Malay Mail reported that Ika was quarantined for three days.
Ika was in Haikao, China for work-related matters and was quarantined at Hospital Sungai Buloh (HSB) last Sunday upon returning from the trip as she was feared to have contracted the coronavirus.
In her China-bound flight, the Damaikanlah singer was sitting near a 60-year-old person from Wuhan who had the flu and was coughing.
Ika said she could not wait to go home and go back to eating normally.
She shared that in the three days she was quarantined, she had no appetite to eat but now she looked forward to enjoying all her favourite food.
The coronavirus (2019-nCov) started in Wuhan, China where patients developed pneumonia without any reason and current vaccines or treatments do not work. Symptoms include breathing difficulties, fever and coughing. It was reported that the cause could be from consuming bat soup.
The virus is transmitted from human to human and the transmission rate has been escalating since mid-January 2020.
The incubation period (time from exposure to the development of symptoms) of the virus is between two and 10 days and it remains to be determined if it is contagious during this time.
Singapore—East Asians from all over the world are experiencing discrimination along with the rise in the number of people infected by the novel coronavirus, which originated in Wuhan, Hubei, central China, late last year.
To date, over 7,700 people have tested positive for the virus, and the death toll has reached 170. While most of the people diagnosed with the virus are in China, there are 15 other countries where the virus has also been found, including the United States, Australia, Japan, France, and Germany.
In Singapore, there have been 10 reported cases of the Wuhan coronavirus, all of whom from people who have been to China recently. There has been no community spread of the illness, and the government has taken swift action in addressing the outbreak, setting up a multi-ministry task force to tackle the various issues that arise.
However, as the straitstimes.com reports, some Singaporeans are calling for a blanket ban on all Chinese nationals travelling to the country, not only for those who carry passports issued in Hubei, or those who visited the area recently.
A young woman even started a petition “to temporarily stop Chinese nationals and travellers from China from arriving on our shores,” which has since gotten 122,000 signatures in five days.
While fears for health and safety are the biggest reasons people cite for calling for a ban on Chinese travellers, some comments on the petition’s platform, change.org, seem to tend toward a xenophobic slant.
In Malaysia, a similar change.org petition has been signed by over 400,000 signatories in less than a week.
East Asians in France have reported being discriminated against, whether or not they are Chinese or have been to China recently. The Twitter hashtag #JeNeSuisPasUnVirus (#ImNotAVirus) has begun to trend in the country, with even people of Vietnamese and Cambodian descent reporting a rise in negative attitudes against them.
In Canada, citizens of Chinese descent are worried about a repeat of what happened during the SARS outbreak in 2003, wherein the community took an economic hit. The BBC quotes Justin Kong, executive director of the Toronto chapter of the Chinese Canadian National Council, as saying, “The harm was serious. A loss of income, a loss of jobs, people losing their livelihood, losing their homes. Facing stigma at school, at the workplace.”
when a disease is racialized, you need to know that the every-day racism targeted at folks is bad, and the trauma and anxiety remain. during SARS, the hyper surveillance and containment in public spaces, transit, their workplaces, schools, etc were terrible to live through. 1
As for the United Kingdom, Sam Phan wrote in The Guardian, “In light of current events, we east Asians in the UK are on high alert, paying close attention to how people interact with us. It is not their concern about health that is problematic, but the stereotyping of all east Asians as a coronavirus risk. At times such as this, even a simple bus trip can feel like a hostile environment.
As it spreads, the virus has revealed more and more stereotyped judgments about Chinese people. I have also heard accounts from east Asians, even if they are not Chinese, who have recently been profiled while travelling at airports or on trains due to the ignorant perception that all east Asians are Chinese.”
Discrimination has historically accompanied the fear of sickness outbreaks. Not only for SARS in 2003 but more recently, the Ebola outbreak in 2014 gave rise to higher discrimination incidents against people of African descent. Further back, when HIV was a new phenomenon in the 1980’s, the LGBT community also experienced higher numbers of prejudice and discrimination.
