KAKAMMPI News

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Saturday said repatriated Filipino voters intending to vote in Eleksyon 2022 have until September 30 to apply for transfer of overseas registration. The deadline for such transfer was initially set on August 31. "The Commission en Banc recognizes the need to prevent the disenfranchisement of a great number of our kababayans who have been unexpectedly repatriated due to the COVID-19 pandemic, hence the decision to extend the deadline. If they will be in the Philippines on election day, then they can still exercise their right of suffrage by casting their ballot here,” Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said. The Comelec said the voter intending to transfer his/her registration record from overseas to the Philippines must be a resident of the locality where he/she intends to vote in May 2022. The voter must also file the application personally with the Office of the Election Officer in his/her locality. The Comelec also reminded the publ...

Five Filipina domestic helpers complained that they were allegedly abused by their employer, a former general in Saudi Arabia. According to a report of JP Soriano on "24 Oras" on Thursday, even the wife and children of the former officer have abused the Filipina workers. "Pinagsisipa po ako sa ari ng ilang beses. Hindi ko po alam kung ano po'ng dahilan," Ely Mae said. (I was kicked in my private part several times. I do not know for what reason.) Aside from abuse, Analyn said the employer even forced her to seal drugs. "Hindi ko po sukat akalain na 'yong magiging trabaho ko doon ay isa pala akong tagabalot ng droga niya at 'pag hindi po ako sumunod, sinasabunutan niya at susunugin ng sigarilyo," she said. (I never thought that my work there would include packing illegal drugs and that if I do not follow the instruction, they pull my hair and burn me with a cigarette.) The women then decided to take a video of their employer's son whi...

By MICHAELA DEL CALLAR More than a thousand Filipino workers in Iraq's Kurdistan region on Monday asked the Philippine government to lift the deployment ban on the country's Northern territory so they could come home for Christmas. The Department of Foreign Affairs enforced a worker deployment ban to Iraq in January 2019. In a letter to the Philippine Embassy in Baghdad, the Samahan ng mga Manggagawang Pilipino asked the government to lower the security status from Alert Level 4 to Alert Level 3 for Kurdistan, saying it is an autonomous region far from capital Baghdad and other Iraqi cities, where civil protests are ongoing. Alert Level 4 - the highest security warning given by the Philippines on countries that pose security risks to Filipino travelers and workers due to armed conflict or disaster - was enforced by Manila after Iran fired rockets at Iraq's al Asad airbase, which hosts US forces. Iran retaliated against the US for killing its top commander, Qassim Sul...

President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday (PHL time) called anew for the abolition of the kafala system — a scheme that allows employers in Middle Eastern countries to control the employment and migration status of foreign workers they employ. In a speech during the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly UNGA), Duterte said the kafala system is a “behemoth that chains the weak, the desperate, and the voiceless to an existence of unimaginable suffering”. "Millions of Filipinos work abroad under the most difficult and inhumane of circumstances. We call for the abolition of all structures that allow the exploitation and oppression of migrant workers," he said. "Nothing can justify the continued existence of this unjust system," Duterte added. The President first made the call for the abolition of the kafala system in April during the Virtual Forum on Labor Mobility and Human Rights organized by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Kingdom of Saudi...

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Thursday said three Filipinos were evacuated from Afghanistan over the weekend while 20 of their compatriots are still in the conflict-stricken country. With the development, the number of repatriated Filipinos from Afghanistan has increased to 191, the DFA said in its situation bulletin posted on Twitter. Of the 20 remaining Filipinos in Afghanistan, the Foreign Affairs Department said 18 have opted to stay there while two are open for repatriation. Nevertheless, the DFA said its embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan, which covers Afghanistan, will continue to monitor the situation and prepare assistance to Filipinos there. Weeks after the militant group Taliban took over Afghanistan, the Philippines took in refugees of the nation. "We stay steady where others waver: tonight we welcome Afghan nationals including women and kids seeking refuge," Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said but refused to give further details. — Consuelo M...

