The Cambodian Ministry of Health on 27 July 2021 reports another 685 confirmed covid cases, 262 of which are inbound cases. There are also 19 new covid deaths and 775 patients have recovered.
As of 27 July 2021, Cambodia has a cumulative number of 74,386 confirmed covid cases with 66,725 recoveries and 1,324 fatalities.
News (7)
Cambodia foreign ministry is looking into the matter of "Chinese hackers"
According to The Phnom Penh Post, the U.S. and its allies have joined hands to expose what they allege to be China’s Ministry of State Security’s malicious cyber activities around the world. Their attention also turned to Cambodia with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) claiming that four Chinese hackers stole data concerning the Mekong River from a Cambodian ministry in January 2018.
The DOJ issued a press statement on 19 July 2021 accusing four Chinese nationals of involvement in a “global computer intrusion campaign targeting intellectual property and confidential business information, including infectious disease research”.
According to the prosecutor’s indictment filed with the court in the southern district of California, the four members of the conspiracy had infiltrated the network of a “Cambodian government ministry” in January 2018 and stolen data pertaining to discussions between the CCP government and Cambodia over use of the Mekong River.
The document states, “On or about January 10, 2018, the same day that the People's Republic of China (PRC) was engaged in discussions with multiple countries, including Cambodia, concerning use of the Mekong River, members of the conspiracy stole data from a system operated by ‘Cambodian Government Ministry A’ pertaining to those discussions, and stored that data at DOMAIN 6, where it was protected with the password “goodperson”.
Although the indictment said the conspiracy also recruited Cambodian linguists to translate the data, it did not elaborate on what the stolen data was specifically about.
On 10 January 2018, Cambodia hosted the second Mekong-Lancang Cooperation (LMC) meeting in Phnom Penh under the theme Our River of Peace and Sustainable Development.
The meeting was co-chaired by Prime Minister Hun Sen and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and attended by the leaders of the Mekong countries including Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Myanmar’s Vice President Myint Swe.
On 22 July 2021, wire service Reuters reported the indictment and quoted unnamed sources who claimed that the hackers had stolen data from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
Reached on 25 July, Cambodian foreign ministry spokesperson Koy Kuong said the ministry was looking into what was being reported.
Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications secretary of state So Visothy said on 23 July that his ministry has no comment regarding whether the hacking took place, what data was stolen and whether it had any importance.
Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology spokesman Chan Yutha could not be reached for comment on 25 July 2021.
US embassy spokesman Chad Roedemeier declined to comment on the matter, referring the reporter to the US court indictment and the press release issued by the White House.
News (8)
CCP embassy in Phnom Penh denies Mekong hacking
The CCP embassy in Phnom Penh on 22 July 2021 firmly denied the accusation that four Chinese hackers from the Ministry of State Security had hacked and stolen Mekong data from a Cambodian ministry.
The embassy said, “China has been solidly opposing and combating cyber attacks of all forms. China never does [these attacks] nor will it encourage, support or condone cyber attacks. As a matter of fact, the United States is the largest source of cyber attacks in the world.
“US wiretapping and surveillance know no bounds, not even its ‘allies’. On the issue of cybersecurity, the US has long forfeited the last shred of credibility. Trumping-up charges, projecting their guilty conscience onto others, and sowing discord everywhere is nothing but a case of ‘the emperor’s new clothes’ – [it is] worthless misinformation and self-deceit,” the embassy alleged.
The CCP embassy also took aim at Reuters for reporting what it called the “unwarranted accusations of the US Justice Department”. The Reuters’ article, the embassy said, is based entirely on fabrications and falsehoods by the US and it is replete with factual and logical inconsistencies.
The CCP embassy said it never received any request for comment from Reuters regarding the matter prior to the story’s publication.
News (9)
No further information on hacking, MRC data are openly accessible
The Mekong River Commission (MRC) said they were aware of the situation from news reports, but had no further information as the hacking was not targeted at the MRC Secretariat.
“It’s not immediately clear as to what type of data that the hackers have stolen, and we don’t know why they made this attempt. But there must be something interesting or important that motivated them to do so,” the Secretariat said.