On Monday, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said that a complete ban on travellers from China because of the virus is not needed at present. On Facebook, former Nominated Member of Parliament Calvin Cheng echoed this view, writing, “Given the current concentration of cases in Hubei, I think it would be overkill to ban the entire China and all its nationals from travelling here. For example, Shanghai has a population of 25 million. There have been 40 cases, all from Wuhan, and one fatality. Should we ban all 25 million Shanghainese from coming to Singapore?” —/TISG
The latest updates on the Wuhan coronavirus. Infographic: The Independent SG (*The total death count now stands at 171)
CHINA: As of now, there are 8,137 confirmed cases of infection in China. The death count of the virus has gone up to 171 people, and no deaths have yet been reported outside of mainland China. Macao has confirmed at least seven cases of the Wuhan coronavirus, while Hong Kong’s current count sits at 10 confirmed cases.
SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Health (MOH) reported another three cases of the Wuhan coronavirus in Singapore on Thursday (Jan 30), bringing the total number of infected persons in the country to 13. The three latest cases are all travelers who hail from Wuhan—a 73-year-old Chinese woman who arrived in Singapore on Jan 21 with her family, a 37-year-old Chinese woman who arrived in Singapore on Jan 22 with her family, and a 31-year-old Chinese woman who arrived in Singapore on Jan 22 and was travelling with the country’s fourth confirmed case. The three women are currently are warded in isolation rooms at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases, where some of the other confirmed cases are being held. Others are receiving treatment at Singapore General Hospital and Sengkang General Hospital.
ASEAN: A total of 40 cases have been confirmed so far among the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The Philippines reported its first case on Thursday (Jan 30), Cambodia has one case, Malaysia has eight cases, Singapore has 13 cases, Thailand has 14 cases and Vietnam has confirmed three cases so far.
ASIA: On Thursday (Jan 30), India’s Ministry of Health and Family reported its first case of the Wuhan coronavirus—a student in the southern state of Kerala who was studying at Wuhan University. The patient, who tested positive for the virus, is in isolation in hospital. Japan has confirmed 14 cases so far, with two cases having no travel history to Wuhan. One, a bus driver in his 60s who drove tour groups from Wuhan for nine days before getting infected, is the first case of suspected human-to-human transmission in Japan. Nepal has one case, South Korea has six cases, Sri Lanka has one case, Taiwan has nine cases and the United Arab Emirates has four cases. On Thursday (Jan 30), despite having no recorded cases of the coronavirus, Russia closed its far-eastern border with China. It will also be limiting flights and train services to and from China.
EUROPE: France, the very first European country to report confirmed cases of the Wuhan coronavirus, currently has five cases of infection and has begun to evacuate its citizens—those who do not display symptoms of the virus—from Wuhan on Thursday (Jan 30), according to French health minister Agnes Buzyn. Finland has one case of the virus (first reported on Wednesday, Jan 29), while Germany has four cases. In Italy, around 7,000 passengers are being held on a cruise ship while tests are done on a couple suspected of having the virus.
NORTH AMERICA: Both the United States and Canada have reported cases of the coronavirus. Canada has three cases, while the United States has confirmed five cases so far. The US announced on Thursday (Jan 30), that a special White House task force has been set up to put measures in place against the coronavirus outbreak, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported its first confirmed case of “person-to-person spread” of the virus.
AUSTRALIA: At least nine cases so far have been reported in Australia, and the government began evacuating Australian citizens out of the Hubei province from Wednesday (Jan 29).
AFRICA: As of yet, no confirmed cases of the Wuhan coronavirus have been reported in the region. The Ivory Coast tested the first person in Africa for the virus on Monday (Jan 27), but the test has since come back negative. On Tuesday (Jan 28), a passenger arrived in Nairobi and displayed flu-like symptoms. They are currently being quarantined in Nairobi and are awaiting test results.
A Los Angeles jury on Wednesday ordered Apple and Broadcom to pay $1.1 billion to a California university for infringing wifi technology patents in what is thought to be one of the largest patent verdicts ever.
Apple was ordered to pay $837 million and Broadcom must pay $270 million to the California Institute of Technology.
Caltech had sued both tech giants in 2016, alleging that Apple products including iPhones, iPads and Apple Watches used Broadcom components that infringed on its patents related to wireless data transmissions.
