Asian Insider, Jan 29: Coronavirus pandemic; Singapore’s plan to lure permanent residents; Hikikomori

Hi,

In today's bulletin: We look at the continuing fallout of the coronavirus pandemic that is sweeping across Hubei province in China and beyond, a new plan to lure permanent residents to Singapore, the growing Hikikomori (reclusive adolescents) phenomenon in the Republic, a 10-year-old child mayor in Denmark, President Donald Trump's peace plan for Palestine and more.

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Ban on Travel from Hubei: Singapore has imposed a ban on travel to and from the most impacted province in China. New restrictions will include no entry or transit for travellers with passports issued in Hubei or those who have travelled there recently.In addition, there are about 2,000 recent travellers from Hubei who are in Singapore, and those assessed to be of higher risk and with a recent travel history to Hubei will be quarantined.

Airlines including United Airlines Holdings Inc said they were cancelling some flights to China as demand falls sharply and global companies tell their employees not to travel on deepening fears over the spread of a flu-like virus.

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) will reject all new work pass applications for foreign workers from the Chinese province of Hubei with immediate effect, until further notice.

Two more cases in Singapore: Two new cases of Wuhan virus have been confirmed in Singapore, bringing the total number of infected people here to seven, the Health Ministry said on Tuesday (Jan 28).

Avoid spreading false rumours: Meanwhile, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has called on Singaporeans to remain calm, practise good hygiene and avoid spreading false rumours as the Wuhan virus situation continues to develop. In a Facebook post on Tuesday (Jan 28), Mr Lee outlined the latest measures taken by Singapore to guard against the spread of the novel coronavirus, which emerged from the Chinese city of Wuhan last month.Mr Lee said local transmission of the virus has not happened, but warned that it could and that Singaporeans have to be prepared for it.

The Woodlands MRT station was not closed because of a suspected case of the Wuhan coronavirus, as claimed by several Facebook posts

There are sufficient masks available in Singapore if people use them sensibly and responsibly, Senior Minister of State for Health Lam Pin Min has said.

Death toll in China from virus attack increases: The death toll from the coronavirus outbreak in China rose to 132 as health authorities at the epicentre of the epidemic reported another 840 confirmed cases, even as Beijing reiterated its confidence in containing the disease. The number of people confirmed to be infected in China's viral outbreak soared to 5,974 on Wednesday (Jan 29), the national health commission said.The health body said they were also monitoring more than 9,000 suspected cases of the virus. The numbers continue to rise at the time of this report.

People in Beijing and across China are donning masks, spraying antiseptic and staying off the streets in a battle to halt the spread of a viral outbreak that has killed more than 130 people

Wildlife trade has to be managed: ST's US Bureau Chief Nirmal Ghosh writes that governments and people must get serious about the risk of disease from the wildlife and exotic pet trades, top disease and wildlife crime. He cites experts who point out that unregulated wildlife trade is causing the cycle of cross-species diseases. "Every time a new disease emerges we all seem to say 'Wow that disease came from nowhere, we didn't expect it.' Yet, to those of us working on what drives this, it's absolutely predictable," Dr Peter Daszak, US-based president of EcoHealth Alliance told The Straits Times.

Ban wildlife trade: A columnist at the influential China Daily has written that it is time to permanently ban trade in wildlife in the country. This time it's not only about the lives of wild animals but also humans, the article said. Illegal wildlife trade in a Wuhan seafood wholesale market has opened up a pandora's box, killed 56 people and nearly triggered a World Health Organisation global warning in less than three months. We should make every effort to prevent and control the plague, he says.

Meanwhile, the United States said on Tuesday (Jan 28) it was developing a vaccine against a deadly virus that originated in China, and urged Beijing to step up its cooperation with international health authorities.

The Business Times reported that shares of Singapore-listed companies with exposure to China were hit on Tuesday, as the Wuhan virus outbreak continued to escalate.Of all Singapore companies with a market capitalisation of S$100 million and above, 45 have at least 20 per cent of annual revenues coming from China, going by data obtained from the Singapore Exchange's (SGX) research team. Of these, 36 stocks registered declines amid the general market fall on Tuesday.

Singapore is making changes to a government scheme that attracts and grants permanent residence (PR) status to investors and entrepreneurs, journalist Choo Yun Ting reports. Changes to the Global Investor Programme (GIP) were made public in the new year and will take effect on March 1. Currently, only established business owners and entrepreneurs are eligible to apply under the GIP. Next-generation business owners and founders of fast-growing companies are set to benefit.

Read more:

Investor residency programme brought in $1.8 billion from 2011 to 2016.

For the past 10 years, Mr Benjamin Toh's room - a spartan, dark space with electronic equipment strewn across a grimy marble floor - has been his whole world. In this self-imposed prison, there are days when he does not sleep, staying up all night to play video games. This year will mark the 10th year that Mr Toh, now 31, has spent alone in his room in self-imposed isolation. He is one of Singapore's hikikomori, a Japanese term to refer to reclusive adolescents. Read his story and those of others who voluntarily withdraw from society for years on end in journalist Cheryl Teh's feature on mental health issues afflicting the young.

US President Donald Trump's proposed plan for a Palestinian state, as part of a Middle East peace solution, has drawn Palestinian condemnation for imposing strict conditions and for agreeing to let Israel maintain control of long-contested West Bank settlements. The plan seems unlikely to advance Israeli-Palestinian talks that broke down in 2014.

Britain on Tuesday gave the green light to a limited role for Chinese telecoms giant Huawei in the country's 5G network, in a decision it said was necessary for developing its future digital economy but one that left the United States "disappointed" after it called for a total ban.

By Ren Zhengfei's own admission, much of his job now is not running Huawei, the company he founded, but giving media interviews and speaking publicly. Huawei founder on relentless media blitz.

Associate Foreign Editor Tan Ooi Boon reports that Billund, a Danish town that is home to the Lego toy empire, looks set to get new facilities, such as world-class play parks, thanks to a 10-year-old Singaporean girl. Audrey Tan, who lives there with her family, has proposed a million-dollar plan to rejuvenate the town's playgrounds. She has the distinction of being the first child mayor of the Billund town municipality, giving her the right to make things happen, just like adult councillors. Her appointment was made possible by the Capital of Children - a unique partnership between the local authorities and the Lego Foundation - which taps children's potential and creativity to run the town.

SINGAPORE'S GROWING GENERATIONAL GAP: Former senior minister of state Zainul Abidin Rasheed said the inter-generational gap is now an issue in Singapore. Speaking to a panel of young academics and activists at an Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) forum last week, he noted that young people are taking up causes and using social media to promote them. This was not the case when he was in his 20s and 30s.

PYONGYANG'S MYSTERIOUS NUCLEAR TESTING SITE: A small natural earthquake detected in North Korea on Wednesday was likely a result of seismic instability lingering in the area since North Korea conducted its sixth and largest nuclear test in 2017, the South Korean government said. A magnitude 2.5 earthquake was detected at 9.33am (8.33am Singapore time) in Hamgyong province, the location of North Korea's shuttered Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site, according to South Korea's Meteorological Administration (KMA)."It was a natural earthquake, presumably caused by the sixth nuclear test," the administration said in a statement on its website.

That's it for today. Thanks for reading and we'll be back tomorrow.

Ven