It said most data at MRC is publicly available and hosted on a data portal. The portal represents a storehouse of data where at least 10,333 datasets are currently available. The datasets include current and historical hydro-meteorological and climate time-series, spatial maps, atlases, photographs and sectorial datasets that can all be easily accessed.
“While the data sets are important, nothing is confidential on our platform, and it is meant for everyone who is interested in Mekong development and status,” it said.
Digital security consultant Nget Mose said on 25 July that there was no information available yet as to what data was stolen or what the motive was.
“This happened in 2018 but we’re just hearing the news now when the US Department Of Justice released it,” he said.
He said if there were meetings that were private or closed-door, then the hackers probably wanted the meeting documents and Chinese hackers would have an interest in these political meetings because the Mekong River flows from China.
“As to why the documents would be important to hackers, it depends on the definition of hackers. Only they know what they wanted the data for. We as victims cannot know its importance. We only know that it was important documents related to meetings between our country and the neighboring countries on the Mekong,” he said.
News (10)
Phea: Hard to judge DOJ statement, Cambodia needs to strengthen its cybersecurity
Kin Phea, director of the Royal Academy of Cambodia’s International Relations Institute, said it was hard to judge whether what the US said was true because both the US and China often accused each other of various misdeeds.
“Only the US, China and Cambodia can say whether it is true or not. What we’ve noted is that accusations by each of these two countries against each other happen very often. Sometimes China accuses the US and vice versa regarding hacking. The US also accused North Korea of hacking various US entities,” he said.
He said it is difficult to determine the veracity of such accusations because it requires technology, independent researchers and investigators with expertise.
Phea said China, the US, Russia and some others are all countries with advanced technology that allows them to easily steal data from other countries.
He said, “We used to hear that the US used to tap the telephone lines of their allies in Europe and Asia, but we didn’t say they hacked them.”
Phea said whatever the truth of the matter might be, it is clear that Cambodia needs to be careful and strengthen its cybersecurity, especially in the national defence and security sectors.
Translation of external news on disease control
News (11) to (15) / Reporter : Luo Tingting / Editor: Fan Ming / https://www.ntdtv.com/gb/2021/07/28/a103175983.thml
News (11)
Nanjing is too late to lock down the city, the scale of the epidemic is unpredictable
"Nanjing is actually locked down now but it's still a bit too late." A public health expert in mainland China said a few days ago that Lukou Airport, where the epidemic broke out, was locked down on 26 July. The source of infection is difficult to trace and its speed difficult to stop. What's more, Covi72 (for the Delta variant) has increased infectivity and spread in the community this time. There are many risk points and the scale of the epidemic is difficult to predict.
News (12)
Expert: Nanjing's epidemic situation has soared
As of 27 July, Nanjing has reported a total of 106 local confirmed cases, of which 66 were mild, 38 were normal, and two were severe; six were local asymptomatic infections.
Among the 112 cases of infection, 99 were in Jiangning, 6 were in Lishui, two were in Gaochun district, and one was in Xuanwu, Qinhuai, Jianye, Gulou, and Qixia districts.
In the past week, the Nanjing epidemic has spread to five provinces and ten cities, including Shenyang, Liaoning, Dalian, Ma'anshan, Anhui, Wuhu, Anhui, Zhongshan, Guangdong, Zhuhai, Mianyang, Sichuan, Luzhou, Sichuan, and Siyang County, Suqian, Jiangsu.
As of 26 July, the chain of infections at Nanjing Airport had increased to 126 cases. Most of them have close ties with Nanjing Lukou International Airport.
Lukou Airport is the largest airport in Jiangsu Province, with a throughput of 20 million passengers in 2020, ranking 12th in the country. The airport is also one of China's main trunk airports and the main passenger and cargo airport in Eastern China.
Lukou Airport found that an airport employee tested positive on the 20th, and the airport was not completely closed until the 26th.
In the past week, the number of new infections in Nanjing has risen sharply. As of 27 July, Nanjing has four high-risk areas and 36 medium-risk areas, all of which have implemented strict containment management.