While Broadcom made the chips at issue in the trial, jurors may have hit Apple with a bigger tab by because it makes billions of dollars selling iPhones and other devices that incorporate the technology.
“Think of the patented technology as a piece of property that was stolen and sold to someone else,” said analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group.
“It doesn’t matter if they had a go-between steal it for them, they were not allowed to benefit from a theft even if they were downstream.”
Tangled past
The analyst, who did not attend the trial, wondered whether an Apple relationship with Broadcom strengthened years ago during legal brawling with US chip giant Qualcomm played into the jury’s decision.
Some industry insiders believe Apple supported Broadcom’s failed bid to buy Qualcomm in a hostile takeover campaign.
Broadcom in 2018 abandoned efforts to take over US smartphone chipmaker Qualcomm after its bid was blocked by President Donald Trump over national security concerns.
Qualcomm had rejected the unsolicited offer from Broadcom, which makes an array of chips for wireless communications, set-top boxes and electronic displays.
Broadcom last year moved its headquarters from Singapore to California.
Meanwhile, Apple and Qualcomm agreed in early 2019 to “dismiss all litigation” against each other worldwide in what had been a sprawling battle over royalty payments.
Repercussions?
Both Apple and Broadcom planned to appeal the verdict.
“While we thank the members of the jury for their service, we disagree with the factual and legal bases for the verdict and intend to appeal,” Broadcom said in response to an AFP inquiry.
In court documents, Apple and Broadcom had said Caltech’s claims “are based solely on the incorporation of allegedly infringing Broadcom chips in Apple’s iPhone, Mac, and other devices.”
“Broadcom manufactures the accused chips, while Apple is merely an indirect downstream party whose products incorporate the accused chips,” court filings argued.
Broadcom was the main target of the lawsuit but Apple was also named as it is one of Broadcom’s biggest customers.
Caltech welcomed the ruling.
“As a nonprofit institution of higher education, Caltech is committed to protecting its intellectual property in furtherance of its mission to expand human knowledge and benefit society through research integrated with education,” the institute said.
Analyst Enderle expected repercussions from the ruling to go beyond Apple to other Broadcom customers who used the chips at issue.
“Caltech will go down the list of Broadcom customers and look for out-of-court settlements with anyone who used the compromised technology,” Enderle said.
The analyst wondered whether the jury award signaled a new onslaught of patent battles in the tech industry.
“Typically, we go through waves of patent wars,” Enderle said.
“I think it’s a case where, after a period of time, people age out or forget that there are significant penalties for this stuff.”
S81-30498 (12 April 1981) --- After six years of silence, the thunder of manned spaceflight is heard again, as the successful launch of the first space shuttle ushers in a new concept in utilization of space. The April 12, 1981 launch, at Pad 39A, just seconds past 7 a.m., carries astronaut John Young and Robert Crippen into an Earth-orbital mission scheduled to last for 54 hours, ending with unpowered landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California. STS-1, the first in a series of shuttle vehicles planned for the Space Transportation System, utilizes reusable launch and return components. Photo credit: NASA or National Aeronautics and Space Administration
A Japanese billionaire who launched a public search for a girlfriend willing to join him on a trip into space abruptly cancelled the hunt on Thursday, despite attracting nearly 30,000 applicants.
Yusaku Maezawa earlier this month said he was looking for a mate willing to join him when he heads on a trip around the Moon in 2023 or later, as the first private passenger on a voyage offered by Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
His search for a soulmate was due to be turned into a TV show for a web-streaming service.
But on Thursday Maezawa dashed the hopes of thousands, citing “personal reasons.”
“Despite my genuine and honest determination toward the show, there was a part of me that still had mixed feelings about my participation,” he wrote, in English, on his Twitter account.
“To think that 27,722 women, with earnest intentions and courage, had used their precious time to apply makes me feel extremely remorseful,” he added.
Maezawa, formerly chief of the online fashion company Zozo, is known for his penchant for publicity stunts — including offering cash to people on Twitter.
Photo: For illustration purposes only (Photo: AFP/CHARLY TRIBALLEAU)
by Jing Xuan TENG
Villages and apartment complexes across China are taking the fight against a deadly viral epidemic into their own hands with improvised barricades and the online shaming of potentially-infected strangers.