By HANA BORDEY, GMA News The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Thursday admitted the lack of funding for some regional consular offices (RCO) and foreign service posts (FSP), which has forced them to use the budget for other programs to continue operations. In a Senate budget hearing, Senator Imee Marcos raised her concern about the “paltry sum” allotted to RCOs in some provinces. “These were included in 2019 as additional items but they were excluded in 2022. How are they gonna survive? Are we gonna close them or can they carry on somehow?” she asked. “We’re a bit worried, these RCOs are a huge help to our probinsyanos and we’re really worried that they’ll have to shut down because in 2019 nabigyan yan ng pera [they were given funds]. 2022, axed out na naman, paano ba yun [what can we do about it]?” she added. DFA Undersecretary Brigido Dulay said they had to “cannibalize” their funds for other programs and realign them to the RCOs. “Some of them we have already opened u...

By JOJO DASS Published September 24, 2021 3:00pm DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A 53-year-old Zamboangueño working as an Abu Dhabi Emergency Medical Service (EMS) staff has won AED100,000 – the equivalent of P1.37 million – in the latest raffle draw here that’s fast becoming popular in the Filipino community as 18 Pinoys have so far won big in just five months. “Hannibal,” not his real name, was among 10 lucky participants, including five other overseas Filipino worker (OFWs), who matched five out of the six winning numbers (3, 6, 9, 11, 23 and 43) for the AED1 million prize and took home AED 100,000 each. “First time kong nanalo ng ganito,” Hannibal, who said he has been trying his luck on raffle draws since college, told GMA News Online. “Ever since ay naglalaro na ako, lotto pa nga sa Pilipinas,” the OFW, who has been in the UAE for the past 15 years, said. “Ito na ang pinakamalaki kong nakuha. Na-miss ko lang yung isa pang number. Kung nakuha ko lahat eh, bye-bye na talaga,” ...

Some overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are facing difficulty renewing their passports due to lack of available appointment slots. According to JP Soriano’s report on “State of the Nation,” there is a special courtesy lane for OFWs leaving the country at the Department of Foreign Affairs Consular Office. However, some OFWs are having difficulty getting slots. “Ang pinakamaaga daw po nilang schedule according to their email response December 4, 2021, but I have to leave by October 16,” Kenneth Garcia, an OFW, said. Garcia is employed in Doha, Qatar. He was given two months by his employer to fix his passport, which is set to expire in January 2022. Upon arriving in the country in August, he immediately filed for a passport renewal. Though he has written to the DFA, the agency has yet to promise a date for his passport renewal appointment. “Kami lang po talaga ‘yung inaasahan ng pamilya namin. Kailangan ko po talagang makabalik doon sa trabaho ko. Otherwise, maaring mawalan ako ng t...

By LLANESCA T. PANTI, GMA News Published September 21, 2021 1:11pm The deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) has been picking up this year and is reaching 70,000 per month despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) said Tuesday. POEA Administrator Bernard Olalia said that of this number, 30,000 are land-based while the other 40,000 are sea-based. "From a drop of 74% last year, our deployment is picking up monthly," Olalia said during the Laging Handa briefing, adding that health workers are "very in demand" in the United Kingdom, Germany, and some Middle East countries. "As for sea-based, they are deployed in cargo, transport and petroleum vessels, and they are also in demand," Olalia said. Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana earlier said that around 1.4 million Filipinos have already been repatriated to the Philippines due to COVID-19 pandemic since March 2020. Of this number, 1.1 million were OF...

By MA. ANGELICA GARCIA, GMA News Published September 29, 2021 5:59pm The Department of Labor and Employment on Wednesday said it is mulling a temporary deployment ban to Saudi Arabia following reports of maltreatment of overseas Filipino workers there. DOLE-Information and Publication Service (IPS) director Rolly Francia said 16 OFWs were allegedly abused by their employer, a retired military general in Saudi Arabia. Two of the 16 OFWs are still in the quarters of the general. The rest have been repatriated. He said negotiations are already underway to rescue the remaining OFWs. "Kung hindi maisasaayos ng foreign employers ang kanilang pagpapalaya (sa mga OFWs), baka mapilitan ang ating pamahalaan na muli nanamang i-suspend ang deployment sa Saudi," he said in an online event. "Sana hindi umabot sa ganiyan kaya nakikiusap ang pamahalaan sa employers to facilitate 'yon pong pagkuha sa ating natitirang kababayan na nandoon sa employer ng general sa Riyadh,"...

