Indonesia earthquake: Over 50 dead and 700 injured
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2022
A 5.6-magnitude earthquake killed 56 people and wounded hundreds in Indonesia’s West Java province on Monday, with rescuers racing to treat the injured as aftershocks hit.
The quake’s epicentre was the town of Cianjur, about 75 km (45 miles) southeast of the capital, Jakarta.
Health workers and military medics were treating the injured at a triage outside the Cianjur Regional Public Hospital, as the Cianjur regent Herman Suherman said the area of Mangun, near Cianjur, was blocked due to a landslide and victims have not been able to evacuate.
The national disaster agency (BNPB) said 23 people were likely still trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings. More than 1,770 houses were damaged and nearly 3,900 people had been displaced in Cianjur, spokesperson Abdul Muhari said.
Indonesia straddles the so-called “Pacific Ring of Fire”, a highly seismically active zone, where different plates on the earth’s crust meet and create a large number of earthquakes and volcanoes.
Malaysian parties have until 2pm Tuesday to form govt
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2022
Malaysian political party leaders have until Tuesday to submit coalition details for the formation of a new government.
Ahmad Fadil Shamsuddin, the comptroller of the Royal Household, said the king has agreed to extend the deadline for the process and nomination of Malaysia’s 10th prime minister to 2pm on Tuesday.
“His Majesty’s order of approval is a follow-up to the requests from the leaders of political parties and coalitions of political parties that have been received by the Istana Negara on Monday.
“In connection to that, His Majesty called and advised all the people to be patient and calm until the formation process of the new government and the nomination of the 10th prime minister has been completed.
“His Majesty also reminded the people that the administration of the country is running as usual under the management of the caretaker prime minister based on the principles outlined for the caretaker government,” he said in a statement on Monday.
Malaysian King Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah outside the National Palace in Kuala Lumpur, Reuters
Ahmad Fadil added that His Majesty called on the people to join together in praying that the process of forming a new government and the nomination of the future premier would be simplified and run smoothly for the sake of the country.
“His Majesty also called on the people to join together in praying for Malaysia to be blessed and protected from any form of disaster and calamity,” he said.
On Sunday, the king had given a deadline of 2pm on Monday for political parties to form a government and present a PM candidate.
Samsung tops global brand ranking, outpacing Google, YouTube
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2022
South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics was ranked the highest in the UK-based market research firm YouGov’s annual Global Best Brand Rankings in 2022.
Of 380 brands in 38 markets including the US, the UK, China, India and South Korea, Samsung scored 127 points overall to take the top rank, followed by Google’s 106, YouTube’s 85, Netflix’s 59 and Shopee’s 51 points.
The score was based on YouGov’s estimate of the 12-month brand ranking through September 2022.
Samsung’s position on the list has been rising over the past four years. After staying in the No 4 position in 2019 and 2020, Samsung came in second after Google in 2021 and overtook it this year.
Of the 38 markets polled, 19 put Samsung on their respective top 10 lists of global brands for 2022. Samsung topped the chart in the estimates of Ireland, South Korea, the Netherlands and Vietnam, and came in second in France, Pakistan, the Philippines and the UK.
This indicates that Samsung, a manufacturer of smartphones, home appliances and semiconductor chips, has outperformed the other rivals in terms of the average impression, quality, value, satisfaction and reputation, according to YouGov’s BrandIndex estimate.
The news came a few weeks after brand consulting firm Interbrand recognised Samsung Electronics as the No 5 global brand for the third straight year, as it was evaluated for $87.7 billion with a 17% growth year-on-year. Samsung followed Apple, Microsoft, Amazon and Google.
Samsung then cited its efforts to consolidate the multidevice experience involving white goods and mobile products mainly through the integration of SmartThings app, as well as innovations based on consumer experiences and lifestyle.
Meanwhile, within Korea, Samsung was followed by pain reliever Tylenol, processed food brand Ottogi, sportswear brand Nike and local rival LG.
Hong Kong leader tests Covid positive after meeting Xi, Prayut in Bangkok
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2022
Hong Kong’s Chief Executive John Lee tested positive for Covid-19 after attending the Apec summit in Bangkok last week, where he sat next to Chinese President Xi Jinping and met with other world leaders.
Lee tested positive on arrival at Hong Kong Airport and is now isolating and working from home, Hong Kong authorities said on Monday. The summit ended on Saturday.
On Thursday, Lee met with Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha in Suvarnabhumi Airport’s executive lounge for bilateral talks on boosting investment, supply-chain connectivity and trade of agricultural goods. The two leaders were both pictured maskless posing next to each other for photographs at the summit.
However, Prayut tested negative for Covid-19 on Monday, according to local media reports.
The number of Covid cases in Hong Kong is currently on the rise, with 7,763 new cases and 13 fatalities reported on Sunday.