The government has taken drastic measures to contain the spread of 2019-nCoV since it emerged at the end of December in a market where wild animals were sold.
More than 50 million people in and around the epicentre of Wuhan have been confined to their cities, while nationwide travel has been heavily curtailed.
Alarmed by daily reports of new cases across the country, ordinary citizens and local officials have buttressed these efforts with their own blockades, fearful that travellers from Hubei will infect their communities.
In one Beijing residential compound, a motley stack of shared bicycles have been haphazardly woven together and wired to a wooden ladder, blocking a side gate and forcing visitors to register with guards at the main entrance.
Staff at the Zhongfangli complex said the bike barrier was built at the start of the week to help them control the flow of people into the compound and stop the virus spreading to residents inside.
Photos of homemade roadblocks elsewhere in China have been shared widely on the microblogging platform Weibo.
In one image, a man wearing a surgical mask and brandishing a traditional martial arts weapon squats on a barricade in front of a village. A hand-written sign on the structure reads: “Outsiders forbidden from entering”.
Another shows two elderly men in surgical masks, purportedly in coastal Shandong province, standing behind a cardboard notice instructing visitors to turn around and not enter the community.
A truck has been used to block the road into one section of Lianyungang city near Shanghai since Tuesday, a nearby resident said.
“Don’t come back once you’ve left,” locals were instructed, the 30-year-old told AFP.
In nearby Yancheng, a car ambled around apartment blocks blaring a recorded message that warned against contact with arrivals from the epicentre of the outbreak.
“If you discover someone who has returned from Hubei, notify the residents’ committee immediately,” a loudspeaker on the car warned.
Numerous residential compounds in Beijing have also asked their inhabitants to report any visitors from Wuhan, the city where the virus first appeared — or simply anyone from out of town.
‘I promise to self-quarantine’
Hotels around China have refused entry to travellers from Hubei province, while people from Wuhan currently in other parts of the country have been the victims of targeted harassment, according to Human Rights Watch.
Several Wuhan-based students who returned to their home provinces for the Lunar New Year holiday reportedly saw their personal details leaked and shared in online chat groups.
“I am a university student in Wuhan,” one student wrote online, according to HRW. “I promise I will self-quarantine, please do not treat us as enemies.”
In addition to transport restrictions, authorities are rapidly erecting pre-fabricated hospitals in Wuhan to treat infected residents and are monitoring more than 80,000 people for signs they have the virus.
Officials also warned Thursday that suspected carriers who refused quarantine or otherwise helped spread the disease would be treated as threats to public safety.
But they have taken a dim view of local efforts to stop the spread of the epidemic.
On Thursday authorities ordered the removal of unauthorised roadblocks disrupting long-distance travel, saying the barricades threatened to disrupt the supply of agricultural goods.
Food prices this week have risen to their highest point in nearly four years, according to a widely-used index of produce costs reported by state news agency Xinhua.
In this undated handout photo released on January 29, 2020 by the Fire Department Eastern Voluntter shows a runaway giraffe seen crossing a road in Bang Khla, Chachoengsao province. - An African giraffe which bolted from a convoy destined for a Thai safari park remained on the run January 29, as vets scoured farmland near the escape zone in a near 24-hour search gripping the public. AFP
A giraffe whose daring escape from convoy en route to a Thai breeding station won hearts online was found dead in a lotus-clogged canal on Thursday after a two-day search using drones and hang gliders.
Two giraffes made a bid for freedom from the back of a poorly secured truck as it slowed in highway traffic after leaving Bangkok’s main airport on Tuesday.
The animals had been imported from an unnamed African country and destined for Safari World, a popular attraction outside Bangkok which describes itself as “an open zoo”.
Rescuers caught one of the creatures after stunning it with a tranquiliser gun, but the other escaped into scrubland — cheered on by hundreds of thousands of people on social media.
The story took a tragic turn, however, after it was found dead in a lotus swamp near a main road, according to Safari World.
Vets will determine the cause of death.
Hundreds of thousands of Thais followed Facebook live videos of journalists trailing the hunt for the runaway ungulate.