In the afternoon of 27 July, Nanjing issued the latest policy. The entrances and exits of all government agencies, office buildings, business units, and residential areas in the closed area of Lukou Street will be on duty 24 hours a day, and personnel entering and exiting strictly implement prevention and control measures like temperature measurement, code verification, wearing masks, and safe distancing intervals of more than 1 m.
All takeaways, express deliveries, goods deliveries, etc. outside the enclosed area are not allowed to enter. Implement contactless delivery, transfer access in designated areas at the entrance and exit of the closed area, and be picked up and delivered by volunteers.
Nanjing also requires that all citizens and passengers leave Nanjing with a negative nucleic acid certificate within 48 hours.
A public health expert from the mainland, who did not want to be named, told China News Weekly on 27 July, “Nanjing is actually locked down now but it’s still a bit late.” The epidemic has spread to many places, and the Lukou Airport lockdown only took place on 26 July. The speed of infection is difficult to stop.
News (13)
Covi72 load is 1,260 times higher
On 27 July, Ding Jie, Deputy Director of the Nanjing CDC, said at a press conference on epidemic prevention and control that Covi72 is prevalent in Nanjing, which is highly contagious and spreads quickly.
People infected with Covi72 have a relatively high virus load, take longer to treat, and are prone to develop severe illness.
Research results released recently by He Jianfeng, Deputy Director and chief expert of the Guangdong CDC, and others show that the viral load of confirmed cases of the Delta strain is 1,260 times that of the CCP virus that spread in Wuhan in 2020.
News (14)
There are many risk points and the scale of the epidemic is difficult to predict
Covi72 with strong transmission power appeared in the metropolis, which indicates that the prevention and control of the epidemic in Nanjing will be more difficult.
At present, family members and relatives of airport staff have been infected in Nanjing, community residents, college dormitories, individual businesses, and taxi drivers have been infected. This shows that the virus has begun to spread in the community and its spread has increased.
The above-mentioned experts said that the epidemic was spread from Nanjing Airport. “Passengers have already been infected. It is spread through flights, plus the delta mutant strain, which is very powerful.”
He believes that it is difficult to predict the scale of the epidemic until the situation of the planes and passengers contaminated by the virus cannot be completely investigated.
The Nanjing epidemic has attracted much public attention. As of 10.05 am on 28 July, the entry of #南京传说# has been read 3.71 billion times and discussed 401,000 on Weibo hot searches.
Netizens worry, "There are so many days for passengers related to Nanjing Lukou Airport. How many? It has been spread all over the country? The tracking workload is huge and difficult, and it requires a national level of assistance..."
"Everyone can tell that they locked down the city too late, and they still have a fluke mentality, thinking that there will not be so many cases in nucleic acid testing."
"On the 5th, the mayor went to inspect and emphasized prevention and control, and immediately slapped his face. To be honest, this virus is so strong, how much of the third round of nucleic acid dare to test? After all, the risk of crowd gathering is greater."
"It's hard to predict???? You guys are so tactful!!! Don't tell me that the 300 rumours are true!!!"
"The Nanjing Municipal Government has a first-rate level of hot search, withdrawal, and control and evaluation. If the epidemic prevention level is one-thousandth of this level, it will not spread across the country."
"It's too annoying to want to scold someone. In the past, several cities, Guangdong and Shanghai, were infected at the airports, and they controlled them well. Why did they get so chaotic when they arrived in Nanjing and ruined the summer travel? Summer vacation was crowded with people, and the economy could have been restored. Yes, it's freezing now. It's going to work overtime again."
News (15)
Nanjing rushes to build "Fire Eye" laboratory
Currently, the authorities are stepping up the nationwide testing of Nanjing citizens. On the morning of the 26th, Nanjing International Expo Center is stepping up the construction of the Nanjing "Huoyan" laboratory with an area of 8,000 square meters and equipped with 12 hard air film laboratories and 15 soft air film laboratories.
Chen Wurong, Director of Production Support of the BGI Gene Delivery Center, said that after the Nanjing "Huoyan" laboratory is fully completed, if the "10-person mixed acquisition" model is adopted, the single-day nucleic acid detection capacity can reach up to 2 million times.
In addition, due to poor epidemic prevention, Feng Jun, chairman of the Eastern Airports affiliated to Nanjing Lukou Airport, was suspended of his duties on 23 July.