Hong Kong has just eased its Covid regulations to allow foreign tourists to visit theme parks, museums and exhibitions.
Surgery on wrong ear: Top surgeon loses registration
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2022
Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council (BMDC) has suspended the registration of Prof Dr Ali Zaheer Al Amin, the managing director of Impulse Hospital in Dhaka, for showing negligence during surgery.
The doctor performed surgery on the wrong ear of a patient.
According to a letter, signed by Dr Md Liaqat Hossain, acting registrar of BMDC, on November 16, Prof Dr Ali Zaheer Al Amin will not be able to work as a physician for a period of one year from today.
In 2020, Ali Zaheer performed surgery on the right ear of a patient, 38, instead of the ailing left ear, read the letter.
Despite his mistake, he misled the patient’s guardians by providing incorrect information.
Ziaur Rahman Bhuyian, husband of the patient, later filed a complaint to the BMDC in this regard.
In response, the BMDC launched an investigation and sought an explanation from the doctor.
Ali Zaheer submitted his written explanation to the BMDC on October 31.
The authorities did not find the explanation satisfactory and decided to suspend the doctor for one year.
Bodies of Thai women trekkers airlifted from Annapurna trail in Nepal
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2022
The bodies of two Thai women were airlifted by helicopter from the Himalayan foothills of Nepal on Saturday after a fatal hiking accident.
The two women died while trekking the Annapurna trail on Friday morning, according to Nepalese media outlet Mount Everest Today.
Rataya Philaisengsuri, 49, and Penny Aranlum, 37, died at the foot of Mesokanto La Pass, 4,200 metres above sea level, as they were descending from Manang to the small village of Mustang.
“According to sources, two foreign female tourists fell ill and were injured while entering Mustang through Tilicho Lake,” Mount Everest Today said.
The Thais were part of a group of 22 trekkers – 12 foreigners, eight porters, and two guides – who set out on a round-trip from Besi Sahar in Lamjung on November 11 and reached Tilicho Lake on Thursday.
Tilicho lies 4,919 metres above sea level and is the world’s highest lake.
The bodies of the women were flown to Nepal’s capital of Kathmandu for autopsies, according to local reports.
Malaysia polls: 97-year-old Mahathir suffers shock defeat
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2022
Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad lost his seat in Parliament after Langkawi on Saturday voted to put Perikatan Nasional (PN) in control of the island constituency.
It is the 97-year-old’s first defeat in Malaysia’s parliamentary elections since 1969.
The Langkawi seat was won by Suhaimi Abdullah from PN, with 25,463 votes, or 38.1% of the vote share, on Saturday.
Mahathir managed to garner only 4,566 votes, or 6.8% – less than the 12.5% vote threshold required to keep his deposit as a candidate.
Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Armishah Siraj came in second with 11,945 votes or 17.9%. Armishah is a member of the Kampung Kuah Umno branch in Langkawi and is familiar with issues on the ground.
In the 2018 election, Mahathir won 54.9 % of the votes, beating BN’s 29.1 %.
Mahathir won respect for bringing prosperity and development to the island by declaring it a tax-free haven in 1987 when he was Malaysia’s premier. The move drew a slew of tourism investments, including an international airport, ferry services and luxury hotels.
This loss deals a final blow to Mahathir’s Pejuang Party, which contested a total of 121 parliamentary seats, 13 of which were in Kedah.
Kedah, which includes Langkawi, is also Mahathir’s home state.
Voters were unconvinced by Mahathir’s promise of repairing the country’s economy and bringing back foreign investments and jobs by eradicating corruption within the government and cleaning up some RM42 billion (331 billion baht/US$9 billion) in national debt racked up by former prime minister Najib Razak.
Some voters had also grown disenchanted with Mahathir’s leadership after he resigned as prime minister in 2020 and failed to hand over the reins of government to Anwar Ibrahim as promised.
Anwar on Sunday claimed his Pakatan Harapan coalition had won enough votes to form the next government.
Malaysia polls: Anwar and Muhyiddin locked in battle to form next govt
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2022
Malaysia’s two biggest political rivals both claimed they had enough support to form a government on Sunday morning, the day after an election that failed to deliver a simple majority.
Anwar Ibrahim said his Pakatan Harapan political coalition had won a simple majority to form a government despite only winning 75 of the 222 seats in Parliament (that figure had risen to 82 at press time). More than 112 seats are needed for a simple majority.
Anwar stopped short of revealing which party or parties Pakatan would be allying with.
Anwar’s rival, former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, countered that his Perikatan Nasional coalition had secured enough support to form a government after winning 73 seats.
Anwar rejected that claim, saying, “We, Pakatan, have formed the biggest bloc in the parliament with Muda and also we have to recognise the fact that no party has obtained a simple majority.
“We, therefore, have conducted a series of meetings and negotiations and as a result, I wish to inform you that as the majority bloc, we have managed to get the support of MPs to form the government with a simple majority.”