Reuters Posted at Sep 29 2021 10:43 PM LONDON - British soldiers will start driving tankers soon to replenish empty pumps as drivers queued again for fuel after days of shortages, despite Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying the situation was improving. Britain has been gripped by a rush of panic buying for almost a week that has left pumps dry across major cities, after oil companies warned they did not have enough tanker drivers to move petrol and diesel from refineries to filling stations. Business minister Kwasi Kwarteng said 150 soldiers had been mobilized, and would be driving tankers within a few days. "The last few days have been difficult, we've seen large queues. But I think the situation is stabilizing, we're getting petrol into the forecourts. I think we're going to see our way through this," Kwarteng said. He said the government's reserve tanker fleet, which numbers 80 vehicles according to a 2019 assessment, would be operating by later in th...

Dan Whitcomb, Reuters LOS ANGELES—Los Angeles officials on Wednesday signaled they would vote next week to prohibit unvaccinated people from entering most businesses in the United States' second-largest city, one of the nation's most severe crackdowns so far of the COVID-19 pandemic. All but one of the City Council members present on Wednesday said they supported the proposed "emergency" ordinance, which would require proof of vaccination to enter restaurants, bars, shopping centers, gyms and other indoor spaces. "I am sick and tired of yahoos going into Trader Joe's (grocery store) refusing to wear a mask," City Council member Paul Kerkorian said in angry remarks. "I am fed up with people who want to make this into such a politicized issue they have lost all semblance of civility in our society." If the proposal is approved next week, as expected, Los Angeles would join San Francisco and New York among major U.S. cities requiring proof of...

Agence France-Presse Posted at Sep 29 2021 06:47 PM A 6.1-magnitude earthquake struck off Japan's northwestern coast on Wednesday but no tsunami warning was issued, Japanese and US authorities said. The quake produced shaking across a large swath of the northeastern coast and was also felt in Tokyo, but there were no immediate reports of damage. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) said the quake hit at a depth of 368 kilometers (228 miles) in the Sea of Japan, known as the East Sea in Korea. Japan's meteorological agency said there was no tsunami risk following the jolt. Japan sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", an arc of intense seismic activity that stretches through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin. The country is regularly hit by quakes, and has strict construction regulations intended to ensure buildings can withstand strong tremors.

Deena Beasley, Reuters Laboratory studies show that Merck & Co's experimental oral COVID-19 antiviral drug, molnupiravir, is likely to be effective against known variants of the coronavirus, including the dominant, highly transmissible Delta, the company said on Wednesday. Since molnupiravir does not target the spike protein of the virus - the target of all current COVID-19 vaccines - which defines the differences between the variants, the drug should be equally effective as the virus continues to evolve, said Jay Grobler, head of infectious disease and vaccines at Merck. Molnupiravir instead targets the viral polymerase, an enzyme needed for the virus to make copies of itself. It is designed to work by introducing errors into the genetic code of the virus. Data shows that the drug is most effective when given early in the course of infection, Merck said. The U.S. drugmaker tested its antiviral against nasal swab samples taken from participants in early trials of the drug...

Catherine Wong, South China Morning Post Posted at Sep 30 2021 01:13 PM China has sought to defend its cooperation with the World Health Organization in the search for the origins of Covid-19, releasing a summary of its actions so far. The report, published by state news agency Xinhua, comes as the WHO and world leaders press China to help with further research in the origins hunt and a deadline looms for appointments to a group to drive that work. On Wednesday, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus repeated his call for a second phase of research – with China’s cooperation – to start “as soon as possible”. “It’s through knowing the origin or what happened that we can prevent the next one, so we expect the collaboration of China and all countries involved,” he said at a World Trade Organization forum. An earlier “phase one” investigation wrapped up in February after a team of 14 international experts spent four weeks in Wuhan, the central Chinese city where the coronavirus was fi...

Kantaro Komiya, Reuters TOKYO - Japan will lift a coronavirus state of emergency in all regions on Thursday as the number of new cases falls and the strain on the medical system eases, Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said. The plan, approved by a government advisory panel, takes Japan as a whole out of an emergency state for the first time in nearly six months. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga will hold a news conference at 7 p.m. (1000 GMT) to announce the decision after the plan is formalized by a government task force. But Nishimura said some limitations on eateries and large-scale events would remain in place for about a month to prevent a resurgence in cases. "New cases will undoubtedly rise after the emergency state is lifted," Nishimura, who also oversees Japan's coronavirus response, said on Tuesday as the advisory panel began its meeting. "We need to continue with the necessary measures to prevent a rebound," he said, adding that if cases surge...