News (16)
Emergency notification of Sichuan outbreak, Chengdu confirmed cases, citizens tested overnight
Image : The picture shows Chengdu citizens queuing for nucleic acid testing on 8 December 2020. (STR/AFP via Getty Images)
After the recent occurrence of Nanjing-related cases in Sichuan Province, on 28 July 2021, the province suddenly issued an emergency notice for epidemic prevention and control. A family of three in Qingyang District of Chengdu who had traveled to Hunan was diagnosed, and local citizens were tested overnight. In addition, Fucheng District and Economic Development Zone in Mianyang, Sichuan carried out the third round of large-scale nucleic acid testing on 28 July.
News (17)
Notice of Emergency Prevention and Control of Outbreaks in Sichuan Province
On 28 July, Sichuan Province officially issued an emergency notice to further strengthen the prevention and control of the epidemic, requiring all entry from Sichuan ports to implement a 14-day centralized quarantine and a seven-day home quarantine; after the centralized quarantine is lifted, the entrants will be returned by each city (prefecture) in a closed loop. The local quarantine continued for seven days.
All immigrants completed nasopharyngeal swab nucleic acid tests on the first, fourth, seventh, ten, and fourteen days of the centralized isolation period, and the second and seventh days of the home isolation period, including the fourteenth day of the centralized isolation period and the seventh day of the home isolation period. The Nucleic Acid Testing requires two nasopharyngeal swabs to be used for testing with different nucleic acid testing reagents.
The notice stated that after a local confirmed case occurs in the country, when the epidemic occurs in a medium-high risk area, each region should issue a reminder to investigate the returnees who have a history of travel to the county (city, district) where the epidemic occurred within 14 days, and request to provide a negative nucleic acid test report within 48 hours. After the epidemic occurred in a medium-high-risk area, the returnees from the medium-high-risk area (holding a negative nucleic acid test within the specified time) will be isolated at home until they leave the risk area for 14 days, every time during the isolation period and complete a nasopharyngeal swab nucleic acid test in three days.
In addition, the notice also requires that according to the situation of the epidemic, the area shall be divided into four circles of management: a closed area, a closed control area, a surrounding area of the risk area, and other areas. According to the sequence of the enclosed area, the enclosed area and the surrounding area, multiple rounds of nucleic acid detection are taken.
Closed areas are fully enclosed and managed so that people do not leave their homes; closed areas only allow people to enter, and only open living areas, and gatherings are strictly prohibited. All kinds of large-scale activities are prohibited in the surrounding areas of the risk area, and theaters, dance halls, and games are suspended. Leisure and entertainment venues such as halls are open.
News (18)
Nucleic Acid Tests for citizens with cases in Qingyang District, Chengdu, Sichuan
On 27 July, a suspected case of covid was reported in Chengdu, Sichuan. That night, a reporter from "Jimu News" found at the scene that Dongpo Road in Qingyang District of Chengdu had been closed, the community where the suspected case lived and the surrounding area had been controlled, and the citizens of Chengdu had been tested overnight for nucleic acid.
It was reported on the Internet that Youpindao Community in Qingyang District, Chengdu was undergoing nucleic acid testing overnight, and "Jimu News" also confirmed that it was this community. The local police said that they can only go in but not out, and confirmed that there has been a suspected case of covid.
According to the report, a large number of citizens are waiting in line for nucleic acid testing in the Youpin Road Plaza. Many citizens in the queue said that they received a notice that night that there was a suspected case and that all people in the mall must not leave the square after get off work and must undergo nucleic acid testing. Those who had gone home at that time were also called back for testing.
News (19)
Trajectory of Chengdu's three confirmed covid cases
According to the latest news on 28 July, the Chengdu Municipal Health Commission of the Communist Party of China announced that on 28 July 2021, Chengdu has newly confirmed three local confirmed cases, a family of three, namely a 34-year-old man, a 33-year-old woman and a seven-year-old man child.