“Subject to, of course, the normal process, which is to submit to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong [king].
“We have all the documents ready,” said Anwar in a press conference at a hotel in Subang early on Sunday.
Malaysian former Prime Minister and Perikatan Nasional chairman Muhyiddin Yassin
Anwar added that it was not proper to reveal if the party Pakatan could potentially form an alliance with is a national party. “I’m not absolutely certain if we have the numbers.”
Anwar also refused to comment on the possibility that Barisan had approached Perikatan to form the next government. The Barisan coalition won 30 seats.
“I’m not entertaining rumours, I’m discussing facts. Rumours, you can ask Muhyiddin,” added Anwar.
Anwar reiterated that Pakatan has a strong stance against corruption and a commitment to good governance.
“We went to the elections with a principle to ensure this country does not condone corruption, to strengthen good governance and focus on economic issues,” added Anwar.
Results from the Election Commission on Sunday showed Pakatan Harapan won 82 seats, followed by Perikatan on 73, Barisan (30), GPS (22), GRS (six), Warisan (three), and PBM (one). One seat was unannounced as of 5am. Elections were not held for two seats.
Kishida balances improving ties with China with domestic backlash
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2022
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the first official in-person meeting between leaders of the two nations in almost three years, was a first step toward repairing strained relations, but ironing out several major pending issues looks unlikely to happen anytime soon.
During their talks Thursday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders meeting in Bangkok, Kishida and Xi agreed on the necessity of stably developing bilateral ties.
However, the road to improving relations, especially when concessions do not appear forthcoming on matters such as Taiwan and the Senkaku Islands in Okinawa Prefecture, could be long and bumpy.
Kishida put a positive spin on the talks, telling reporters afterwards that the meeting was a “good start” for advancing dialogue to build a “constructive and stable” relationship between Japan and China.
In addition to directly telling Xi about Japan’s serious concerns over Chinese pressure on the Senkaku Islands and other issues, Kishida also emphasized the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.
Kishida appeared proud that he had followed through on his publicly declared plan to “say what needs to be said.”
The two leaders saw eye-to-eye in opposing Russian use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Other fruits of the meeting included confirming efforts to maintain close and open communications, such as making arrangements for Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi to visit China.
There had been no face-to-face summit talks since then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met with Xi in December 2019, and bilateral ties had chilled in the meanwhile. “We’re finally at the start line for improving relations and avoiding confrontation,” a senior official of the Prime Minister’s Office said.
The wheels for making the Kishida-Xi talks a reality began turning on Aug. 17, when Takeo Akiba, secretary general of the National Security Secretariat, met with Yang Jiechi, China’s top diplomat and a then member of the Chinese Communist Party’s Politburo, in Tianjin, China.
According to Foreign Ministry sources, Akiba informed Yang during a meeting that lasted for almost seven hours that Kishida was prepared to engage in talks, even though there was “a risk of criticism from conservative circles.” Yang reportedly welcomed the idea.
In early August, Beijing showed its displeasure to the visit by U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan by conducting military drills around the island. The Chinese fired five ballistic missiles that fell within Japan’s exclusive economic zone, and scheduled talks between the Japanese and Chinese foreign ministers were shelved.
While it appeared that channels for dialogue had been severed, Akiba and Yang reaffirmed in their meeting that bilateral talks would continue. In the following months, the groundwork for the Kishida-Xi talks was carefully cultivated, with Xi even sending Kishida his message of sympathy when the Japanese leader contracted the novel coronavirus in August.
Conducting summit talks in conjunction with an international meeting in a third nation in Southeast Asia lessened the burden on both sides. China informed Japan about a week before the APEC meeting in Thailand that the bilateral talks would go ahead.
U.S. presence
Although the summit talks took place, a full-scale “thaw” in relations — such as resolving pending bilateral issues — remains a long way off.
During U.S.-China summit talks held on the Indonesian island of Bali on Monday, U.S. President Joe Biden and Xi traded blunt comments over Taiwan. At a time when the United States, Japan’s close ally, remains locked in a staredown with China, it becomes difficult for Kishida to exhibit a reconciliatory stance toward Beijing.
Further complicating the situation, the Liberal Democratic Party faction Kishida heads has traditionally been seen as friendly toward China.
This leaves any attempts to build warmer ties with Beijing vulnerable to pushback from domestic conservative forces.
During the East Asia Summit held in Cambodia on Sunday, Kishida mentioned China by name in criticizing activities “continuing and intensifying in the East China Sea that infringes on Japan’s sovereignty.” This was all said with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in attendance.
It seems Kishida is going to pains to strike a balance between reaching out to Beijing and staying keenly aware of domestic public opinion on China’s actions.
Malaysian King Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah outside the National Palace in Kuala Lumpur, Reuters
Malaysian former Prime Minister and Perikatan Nasional chairman Muhyiddin Yassin
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