SINGAPORE - Singapore's population size this year saw its sharpest percentage drop since 1950, a report said on Tuesday, as coronavirus-induced travel restrictions kept foreigners away from the Asian financial hub. It was the second consecutive year the city-state saw its population shrink and only the third time it had negative growth since 1950, according to an official annual population report. The total population, which includes foreigners who live, work and study in Singapore but are not permanent residents, dropped by 4.1% to 5.45 million people. That was largely a result of a 10.7% decrease in its non-resident population. Similar to other developed nations, Singapore has been experiencing a dwindling birth rate and aging population. The government has offered one-off payment to encourage Singaporeans to have children during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reuters SYDNEY - Australia will wind down emergency financial payments aimed at helping people and businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic as COVID-19 vaccinations rise, with payments in some states likely to end in weeks. The federal government has spent over A$9 billion ($6.5 billion) since June to support around 2 million people, but will phase out the payments as vaccination levels near targeted levels at 70%-80%, Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said on Wednesday. "We are expecting when restrictions ease, people will get back to work, businesses will reopen and people will go about their daily lives," Frydenberg told a media briefing. Australia is grappling with a third wave of infections fueled by the Delta variant that has plunged its largest cities of Sydney and Melbourne and the capital Canberra into a weeks-long lockdown, putting its A$2 trillion ($1.5 trillion) economy on the brink of a second recession in as many years. Frydenberg said the automatic ...

South China Morning Post Posted at Sep 29 2021 09:24 AM | Updated as of Sep 29 2021 09:30 AM Hong Kong will release another 200 rooms at an official quarantine center for inbound foreign domestic helpers, but employment agencies have slammed the move as woefully inadequate for easing the city's shortage of the workers. The new slots at the Penny's Bay facility - available to book from Monday - still leave Hong Kong several months away from clearing the backlog of domestic workers waiting to enter the city, according to an employers' union. All 800 rooms at the government-run center on Lantau Island were snapped up earlier this month within minutes of reservations opening under a scheme to allow helpers in the Philippines and Indonesia back into the city following coronavirus-related flight bans on those countries and issues with recognizing vaccination records. Hong Kong authorities subsequently suspended reservations beyond October 19 to allow for a review of the book...

^ Jose Rodel Clapano - The Philippine Sta STAR / Walter Bollozos, file MANILA, Philippines — The city government of Manila is preparing cash cards for senior citizens to use in claiming their P500 monthly allowance, city administrator Felix Espiritu said on Monday. In an interview with dzBB, he said the senior citizens’ cash card system may be finished in the next three months. The system was set up after chaos occurred at the Delpan Sports Complex when the senior citizens were about to claim their allowance from the city government. Espiritu said the reason for the chaos was that even those who were not included in the list of seniors claiming their allowance went to the sports complex. He said police officers and Manila Traffic and Parking Bureau personnel were able to “peacefully” send those not in the list home. According to Espiritu, “whenever people hear there is ayuda (financial or in-kind assistance), even those not covered by it come and take their chances.”

Philstar.com WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand recorded its first Covid-related death in six months Saturday, but health authorities said there were signs the outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant was coming under control. A woman in her 90s, who had underlying health conditions and could not receive a ventilator or intensive care support, died in an Auckland hospital on Friday night. She is the 27th person to die with COVID-19 in New Zealand and the first recorded since February 16 this year. Authorities said the woman was a household contact of a person who had already tested positive for the virus in Auckland, New Zealand's largest city with a population of around 1.7 million. New Zealand has been battling a coronavirus outbreak since the first locally transmitted case in six months was detected in mid-August, thrusting the country of five million into lockdown. Since then, 782 cases have been recorded, primarily in Auckland, which remains at its highest leve...

