India has suspended the granting of regular visas to nationals of Japan and three other countries to guard against the spread of the new coronavirus. The government, in an official advisory, also said all nationals of Japan, Italy, Iran and South Korea already possessing visas will not be allowed to enter India, excepting in compelling circumstances. The suspension applies to …

Aviation agencies are planning to step up the screening of passengers from countries affected by Covid-19 and are assigning a small airport to specifically handle these flights. Wg Cdr Suthirawat Suwanawat, general manager of Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport, said he has raised the issue with Chula Sukmanop, director-general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT). According to him, aircraft from …

Shoppers in Greater Bangkok are quickly emptying supermarket shelves of long-lasting items like instant noodles, packed rice, tissue paper, tinned fish and drinking water as fears mount over the coronavirus epidemic. Large retail operators including Tops Supermarket, Tesco Lotus, The Mall Group and Big C Supercenter acknowledged that these items have been snapped up quickly since the weekend. They are …

For the first time since the reopening of the destination, President Rodrigo Duterte is scheduled to visit Boracay Island in an attempt to convince the public that domestic tourism is secure in the face of the 2019 coronavirus threat (COVID-19). Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said Duterte would travel to the island of Boracay next Thursday, March 12. As part of …

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) announced that alleged unions brought an estimated $370 million to the Philippines last year with the aid of the Philippine Armed Forces (AFP), the Philippine National Police (PNP) and airport police escorts. Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez said that after Customs Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero provided him with a report detailing the activities of the alleged …

Countries scrambled to secure their mask supply as panic buying, hoarding and robbery spread over fears of the deadly coronavirus outbreak on Wednesday, with global health officials warning that protective gear stocks were rapidly dwindling. The disease that first emerged in China occurs almost daily in new countries, with Iran, Italy and South Korea facing increasing numbers. Italy’s death toll …

The Philippine tourism industry’s stakeholders are now bleeding as a result of the 2019 global health scare coronavirus disease (COVID-19), with hotels opting to temporarily close down and air carriers incuring millions of losses. Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said in February tourist arrivals declined by 41 per cent due to the outbreak. Tourism Congress of the Philippines (TCP) president Jose …

The Immigration Bureau (BI) said it is enforcing the partial lifting of travel ban to South Korea following days of restrictions due to the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak. Filipino tourists can now fly to Korea — except for the province of North Gyeongsang, Daegu and Cheongdo — provided they conduct a declaration that they know and understand the …

The Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, said that the government plans to provide a tariff cut of 500 raw material importers. This was done in order to boost the performance of the industry which was hit by the corona virus (Covid-19). Airlangga said on Tuesday (3/3) night, this was still in the process of coordination with other technical …

Previously, The Indonesian Forum for Environment (Walhi) refused to attend a meeting invitation from the Presidential Staff Office (KSP) at the Palace. Now, the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (KontraS) is also doing the same thing. It was said by Yati Andriyani as the KontraS Workers’ Body, the rejection was a form of criticism of the government’s …