The notification stated that the family took flight CA8581 from Chengdu Tianfu Airport to Changsha Huanghua Airport on 17 July, arrived in Zhangjiajie via Changsha and Huaihua on the 18th and 19th, and visited Zhangjiajie, Tianmenshan Forest Park, and the Grand Canyon on the 20th and 22nd. They travelled in Changde on 23 and 24 July, and took flight MU9886 from Changde Taohuayuan Airport back to Chengdu Tianfu Airport on 25 July. On 26 July, the family's activities were mainly in the areas near Youpin Road Xi'an, Guangfu Bridge North Street, Twelve Bridge Road, and Dongpo Leisure Plaza.
In the morning of 27 July, the boy was accompanied by his family to the Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital for treatment. After nucleic acid tests, all three of them were positive.
News (20)
Large-scale nucleic acid testing going on in Mianyang, Sichuan
On 28 July, Mianyang, Sichuan Province officially notified that the city’s Fucheng District and Economic Development Zone had completed the first round of large-scale nucleic acid tests on 25 July, and one person was diagnosed as positive. On 27 July, the Fucheng District and Economic Development Zone of Mianyang completed the second round of large-scale nucleic acid testing. Fucheng District and Economic Development Zone will continue to carry out the third round of nucleic acid testing for one day on 28 July.
As early as 23 July, a confirmed covid case returned from Nanjing was discovered in Mianyang, Sichuan.
On 26 July, in Luzhou, Sichuan Province, officials stated that a new case of asymptomatic infection in Jiangyang District of the city was infected with Covi72, which is highly homologous to the virus in the current round of Nanjing.
Translation of external news on CCP
News (21)
Zhengzhou subway victims are mourned by the public on the seventh day, CCP officials blocked
After the Zhengzhou flood disaster, at the exit of the subway station of the accident, citizens came to mourn each day. On the first seventh day of the victims on 26 July, a lot of flowers filled the entire subway station exit but the Chinese Communist Party used a fence to block it, which aroused public outrage. Some people in the Chinese media criticized the CCP for its repeated mistakes in decision-making, which led to such a tragic human tragedy and demanded that Zhengzhou officials step down.
The public can be seen putting bunches of flowers and bowing to mourn the victims. On 20 July, the flood in Zhengzhou, China caused a subway flooding accident. On the first seven days, the exit of Zhengzhou Metro Shakou Station was filled with flowers and cards from all over the place, and there are people who placed candles showing 7.20.
The people wrote on the card that Metro Line 5 is also my route to work. Maybe we have passed by. They only hope that the victims are in heaven, no fear, and wish them good journeys. There were also family members of the victims waiting by the side, holding a sign that said "Niuniu, Dad still wants to take you home." Offering flowers to mourn, it seemed normal behaviourbut the CCP authorities blocked all the subway stations, making netizens angrily express that "the officials are even afraid of flowers."
Video: "Awesome! All of Zhengzhou citizens should be brave."
Several brave citizens took advantage of the night to remove the fence on 26 July. They did not expect to be fenced up again at noon on the 27th, but at this time there were more flowers and more plates had to be moved. Netizens also said, "Why is such a quick action useless to stop the flood!" "Putting some flowers affects whom?" "Is it affecting the leadership funeral?"
On 27 July, the Chinese Communist Party officially revised the subway flooding accident to 14 deaths but the actual number is still unknown.
News (22)
Photographing Zhengzhou subway flowers to mourn, Caixin reporter was once taken away by police
Reporter : Liu Minghuan / Editor : Wenhui / https://www.ntdtv.com/gb/2021/07/28/a103176048.html
26 July was the "first seventh day" of the victims of the Zhengzhou flood. Many citizens laid flowers in mourning at the Shakou Road Station of Metro Line 5. The next day, Caixin photojournalist Chen Liang was taken away by the police because he took a photo at the scene, causing heated discussions on the Internet.
Many citizens went to the entrance and exit of Shakou Road Station of Metro Line 5 to lay flowers on 26 July to mourn the victims of the Zhengzhou flood. However, the flowers placed on the ground by the people were quickly fenced off by the relevant authorities, making them invisible.
According to the video, there is a card on each bouquet of flowers at the subway entrance, and many of the messages on the card have names and surnames.