Agence France-Presse BANGKOK, Thailand — Thailand is to cut the quarantine for vaccinated travellers to seven days starting in October, officials said Monday, as it seeks to revive its battered tourism industry. Pre-pandemic Thailand attracted nearly 40 million visitors a year, but Covid-related travel restrictions have hammered the sector, contributing to the economy's worst performance in more than 20 years. The kingdom is pushing to reopen despite still being in the grips of a deadly third wave of infections, driven by the Delta variant. Authorities said that starting on Friday, the quarantine period for fully jabbed visitors will be seven days, halved from the current 14-day period -- provided they have a vaccination certificate. Visitors without certification will have to quarantine for 10 days if they enter by plane and 14 days if they come over land. All will require at least two negative Covid tests. Government deputy spokeswoman Rachada Dhanadirek waved off conc...

Pia Lee-Brago - The Philippine Star MANILA, Philippines — As New York enforced its COVID-19 deadline for unvaccinated health workers, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed yesterday an executive order waiving existing regulations and allowing licensed medical professionals in other countries, including the Philippines, to practice in New York to ease anticipated staffing shortages in hospitals and nursing homes. New York earlier announced it was considering hiring medical workers from the Philippines and other countries to replace unvaccinated staff in hospitals and nursing homes who would not comply with the state’s requirement for health workers to get COVID-19 jabs. The order expands the eligible health care workforce and allows additional health workers to administer COVID-19 testing and vaccinations. “The only way we can move past this pandemic is to ensure that everyone eligible is vaccinated, and that includes those who are taking care of our vulnerable family members and loved ones,” H...

Ralph Edwin Villanueva - The Philippine Star STAR / File MANILA, Philippines — Amid reports of a declining COVID-19 reproduction rate, Metro Manila may be placed under a less-stringent alert level from the current Alert Level 4 set to lapse by the end of the month, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Benhur Abalos said yesterday. In an interview over dzMM, Abalos noted the lower reproduction rate for COVID-19 recorded by the OCTA Research Group. “There is a downward trend of the growth rate in the region. The one-week growth rate even saw negative numbers. The indications are good,” Abalos said in Filipino. “Hopefully, by the end of the week, Metro Manila could be placed under Alert Level 3,” he added. The Department of Health earlier said Metro Manila is down to “moderate” risk classification. Abalos also said 69 percent of Metro Manila residents have received jabs against COVID-19. “Whatever variant may come, we already have a template. What is importa...

By Nick Marsh In 2020 Singapore was hit by a series of coronavirus outbreaks, centred around dormitories where thousands of migrant workers live. Cases have dropped significantly, but most of the men are still not permitted to leave except to go to work. It is one of the longest periods of Covid confinement faced by anyone anywhere in the world. "This is prison life. This is a captive's life." Sharif came to Singapore in 2008. At the time, his wife was pregnant and the book stall he ran in Bangladesh was shut down. Over the past 13 years he made a life for himself here, but since early 2020 all he has known are the four walls of his dormitory and the construction site where he works. He and nearly 300,000 others are banned from mixing with the general public. Last week, Singapore's government said it would allow a handful of workers to go out in a "pilot scheme". "I appreciate the experiment," he says. "But I can't express much joy...

Mas pinalalawig ng Komisyon sa Populasyon at Pagpapaunlad (POPCOM) ang adhikain nitong pagpapalaganap at pagpapabuti ng pakikipag-ugnayan ng mga nakakatandang Pilipino sa kanilang mga anak na nagdadalaga at nagbibinata. Nitong Setyembre 21, ang POPCOM ay nagsagawa ng isang “parent-teen talk webinar” gamit ang Zoom, kung saan ang isang “interactive program” ang nagbigay ng naaayon na kaalaman at kasanayan sa mga magulang, habang tumulong ito sa mga anak na teenager na maabot ang kanilang buong potensyal. Hinikayat din nito ang mga nanay at tatay na sumali sa malayang usapan, lalo na sa mga usapin ukol sa sex at sekswalidad, na nakikitang makakatulong upang bumaba ang mga bilang ng mga pagbubuntis sa hanay ng mga kabataan. Maaaring mapanood ang webinar sa https://youtu.be/lZ9jrJCjYas. Ayon kay Ikalawang Kalihim (Undersecretary) Juan Antonio A. Perez III, MD, MPH, “ang webinar ay naging isang tagapag-simula at ‘padaluyan’ ng pag-uu...