Comments lamenting its fate poured onto social media.
“Hope you reincarnate in a better world lil giraffe,” said one.
Safari World is Thailand’s biggest animal park, but the multi-million dollar company has in the past been criticised for training its creatures to perform for entertainment — including staging boxing matches with orangutans.
Zoos and animal shows are common in Thailand, where tourists pay to have their pictures taken with tigers or watch elephants play football and perform tricks.
For illustration purposes only (Photo by NICOLAS ASFOURI / AFP)
by Hector RETAMAL / with Dene CHEN in Bangkok
Pregnant, newly wed and now trapped at the Chinese epicentre of a global health crisis, Thai national Aphinya is among thousands of foreigners desperate to escape — and watching helplessly as the US and Japan fly their citizens home.
Hundreds were flown to safety this week to Tokyo, Singapore and California on government-chartered flights, but those from countries with less diplomatic clout fear they are being left behind.
“I feel hurt that they don’t care about us,” Aphinya Thasripech, 32, told AFP.
“Either I could starve or I’ll get infected and die,” said the factory worker, who is two months pregnant.
So far 170 people have been killed by the virus since it emerged from a market in Wuhan, and more than 7,700 people have been sickened.
The illness has also spread around the world, with cases being recorded as far away as the United Arab Emirates, Finland and the United States, but all of the deaths have been in China.
China has imposed transport bans in and around Wuhan — effectively trapping tens of millions of people — including thousands of foreigners — in a bid to contain the virus.
Aphinya arrived in China on two weeks ago to marry her Chinese husband in Xiantao — about 200 kilometres (120 miles) from Wuhan.
Now the city is a virtual ghost town, with restaurants and shops shuttered.
Aphinya said she is worried for the health of her unborn baby, and desperate for the Thai government to get her out.
For days, the government in Bangkok has said they are awaiting “permission” from China to evacuate 65 citizens known to be at ground zero.
But the wait is taking its toll.
“Sooner or later, it will get to us,” said Aphinya, adding she had heard that a man had collapsed in a restaurant near her.
Thai medical student Badeephak Kaosala has barricaded himself in his dorm room with a dwindling supply of food and water.
He has watched with disbelief as wealthy nations have mounted mercy flights for their stricken citizens, with no word from home on when — or if — he might get out.
“China has given permission to so many other countries… so we feel really down,” , 23, told AFP.
‘Only fools want to stay’
South Korea, France and Britain have all announced preparations to evacuate their citizens. Japan has already brought out two plane-loads.
But “fear, frustration and panic” is mounting among those still trapped, said Pakistani Ruqia Shaikh, 33, who was visiting friends when the city was locked down.
There are around 500 Pakistani students in Wuhan. Currently four have been diagnosed with the coronavirus, an official in Islamabad has said.
Those with families are eager to leave, said Ruqia, though some students prefer to remain where they are — happier to take their chances against the disease than run the gauntlet of Pakistan’s poor health facilities.
“Our country is not capable of treating the coronavirus,” she told AFP.
But Fadil, an Indonesian doctoral student in Wuhan who goes by one name, said he and his friends are desperate to leave — even if only to another Chinese city.
There are about 100 Indonesians in Wuhan, and another 143 elsewhere in Hubei province.
“The key thing is that we want to get out of here,” he said. “Only fools would want to stay in Wuhan.”
A few Myanmar nationals living in Wuhan have taken to Facebook, issuing public pleas to be brought home.
“Other countries are calling back their citizens… when are we going back?” said Khin Thiri Thant Zin, a hospital intern in Wuhan.
“I have a headache from crying so much — I cannot sleep at night.”
Changi Airport Group (CAG), as well as Workforce Singapore (WSG), have been accused of sending circulars to their staff telling them not to wear masks.
In a tip-off sent to TISG, security staff at Changi Airport were sent a text message that read: “to prevent spreading panic in Changi, no one is to wear mask unless permission is granted”.
“The only group of people who, at this point, are allowed to don the surgical mask in the course of their work, are the APOs performing temperature screening duties for our client, MOH, inclusive of APOs engaged in Door 4 ops for flights arriving from China”, the message added.
