Coronavirus digest: Sydney anti-lockdown rally turns violent

Thousands of people took to the streets of Australian cities, including Sydney, to protest COVID-induced curbs as the country battles another surge of the coronavirus. 

Nine News reported that 57 people were arrested and charged in Sydney after the demonstration there turned violent. Large crowds broke through barriers and one group charged at mounted police officers, throwing several potted plants and bottles. 

The demonstrators flouted curbs on non-essential travel and public gatherings soon after authorities said the measures could remain in place until October.

The Greater Sydney area has been in lockdown for the past four weeks as the wider state of New South Wales posts record numbers of new infections. 

Protesters also took to the streets in Melbourne and a car protest rally has been planned in Adelaide. 

Thousands of anti-lockdown protesters took to the streets of Sydney

Asia

Vietnam has announced a 15-day lockdown in the capital, Hanoi, amid a spike in coronavirus cases in the southern region. The lockdown order bans gatherings of more than two people in public, days after authorities suspended all outdoor activities in the city. 

• Southeast Asian countries struggle to curtail COVID surge

  Third wave

  COVID infections have risen exponentially in Southeast Asia in the past few months. Countries such as Laos, Thailand and Vietnam had avoided large-scale outbreaks in 2020, but they are now struggling to cope with the devastating new wave. Indonesia, for instance, has been hit hard by a third wave, with the number of deaths also rising in the country.

• Southeast Asian countries struggle to curtail COVID surge

  Chaos and devastation in Indonesia

  As of Sunday, Indonesia had reported 73,582 COVID-related deaths and more than 2.8 million confirmed cases since the start of the pandemic. Last week, the country surpassed India and Brazil as the world’s leader in new infection rates. Experts say the actual number of cases could be much higher. Citizens are desperately searching for oxygen cylinders and hospital beds.

• Southeast Asian countries struggle to curtail COVID surge

  Delta at large

  Indonesia’s health care system and hospitals are struggling to keep up with an influx of new COVID patients. With a population of some 270 million, the country was severely hit by the outbreak after the Eid celebration in May, which saw millions of people travel to celebrate the Ramadan. That outbreak has been made worse, as cases surge during the spread of the highly transmissible delta variant.

• Southeast Asian countries struggle to curtail COVID surge

  From good to worse

  In 2020, Vietnamese officials were praised for efficiently containing the coronavirus spread in the country. But, with the delta variant, which was identified in India, taking hold in the region, the number of infections is on the rise in the country. The government has now put the entire southern region in a two-week lockdown, as confirmed COVID-19 cases exceeded 3,000 for the third day in a row.

• Southeast Asian countries struggle to curtail COVID surge

  Anger against authorities

  Thai protesters are calling for Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha to step down over alleged mismanagement of the COVID-19 pandemic. The demonstrations are taking place as the kingdom registers record levels of coronavirus infections, with hospitals under severe strain. Thailand has reported nearly 90% of its total number of cases and 95% of its deaths since the pandemic began since April.

• Southeast Asian countries struggle to curtail COVID surge

  Thai tourism in tatters

  Thailand’s tourism sector has also been hit badly by the pandemic. With Bangkok and its surrounding provinces struggling to deal with the COVID-19 surge, the government is pushing ahead with its plans to reopen the popular resort island of Phuket in a bid to salvage the economy.

• Southeast Asian countries struggle to curtail COVID surge

  Slow vaccine rollout

  The Thai government has been slow to procure vaccines. The Southeast Asian country began vaccinating front-line workers in February and kicked off a mass vaccination campaign in June by administering locally produced Oxford-AstraZeneca shots and importing the Chinese-made Sinovac doses. The vaccination drive has so far been slow and erratic.

• Southeast Asian countries struggle to curtail COVID surge

  Desperate measures

  Malaysians, too, are struggling amid COVID lockdowns. Some of them have come up with a novel way to ask for help; they are flying white flags outside their homes to signal distress. The #benderaputih — or white flag — campaign has gained momentum on social media. The country has been under a nationwide lockdown since June 1 to curtail a surge of COVID infections.

• Southeast Asian countries struggle to curtail COVID surge

  COVID and the coup

  The military coup has disrupted people’s access to health care facilities in Myanmar. Many doctors have refused to work in hospitals to show their opposition to the junta. The UN has warned that the country can become a “superspreader state” because of increasing infections and a slow vaccination drive.

• Southeast Asian countries struggle to curtail COVID surge

  Herd immunity, a distant dream

  Like other Southeast Asia countries, the Philippines is facing a limited vaccine supply and a slow vaccine rollout. Health experts say the country may be among the last ones in the region to reach herd immunity against the virus. At the current pace of vaccination, authorities might take two or more years to vaccinate at least 75% of the population.

China is testing all residents in a southwestern county near Myanmar after a spike in COVID infections. Authorities have announced the closure of all businesses, schools and markets in the Yunnan province’s Jiangcheng County on Monday and Tuesday while testing is carried out. 

Traveling in and out of the county will be prohibited. 

In Japan, organizers of the Tokyo Olympics have reported 17 new Games-related COVID cases, bringing the total number of infections since July 1 to 123. The organizing committee said a foreign athlete was among the newly reported cases. 

The Tokyo area is under a coronavirus state of emergency as the Games proceed despite heavy public opposition.

Europe

Germany has reported 1,919 new cases of the virus, taking the country’s total to 3,754,511, according to data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases. With 28 deaths reported, the death toll has risen to 91,520.

Croatia and Montenegro have announced stricter COVID rules along the coast of the Adriatic Sea to prevent a rise in infections from ruining the summer tourism season. 

Croatia is set to restrict the number of people at gatherings next week while Montenegro has temporarily shut down nightclubs and discotheques.

Americas

The United States is buying 200 million additional doses of the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine to inoculate younger children and possibly provide booster shots to vaccinated adults, the White House has announced.

Half of these doses will be delivered by the end of the year, and the rest by April 2022. 

The country has also been shipping vaccine doses from Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson Johnson and AstraZeneca to other countries. White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said 22 million doses were shipped this week alone.

A fall in the number of coronavirus deaths has led to a degree of optimism in Brazil as several states roll back restrictions. However, there have been major concerns over the Delta variant after Rio de Janeiro recorded its first deaths from the highly contagious variant. 

“It is expected that the Delta variant will soon become dominant in the city,” Rio city health secretary Daniel Soranz said at a press conference. 

Latin America and the Caribbean have reported a total of more than 40 million cases since the first COVID infections were recorded last year.

see/mm (Reuters, AFP, AP, dpa)

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