Shay Cullen 17 September 2021 When Pope Francis made a visit to so-called Catholic Hungary recently, it was short. He was made to feel unwelcome because he stands for the rights and dignity of every migrant and refugee that seeks refuge, a welcome and acceptance, understanding, shelter, care and help. But Prime Minister Viktor Orban and the Hungarian officials tell Pope Francis they consider refugees and migrants fleeing persecution and hunger as a Mongol invasion. They gave Francis a copy of a 13th-century letter from Hungarian King Bela IV to Pope Innocent IV. The letter asked the then-pope for help in resisting the Mongol invasion of Hungary and Europe. Orban considers himself the defender of Christian values in Hungary and Europe. This is monumental hypocrisy. Besides, Orban is an autocratic right-wing ruler that has curbed free expression and the media. According to a CNN report: “Balazs Orban, Deputy Minister for the Prime Minister's Office, described the gift on his Faceb...

Starting 1 Sept 2021, Singapore will find jobs for any worker in the construction, marine or process industries whose work permit was prematurely terminated by his employer. The SIngapore Contractors Association (which also holds an employment agency licence) has been tasked with the responsibility to find new jobs for these workers within 30 days, though if no match is found, the worker will still be repatriated. This is an improvement over the present system where premature termination makes repatriation mandatory. For workers whose work permits are reaching expiry but whose employers do not wish to renew them,they already have a 20-day period to look for change of employer. Unfortunately, we are very short on details, because the announcement consisted literally of just one sentence! We are still trying to find out more, and are particularly concerned about the conflict between the two schemes. We're also trying to find out how much the Contractors Association will charge ...

Overly stringent travel requirements imposed by both national and local governments amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic could lead to the eventual crash of the local aviation industry. Major airline groups have thus asked the government to allow increased mobility of vaccinated Filipinos to allow them to sustain the recovery of some of the billions of pesos in revenues lost since the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March 2020. These airline groups sought the help of Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion in bringing forward their concerns regarding the effects of the pandemic on their businesses to the national government. Collectively, they have asked for increased mobility among the vaccinated within the transport sector. "For these airline companies to survive, there has to be sustainable number of passengers especially for the tourism industry,” Concepcion said. Concepcion and the stakeholders of the airline sector met with Dr. Edsel Salvana, one of the ...

With the number of cases in Metro Manila on a downward trend, Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion is optimistic it would pave way for the opening of the economy at a higher rate in the fourth quarter of 2021, enabling businesses to enjoy a “happy Christmas.” "The downward trend we are experiencing right now is a result of last month’s stricter lockdown. We have proposed the immediate strict implementation weeks ago instead of being closed during the last quarter of the year,” Concepcion stressed. This proposal backed by OCTA Research group received criticisms from certain groups questioning its efficacy but recent data is showing its positive effects in the cases being reported. During the “Pandesal Forum” in Quezon City, Prof. Guido David of OCTA Research reported about the good news in Metro Manila where the group noted a decrease in the number of cases in the region. "The reproduction number in the NCR has also decreased to about 1.11. This confir...

Reuters HONG KONG - A panel of health experts advising the Hong Kong government has recommended children aged 12-17 should get only one dose of BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine after reports of heart inflammation side effects. Professor Lau Yu-lung, who chairs a health committee advising the government on its vaccination program, told public broadcaster RTHK the side effect was more prevalent than originally thought. He said experts therefore decided it was better for teenagers to get only one dose to "greatly reduce the chance of heart inflammation." The city's Department of Health did not provide data on how many cases of heart inflammation side effects have been reported. But RTHK said that more than 30 teenagers suffered inflammation of the heart since the government started administering the shot to those over 12 from June. Hong Kong has been using two COVID-19 vaccines including Sinovac's shot vaccinating adults, but teenagers are eligible to take the Bio...

Tom Allard and Kate Lamb, Reuters JAKARTA - Indonesia is in talks with the World Health Organization (WHO) as well as six drug companies to become a global hub for manufacturing vaccines, its health minister told Reuters. Detailing the ambitious strategy for the first time, Budi Gunadi Sadikin said in an interview that Indonesia would kickstart the initiative by prioritizing purchases of COVID-19 vaccines from companies that shared technology and set up facilities in Indonesia. "We are working with the WHO to be one of the global manufacturing hubs for mRNA," he said, adding he had directly lobbied WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on a trip earlier this month to Europe. "The WHO has pointed to South Africa as the first location, and I said that logically Indonesia should be the second." The new "technology transfer hubs" are part of a WHO strategy to more widely distribute vaccine production globally and build capacity in developing co...