It also said that it will “manage” other airport staff seen wearing masks.
Photo: Tip-off sent to TISG
Similarly, during an event in Toa Payoh that was organised by SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) and Workforce Singapore (WSG) as a career fair for the transport sector, staff had the following message sent to them: “staff in contact with members of the public are not to don masks, so as not to send the wrong signal to the public”.
According to TISG’s informer, the message from CAG was to their front line team, and the person who received it was a security officer.
Photo: Tip-off sent to TISG
Upon checking social media, many netizens also say that front-line staff at the checkpoints have been told not to use masks.
THIS IS RIDICULOUS!IT doesn't make any sense at all. Why are you doing this to our front liners? I was just on the…
Another netizen, Carol CY Ho wrote on Changi Airport’s Facebook page: “It seems that direct employees of CAG, and retailers in CAG and their employees, are allowed to wear masks. But outsourced security personnel are not allowed to wear masks while on duty. Even those tasked to screen passengers on inbound flights from China, especially inbound flights from Hubei”.
She added, “They are THE vulnerable lot”.
Photo: FB/Changi Airport
A Xiiao Key questioned, “Good morning, as the deadly new coronavirus that’s spreading rapidly in China and beyond. Why aren’t auxiliary police officer (sic) (AETOS / Cisco) allowed to wear masks on duty? They are at the front line”.
Photo: FB/Changi Airport
In reports earlier today, at Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), some front-line staff were upset after they were apparently told not to wear face masks at work in case they alarm the guests.
TISG has reached out to CAG and WSG for comment and clarification. -/TISG
Update – In response to TISG’s queries, CAG has responded with the following: “As mentioned in our Facebook comment, CAG has not prevented airport workers from wearing a face mask while on duty. But we stand “accused of sending circulars to staff telling them not to wear masks”. We are investigating the source of the WhatsApp message posted in the article as we don’t know where it’s come from.”
Singapore— National Development Minister Lawrence Wong announced on Thursday said (Jan 30) that every household in Singapore is to receive four surgical face masks.
He said, “We are doing this to assure Singaporeans that every family will have access to masks if someone in your family really needs it.”
Mr Wong added that the masks should only be used when absolutely needed. “Do not open up the packet and start using them right away. Use it only if you’re unwell and have to go out to see the doctor,” he urged.
The announcement comes amidst daily updates on the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus. The growing tally of the number of people affected (over 7,000), as well as the death toll (170), have been cause for concern, and long lines of people waiting to buy surgical masks for added protection against the virus have been seen all over Singapore.
Starting this Saturday, February 1, people may get the masks at 654 Residents’ Committee (RC) centres and 89 Community Centres (CCs).
The government expects that all households will have collected their masks by February 9.
Channel NewsAsia (CNA) reports Chan Chun Sing, the country’s Minister for Trade and Industry as saying that in the last nine days five million masks were made available to retailers, but people have bought them at faster rates than anticipated.
While Mr Chan said, “We understand when people are fearful there is a tendency for them to panic buy or hoard,” he added that to not manage the private use of surgical masks would “jeopardise our entire healthcare system, not allowing us to take care of those who need it the most.”
Regarding the distribution of masks to Singaporean households, Mr Wong said that this would be a “one-time exercise”. The masks are from the country’s national stockpile and given directly to Singaporeans.
Mr Wong added that the first priority for the stockpile is given to front line healthcare workers. As for distribution, areas with a high concentration of residents that are vulnerable, Pioneer Generation residents and rental block residents, will be given first priority.
The masks are being packed by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), similar to 2013, when the SAF packed masks for distribution during the period of intense haze.
Mr Chan added that in cases wherein residents cannot claim the masks in person, these will be distributed to them by volunteers from the People’s Association. And if there is a need for additional masks, these will be assessed on a case-to-case basis.
From February 1 to 5, these masks will be distributed at RC centres within Housing and Development Board (HDB) estates. From February 6 onwards they’ll be distributed at Community Centres. The allowed time for claiming the masks is between 2 to 10pm on February 1 and then between 10am to 9pm on the days that follow.
In order to claim the masks, residents will need to show their NRIC. -/TISG
