the economic hit from COVID-19, with Bank Indonesia<\/a> now expecting the growth rate to be\n2.3% in 2020\u2014much lower than the 4.2%-4.6% projected earlier in March. This is\nmore in line with forecasts made by the Asian Development Bank (2.5%) and the\nWorld Bank (2.1%). Last week Indonesia sold $4.3 billion of dollar<\/a> bonds to help finance virus relief\nmeasures. Calls continue for Australia to provide support to Indonesia<\/a> as it struggles to contain the virus.\nThe resort island of Bali appears more relaxed<\/a> with its enforcement of\nsocial-distancing measures compared to the capital Jakarta. Health experts\nbelieve infection rates will peak<\/a> at the beginning of May and last\nuntil the end of June. With Ramadan starting later this week, Indonesia\u2019s\nMinistry of Religious Affairs will hold a virtual meeting to confirm the moon sighting.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n Laos<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Regionally,\nLaos appears largely unaffected this past week, with official data confirming no new COVID-19 cases<\/a> in 7 consecutive days. Prime Minister\nThongloun Sisoulith announced an extension of the lockdown period<\/a>, now in place until 3 May.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Malaysia<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Malaysia will\nsoon start buying hydroxychloroquine from India<\/a>\u2014the world\u2019s largest producer\u2014with New\nDelhi lifting a partial ban on exports of the anti-malarial drug to treat\nCOVID-19 patients. Some analysts are calling this an early indication of\nimproved relations between the two states. Malaysia is also starting to rely on\nantibody tests<\/a> to supplement lab testing as numbers\nof cases in the country continue to increase. Strict screening processes<\/a> are in place for Malaysians returning\nfrom neighbouring Singapore. A boat of 200 Rohingya refugees<\/a> were denied entry into Malaysia due\nto coronavirus fears. The country\u2019s indigenous population<\/a>, who mostly reside in remote\nagricultural areas are being hit extra hard by the Movement Control Order, and\nsome fear they will fall through the economic cracks. The global pandemic has\nhighlighted Malaysia\u2019s vital role in supply chains<\/a>, with domestic companies like \u2018Top\nGlove\u2019 (already the world\u2019s largest supplier of nitrile and latex medical\ngloves) on track for a record year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Myanmar<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In recent\nmonths, fighting has intensified in the Rakhine and Chin states between the\nArakan Army (an armed group seeking greater autonomy for ethnic Rakhine people)\nand the Tatmadaw government troops. Rights groups are saying that communities there\nare coming under threat<\/a> by both the pandemic and human rights\nviolations. The president\u2019s office announced that 24,896 prisoners will be<\/a> released in an amnesty to mark the\nNew Year and in what many believe is a move to ease pressure on overcrowded and\nunsanitary jails amid escalating coronavirus fears. Yangon Region<\/a> has the highest number of confirmed\ncases in the country. An estimated 25,000 garment workers have been laid off\nacross 40 factories to date. With Myanmar\u2019s domestic economy hit hard by\nCOVID-19, the country may come to rely on investment flows from foreign state-backed East Asia<\/a> agencies to keep investment coming in\nand development projects in motion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Philippines<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n There is\nconcern that the Philippines\u2019 heavy-handed approach<\/a> to the public health emergency is\ndisproportionally affecting the country\u2019s poorest and most vulnerable. Official\npolice data confirms that 42,836 arrests were made in the first 11 days of the\nLuzon enhanced community quarantine, with media reporting the arrest of some\nstreet vendors for selling food. Duterte\u2019s cash aid for the country\u2019s poor has drawn criticism<\/a> from middle-class Filipinos who feel\nhard done by in the economic downturn. Fintech<\/a> companies like \u2018Croptial\u2019 may be able\nto offer a lifeline to some. The pandemic is also threatening the Philippines\u2019 call centre industry<\/a>, with some analysts predicting that\nin the long-term COVID-19 will accelerate the switch to automated services. Short-term\nopportunities from the upsurge in flight cancellations and financial-services\nenquiries won\u2019t necessarily be enough to convince multinationals to not move\nforward with automation, especially with allegations that some centres are not\ncomplying with social distancing orders. Duterte softened on an earlier ban to stop healthcare workers<\/a> from leaving for overseas employment.