Red Star News reporter Pan Junwen posted that the family members of the first seven victims of Zhengzhou Metro Line 5 paid a memorial service at Exit C of Shakou Station. There were people watching, and the relevant departments simply pulled up the yellow baffle. In the afternoon, Exit B was also surrounded by baffles.
According to the The Epoch Times, flowers were imprisoned for the victims of the Zhengzhou subway on 26 July. The authorities' actions aroused anger among the people. On the same day, the fence was demolished by the people. The fencer Wang Jinlei was taken away by the police. On the 27th, security guards blocked a longer fence. After many Zhengzhou citizens strongly opposed, these barriers were finally removed again.
The next day, Caixin photographer Chen Liang was also taken away. In the evening of the 27th, a colleague claimed that he was taken away by the Nanyang Road Police Station in Zhengzhou after taking a photo of the scene full of flowers. Hou Caixin reporter Chen Baocheng reported that Chen Liang had come out, and he hoped to continue to pay attention to those who demolished the fence.
In this regard, netizens said, “The reporter should be charged with leaking state secrets”, “It’s not alright to photograph a lot of people and release flowers,” and “I want to know how many flowers will be released after the Beijing-Guangzhou tunnel.”
On 20 July, Zhengzhou, experienced a sudden heavy rain. Serious water accumulation occurred near the Wulongkou parking lot of Metro Line 5. A subway train was trapped between Shakou Road Station and Haitansi Station, and water flooded into the carriages.
On the 27th, the Chinese Communist Party officially stated that 14 people were killed in the flooding of Metro Line 5 but outsiders suspect that the actual number of deaths may be more than officially announced.
Since the subway flooding incident, people have been waiting there every day at the Line 5 subway entrance of Zhengzhou, hoping that their loved ones will suddenly appear. One of the fathers, who was sitting at the subway entrance waiting for his daughter to return home, looked in a daze. He was pushing a bicycle, and a sign on the handlebar said "Niuniu, Dad still wants to take you home".
News (23) to (25), (27) to (30) / Source : The Irrawaddy
News (23)
Kachin Army to carry out extensive covid tests in Northern Myanmar
The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) says it will carry out extensive COVID-19 tests in Laiza after coronavirus cases were reported in two displacement camps near its headquarters.The armed group’s COVID-19 prevention and control committee on Wednesday asked people to stay at home until further notice.
“Health workers said everyone in every house, both adults and children, will be tested for coronavirus. The majority of residents have already received COVID-19 jabs. They are apparently doing tests as a preventative measure because of recent infections,” said a Laiza resident.
The KIA’s COVID-19 committee urged residents to report if they get sick, warning that punitive action will be taken against those who fail to cooperate.
To prevent the spread of the virus, the KIA has restricted entry to Laiza and Maijayang, another town controlled by the KIA on the Chinese border since the first week of July. However, hundreds of people, mostly students, were infected with the virus in Maijayang.
The KIA has vaccinated some 30,000 people or around 30 percent of the population in Laiza and Maijayang with COVID-19 vaccines donated by China.
News (24)
Myanmar Junta not focusing on preventing and treating covid
Over 4,000 people have died of coronavirus since the beginning of June, when Myanmar was hit by the third wave of COVID-19, and many people have criticized the junta for building the new crematoriums rather than focusing on preventing and treating COVID-19 infections.
Many patients were turned away by public hospitals and forced to rely on treatment at home, including sourcing their own medical oxygen, even as the junta was restricting the sale of oxygen to individuals.
4,629 people have died of COVID-19 over the past two months nationwide, according to the junta-controlled Ministry of Health and Sports. Those figures are widely believed to be an underestimate, with charities who transport dead bodies to Yangon’s cemeteries reporting handling over a thousand corpses daily since mid-July.
News (25)
Myanmar Junta to build 10 crematoriums
Myanmar’s military regime will build ten new crematoriums in Yangon, as the death toll from the third wave of COVID-19 continues to soar.
Myanma Radio and Television, the junta-controlled broadcaster, announced on Tuesday that ten crematoriums are being built simultaneously at cemeteries in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, which has seen the highest fatalities nationwide in the coronavirus third wave.
The crematoriums will be able to cremate more than 3,000 bodies per day. The newly-built crematoriums in Yayway, one of Yangon’s major cemeteries, can cremate over 1,000 bodies per day, said the junta-controlled media.
