VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Malaysia's Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin unveiling the Pemerkasa package on Mar 17, 2021. (Photo: Bernama)  - 

Malaysia will tighten the current movement control order (MCO) with stricter restrictions on its economic and social sectors, said the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on Friday (May 21). 

A statement was issued following a National Security Council meeting, where the health ministry gave a presentation on the COVID-19 situation in the country, including the infection rate and the health capacity of each state. 

"Details of the additional restrictions will be announced in a press conference by senior minister for defence on May 22," it added. 

PMO noted that even with the strict measures under MCO 3.0, community cases continued to rise and the emergence of new variants have delayed efforts to flatten the infection curve. 

State governments were involved in Friday's meeting to take into account the current situation in the respective states, it added.  

The restrictions were gradually eased, with targeted measures imposed in localities with high cases. 

However, all states except for Sarawak were placed under MCO again in February as the country consistently reported four-digit daily increases in COVID-19 cases. 

A nationwide MCO was later reimposed in May. All economic sectors were allowed to operate, but there have been calls for the return of stricter lockdown measures when cases continued to climb//CNA

Leicester fans were able to support their side live for the first time in 14 months AFP/MATTHEW CHILDS - 

Only 15 people out of almost 60,000 who attended nine pilot events for mass gatherings have since tested positive for coronavirus, British health officials said Friday (May 21).

The government allowed limited crowds at the events - including two FA Cup games, the World Snooker Championship and the Brit Awards - over recent weeks to assess their impact on COVID-19 transmission.

Officials are now working to trace just 15 people to have tested positive following the nine official test events, with that level of infection in line with case numbers for the broader population.

"The aim of our world-leading events research programme is to examine the risk of COVID-19 transmission at large events and explore how crowds can be welcomed back in bigger numbers safely," a government spokesman said.

"The pilots have been designed in a scientifically controlled way to reduce the risk of transmission for attendees.

"We are working closely with NHS Test and Trace to ensure everyone can be traced following a positive test," the spokesman added, referring to Britain's state-run National Health Service.

The United Kingdom has been one of the hardest-hit countries in Europe by the pandemic, but has been able to ease lockdown measures in part thanks to a highly successful vaccination campaign.

The government is hoping to lift remaining restrictions on Jun 21, but doubts have emerged after numerous spikes in the Indian variant of the virus across the country.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to make an announcement on the next stage of the relaxations next week//CNA

Indonesian President Joko Widodo during a virtual speech at the Global Health Summit on Friday night (5/21/2021). ANTARA/HO-Biro Pers Sekretariat Presiden - 

Indonesian President Joko Widodo urged world leaders to take concrete steps to address gaps in access to vaccines in order to ensure fair and equitable access for all countries.

"I must remind all of us again that we will only truly recover and be safe from COVID-19 if all countries have also recovered. No one is safe until everyone is," the president noted during a virtual speech at the Global Health Summit on Friday night and accessed via the Presidential Secretariat YouTube channel here on Saturday.

The head of state noted that when some countries started vaccinating low-risk groups, such as children and young people, only 0.3 percent of the global vaccine supply was available to low-income countries.

Widodo noted that the gap had apparently become even more noticeable when 83 percent of the global vaccine supplies were absorbed by rich countries, while the remaining 17 percent went to developing countries that constitute 47 percent of the world's population.

"Hence, we must take concrete steps. In the short term, we must encourage dose-sharing through the Covax Facility scheme even more. This is a form of solidarity that must be encouraged and multiplied, especially in overcoming supply constraints," the president affirmed.

In the long term, the global community must be able to double vaccine production to fulfill the global requirement and build health resilience. Such resilience necessitates boosting collective production capacity through technology transfer and investment.

"If the issue of vaccine production and distribution capacity is not addressed immediately, I am afraid that the pandemic will be resolved over time," he noted.

The head of state remarked that the G-20 member countries must extend support for increased production and equal access to vaccines for all nations. To this end, Indonesia fully supports the TRIPS Waiver proposal calling to temporarily relinquish its obligation to protect intellectual property rights related to the prevention, handling, or treatment of COVID-19.

Indonesia has decided to become one of the countries that supports the proposal. Indonesia also expects other G-20 member countries to provide the same support.

"As the largest vaccine producer in Southeast Asia, Indonesia is ready to become a hub for increasing vaccine production in the region," the president remarked.

Hence, G-20 countries must also take part in building a solid global health resilience architecture to better face similar threats in future. Hence, global cooperation is a necessity.

Principles outlined in the Rome Declaration are crucial for global health resilience. However, these principles will not be useful if they are not applied in a concrete way. Implementation is the key, and the world can only heal and become stronger if we do it together. Recover together, recover stronger," he affirmed.

Meanwhile, the Global Health Summit is one of the G-20 meetings under the Italian Presidency for 2021. Attendees at the summit comprised heads of state or heads of G-20 governments, invited countries, as well as leaders of international organizations.

The Global Health Summit resulted in the "Rome Declaration" agreement based on multilateral cooperation and collective action to prevent future global health crises, with a commitment to building a healthier, safer, fair, and sustainable world//ANT

Documentation: A resident of Enggano Island in Bengkulu Province checks a wire-mesh fence that protects the wall of his house. ANTARA/Sugiharto Purnama/aa - 

A 5.2-magnitude earthquake rattled Enggano Island in the Indonesian province of Bengkulu in the early hours of Saturday, but it did not trigger a tsunami.

The epicenter of the quake that struck at around 1:36 a.m. local time was located some 31 kilometers (km) away from the west of Enggano Island's waters, at a depth of 10 km.

"This earthquake does not trigger a tsunami," according to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) as revealed on its official Twitter account.

No immediate reports were received of damages or casualties following the quake that struck the waters of the island located some 100 km away from southwest of Sumatra Island.

On June 4, 2000, a strong earthquake had also rattled Enggano Island and consequently claimed the lives of 94 local residents.

The deadly earthquake's epicenter was located some 90 km away from southwest of Tais City in Seluma District, Bengkulu Province, at a depth of 33 km.

Meanwhile, the earthquake of magnitude 5.9 that jolted southeast of Blitar District in East Java on Friday evening had damaged 30 houses in Malang District.

The damaged houses are found in the sub-districts of Ampelgading, Dampit, Donomulyo, Gondanglegi, Kalipare, Sumbermanjing Wetan, and Tirtoyudo, Acting Head of the Emergency and Logistics Unit at the Malang Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) Sadono stated.

Earthquakes regularly rock various parts of Indonesia since the country lies on the Circum-Pacific Belt, also known as the Ring of Fire, where several tectonic plates meet and cause frequent volcanic and seismic activities.

Sumatra and various smaller islands off its coastal areas are vulnerable to earthquake.

Aceh Province, located at the northernmost tip of Sumatra Island, had experienced the deadliest ever earthquake, followed by a tsunami, on December 26, 2004.

The catastrophe that also affected certain coastal areas in countries, such as Thailand, Sri Lanka, and India, reportedly killed some 230 thousand people.

The latest deadly earthquake to have rattled Indonesia was in West Sulawesi Province on January 15, 2021.

The 6.2-magnitude earthquake, ensued by several aftershocks, jolted the districts of Mamuju and Majene, claiming more than 100 lives and destroying several buildings//ANT