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n Singapore<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It wasn\u2019t that long ago that Singapore was praised for its model COVID-19 response model\u2014but it now has the highest case rate in South East Asia, surpassing virus hot-spots like Malaysia and Indonesia. In the past week infections have surged<\/a>, with the majority of cases being connected to migrant workers residing in dormitories<\/a>. Alternatives to dormitory accommodation are being explored, such as floating hotels<\/a> typically used for offshore and marine industry staff. Singapore is unique in that it has a disproportionate number of foreigners with COVID-19. The city-state\u2019s renowned hawkers<\/a> will receive a one-off payment to offset delivery costs associated with food-delivery platforms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Thailand<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Social media\ntensions between Thailand and China erupted this week<\/a> after a popular online Thai model\nshared a twitter message questioning whether the coronavirus originated in a Chinese\nlaboratory. The spat has drawn support from Taiwan and Hong Kong, in what is\nbeing dubbed the \u201cMilk Tea Alliance<\/a>\u201d against China\u2019s nationalist trolls\nand speaks to the broader diplomatic tension with Beijing in the region. The\ncountry celebrated its quietest ever Songkran (New Year) period. With street\ncelebrations banned and alcohol sales restricted, Thais opted for innovative\nways to worship<\/a> at temples. Thailand extends ban<\/a> on passenger flights until the end of\nApril in a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Vietnam<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n On Wednesday Vietnam introduced fines\u201410-20 million dong, roughly 3-6 months\u2019 basic salary in Vietnam\u2014for the dissemination of \u2018fake news\u2019<\/a> or rumours on social media amid fears of the coronavirus. As part of Hanoi\u2019s crackdown on coronavirus misinformation, authorities have launched a public poster campaign titled \u201cFake news, real consequences\u201d. Rights groups continue to pressure the government to release political prisoners, with fears that they are at serious risk of contracting the virus. \u2018Rice ATMs\u2019<\/a> able to dispense 1.5kg of rice are popping up around the country to provide relief for many families who would typically rely on cash-in-hand jobs or selling goods on the street. Vietnam chaired a special ASEAN+3 online COVID-19 summit<\/a> earlier in the week, with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc\u2019s opening his statement with: \u201cIt is in these grim hours that the solidarity of the ASEAN community shines like a beacon in the dark\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n AUTHOR<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Dr Lucy West, Senior Research Assistant, Griffith Asia Institute.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" UN criticises Cambodia’s new state of emergency legislation |![\"\"](\"https:\/\/testblogs.griffith.edu.au\/asiainsights\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/indonesia.PNG.jpg\")
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\nIndonesia sells bonds to finance virus relief measures |
\nLaos reports no cases in 7 consecutive days |
\nMalaysia denies entry of 200 Rohingya refugees due to COVID-19 fears |
\nMyanmar releases 24,000+ prisoners in New Year amnesty |
\nCoronavirus presents challenges for the Philippines’ call centre industry |
\nCOVID-19 clusters in Singapore’s migrant worker dormitories |
\nSocial media spat between Thailand and China from coronavirus post |
\nRice ATMs provide relief for Vietnam’s poor <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":7165,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[247],"tags":[280,1052,1093,991,934,1110,344,355,369,1008,430],"class_list":["post-7164","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-indonesia-and-southeast-asia","tag-cambodia","tag-coronavirus","tag-covid19","tag-dr-lucy-west","tag-griffith-asia-institute","tag-griffith-university","tag-indonesia","tag-laos","tag-myanmar","tag-south-east-asia","tag-thailand"],"acf":[],"modified_by":"Jill Moriarty","yoast_head":"\n