Reuters HONG KONG - A panel of health experts advising the Hong Kong government has recommended children aged 12-17 should get only one dose of BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine after reports of heart inflammation side effects. Professor Lau Yu-lung, who chairs a health committee advising the government on its vaccination program, told public broadcaster RTHK the side effect was more prevalent than originally thought. He said experts therefore decided it was better for teenagers to get only one dose to "greatly reduce the chance of heart inflammation." The city's Department of Health did not provide data on how many cases of heart inflammation side effects have been reported. But RTHK said that more than 30 teenagers suffered inflammation of the heart since the government started administering the shot to those over 12 from June. Hong Kong has been using two COVID-19 vaccines including Sinovac's shot vaccinating adults, but teenagers are eligible to take the BioN...

Laura Zhou, South China Morning Post Posted at Sep 16 2021 01:40 PM China on Wednesday called on the United States to unfreeze assets belonging to Afghanistan, and thanked the Taliban-controlled government for guaranteeing the security of Chinese investments in the nation. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said the assets belonged to Afghanistan, and the US should accept the legitimate demands of the nation. “The US should give up the path of sanctioning, and should not create obstacles for the peaceful reconstruction and economic development of Afghanistan,” Zhao said. The US has reportedly frozen US$9.5 billion in Afghanistan central bank assets, following the takeover of Kabul by the Taliban. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund also halted aid to Afghanistan and the Taliban asked nations such as China to help with reconstruction. Zhao’s message came after Beijing’s ambassador to Kabul, Wang Yu, told acting Foreign Minister Amir Muttaqi on Tuesday ...

Agence France-Presse Pope Francis spoke out Wednesday against "denier" cardinals who refused the coronavirus vaccine, in a thinly veiled barb against his main opponent who recently contracted COVID-19. "In the College of Cardinals, there are a few deniers. One of them, the poor man, contracted the virus," the pontiff told reporters as he flew home from a trip to Slovakia. The 84-year-old did not name the man he was referring to, but conservative US Cardinal Raymond Burke, one of Francis' fiercest and most vocal critics in the Catholic Church, was recently admitted to hospital in the United States with COVID-19. The pope said that in the heart of the Vatican, "everyone is vaccinated, with the exception of a small group". "We are studying how to help them," he said during a press conference onboard the papal plane. The pope is a strong advocate of coronavirus vaccines and has previously expressed his incomprehension with those who refus...

Sebastian Smith, Agence France-Presse The United States will help Australia acquire nuclear-powered submarines as part of a new Indo-Pacific strategic alliance also including Britain, a US official said Wednesday. The announcement -- due to be made shortly in a video meeting by President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his British counterpart Boris Johnson -- could infuriate France, which has been negotiating a multi-billion-dollar sale of conventional submarines to Australia. That deal will probably now be scrapped, The Sydney Morning Herald reported. The US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the 3-way partnership, dubbed AUKUS, is a "historic" new piece in Washington's growing focus on the region, where China is challenging decades of US leadership and naval dominance. What the Biden administration official called an alliance of "maritime democracies" will combine the three countries' forces on "cyber, AI...

Agence France-Presse Posted at Sep 16 2021 08:12 AM JERUSALEM - Israel's program of booster jabs has proved effective in reducing severe cases of COVID even as new infections hover near record highs, experts said, citing recent data. Since taking office in June, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has insisted he will aim to avoid any new lockdown, a pledge his government has kept even as the country of roughly 9.3 million people regularly records more than 10,000 new Covid cases a day. To stay open, Israel has opted for a complex policy mix that has caused frustration for families forced to organise repeated Covid tests for their children to attend school or take part in other activities. The backbone of Bennett's strategy has been the rollout of a third shot of the PfizerBioNTech vaccine to everyone aged 12 and over, ignoring criticism that the booster jab is unnecessary and unfair. But the 49-year-old premier this week insisted his approach was working. "Very many...