The move has provoked the ire of the many people who have lost relatives and friends to COVID-19 over the past two months due to the mismanagement of the military regime.
News (26)
Myanmar Junta cannot suppress the epidemic and hopes that international "friendly countries'' can help
Image : In the city of Mandalay in central Myanmar, volunteers prayed for those who died of covid. (Reuters)
Myanmar covid continues to spread. The military government hopes that international assistance will be strengthened, especially certain "friendly countries" can lend a helping hand to help the country control and prevent the epidemic.
According to a report by Reuters, the leader of the Myanmar military government Min Aung Hlaing expressed on 28 July in the state-run media New Light of Myanmar that he hopes to cooperate with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and "friendly countries". There is more cooperation in the epidemic. He made it clear that he hopes Russia can increase the amount of vaccine donations and assist Myanmar in producing vaccines. He also added that he hoped that the ASEAN would release more funds for Myanmar to assist in controlling the outbreak in Myanmar.
Reuters pointed out that Myanmar has recently received about 2 million doses of vaccines from China. However, only 3.2% of the country’s population of about 54 million are currently vaccinated. The country’s epidemic is spreading and there is a shortage of oxygen. Reuters quoted local media "Myanmar Today" as a report that the oxygen system of a hospital in Yangon last weekend had failed, causing at least 8 deaths. Neither the hospital nor the Myanmar health department responded to the matter.
The number of confirmed cases in Myanmar has increased sharply since June. Yesterday, it was announced that 4964 cases were confirmed in a single day, and 338 people died. Medical institutions and funeral groups believe that the actual number is even higher. In addition, severe flooding in eastern Myanmar has made it more difficult to control the epidemic.
Demonstrations also took place in Yangon last week. Protesters pointed out that a serious epidemic broke out in Yangon’s Insein Prison, and many pro-democracy activists were imprisoned there.
News (27)
Myanmar military seizes medical oxygen imported by charities
A colonel in the Myanmar military has admitted seizing 100 medical oxygen cylinders officially imported from Thailand by Yangon charities to treat COVID-19 patients.
Colonel Myo Min Naung, first member of the junta’s Administration Council in Karen State, ordered the life-saving oxygen to be seized as the cylinders were brought into Myanmar on Saturday via the Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge No. 2 in Myawaddy, a border town in Karen State, eastern Myanmar.
The colonel subsequently denied confiscating the oxygen, telling junta-controlled newspapers that he had only borrowed them for emergency use.
“We have ordered 100 cylinders for Karen State and already paid for them. At first, it was not important when we get those cylinders. But, unfortunately, the oxygen plant in Mawlamyine, from where we were collecting oxygen for Karen State, broke down. So I decided to take those 100 cylinders for hospitals and COVID-19 centers that need them urgently,” he said.
However, those at the scene said junta forces acted in a threatening way, displaying their weapons as they took the oxygen cylinders, while using COVID-19 patients in Karen State as an excuse. The junta troops took the cylinders despite an intervention from Major Mote Thone of the Karen State Border Guard Force based in Myawaddy.
On Saturday evening, military regime forces handed 800,000 Thai Baht (around 40 million kyats) to the importer of oxygen cylinders as a guarantee that they would return the cylinders to him.
Minister U Aung Naing Oo of the junta-controlled Ministry of Investment and Foreign Economic Relations has intervened in the case, but the 100 oxygen cylinders have not yet been returned.
News (28)
State news blackout on covid affecting Myanmar military
The State Administrative Council (SAC), the governing body of the military regime, has imposed a news blackout on COVID-19 deaths in the military, despite widespread infections.
The infected junior personnel and their families do not receive treatment at military hospitals until their conditions are serious. Until then they are ordered to isolate in their accommodation, said military personnel.
“Four cases have been found in my unit and many more are sick. [The commanders] do nothing for them. They were transferred to [military hospitals] only when they had difficulty breathing,” said a soldier from a battalion in Meiktila, Mandalay Region.
“But they received no treatment at hospitals. [Doctors] only tell them to stay strong. They had to buy medicine. They were tested after two weeks and discharged if they test negative,” he said.
Widespread coronavirus infections have been reported among battalions in Yangon.
Personnel and their families who have fever and no sense of smell are ordered to isolate in their quarters, said a soldier assigned to help patients in a military hospital in Yangon.
“There have been many infections in my unit. I am still clear but I haven’t returned to my family for more than three weeks because I am concerned about infecting them. We are sliding into chaos and I don’t want to work any longer,” he said.
COVID-19 infections have also been reported among senior military leaders. Deputy Home Affairs Minister and Police Chief Lieutenant-General Than Hlaing and his wife and the wife and son of Adjutant General Lt-Gen Myo Zaw Thein are reportedly receiving treatment at military hospitals for COVID-19.
Some units in Yangon, including the Yangon Command Headquarters, have reportedly been placed under lockdown.
News (29)
More than 300 Myanmar soldiers, 10,000 policemen infected with covid
More than 300 military personnel at an ordnance factory on the banks of the Pyay in Bago Region were infected with coronavirus and nine died last week. But the military regime only registered two deaths as COVID-19 fatalities, the independent media outlet Democratic Voice of Burma was told by “People’s Soldier”, a Facebook page run by striking military personnel.
Despite infections, personnel were forced to continue working at the factory, said the People’s Soldier.
Soldiers are seeking help from striking officers as the regime is unable to provide proper treatment for them, said Captain Nyi Thuta, who is on strike.
“Soldiers can do nothing. They are at the hands of the regime. Ordinary people can still look for oxygen but soldiers can’t go out and are helpless. They told me that they can do nothing but are waiting to be infected,” he said.
Though Myanmar’s military initially revealed the infections and deaths of its personnel and their families, it is now hiding the COVID-19 death toll.
In early July, coup leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing said there was enough oxygen in Myanmar. Since then, cemeteries in Yangon have been overflowing with bodies from coronavirus deaths with most fatalities blamed on a lack of oxygen.
At least 10 military personnel and their relatives have been dying per day at a military hospital in Mandalay due to a shortage of oxygen and doctors, Myanmar Now reported on Sunday, quoting a military medic at the hospital.
Another military medic, Major Min Maung Maung, said: “Though they had made preparations, they can’t handle it when the pandemic broke out. I want to question what they are doing. They can neither control the virus in the military nor provide proper treatment for the people. They keep saying that they are addressing but it is untrue.”
There have also been widespread infections among police amid independent media reports of around 10,000 police officers infected with coronavirus nationwide.
Around 100 trainees caught COVID-19 at the training school of the Criminal Investigation Department in Yangon’s Insein Township in early July.
“The military leaders have no goodwill not only to the people or lower ranks. The other ranks are becoming more aware of that. It has become more obvious during the COVID-19 outbreak that they are being ignored. It has become clearer that not only the people but also the soldiers are suffering from the bad legacy of the dictators,” said Capt. Nyi Thuta.
News (30)
U.S. Defense Secretary chides Myanmar Junta
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin decried the actions of Myanmar’s military rulers on Tuesday and urged ASEAN to keep demanding an end to the violence.
“The Myanmar military’s refusal to respect the inalienable rights of the Burmese people and to defend their basic well-being is flatly unacceptable,” Austin said during a lecture in Singapore, the AP news agency reported.
“A military exists to serve its people, not the other way around. And so we call on the Myanmar military to adhere to the ASEAN five-point consensus and to forge a lasting peace,” he added.
The five-point document calls for an immediate end to violence and the start of a dialogue among contending parties, with a special ASEAN envoy mediating in the talks. However, the envoy has yet to be appointed.
Austin said the US would work with partners in the region to urge Myanmar’s military to “move in the right direction” and release civilians it has imprisoned.
The US general is in Southeast Asia visiting key countries and allies including Singapore, the Philippines and Vietnam to strengthen relationships.
At a virtual meeting with ASEAN foreign ministers in July, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged his Southeast Asian counterparts to press for an end to the violence in Myanmar, as well as for the release of all political prisoners in the country and a return to democracy.
The Myanmar military regime’s foreign minister, Wunna Maung Lwin, participated in the meeting.
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