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Every weekend, Asia Pacific Daily will provide you with a run-down of the latest hot news.
This week, the following hot news you should know:
Top 1 | G7 summit to be held via videoconference due to COVID-19 outbreak
The White House said on Thursday that the Group of Seven (G7) Summit, originally scheduled to take place at Camp David in June, will be canceled due to the coronavirus, and leaders will have a videoconference instead, local media reported.
National Economic Council Director and U.S. Sherpa for the 2020 G7 Larry Kudlow have informed his counterparts that the G7 Summit the United States was set to host in June at Camp David will now be held by video-teleconference, The Hill reported, citing White House spokesman Judd Deere.
The move was to enable each country to focus all of its resources on responding to the health and economic challenges of COVID-19, Deere said. G7 leaders held a videoconference earlier this week and pledged to "use all policy tools" to forcefully address the economic impact of the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Top 2 | Doctor says Trump tests negative for coronavirus
President Donald Trump has tested negative for the new coronavirus, according to the president’s personal physician.
The White House released the test results Saturday night after Trump told reporters hours earlier that he had taken the coronavirus test, following days of resisting being screened despite the fact that he had been in recent contact with three people who have tested positive for the virus, including members of the Brazilian president’s delegation who visited with him at his Florida resort.
Trump told reporters at a White House briefing on Saturday that he had his temperature taken and it was “totally normal,” shortly before stepping into the room to discuss the government’s efforts to halt the spread of the virus. The pandemic has now infected more than 2,200 people in the U.S. and caused at least 50 deaths.
Top 3 | Putin Signs Constitutional Amendments Into Law
The constitutional reform legislation put forward by Putin includes the expansion of the Parliament's powers, a ban on senior officials from having a residence permit in other countries, a limit on the number of presidential terms, the main law's precedence over international agreements, and strengthening the social obligations of the state.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has officially singed a law on introducing amendments to the Russian Constitution, a document published on the official legal information web portal showed on Saturday.
The law "On improving the regulation of certain issues of the organization and functioning of public authority" was dated 11 March. According to the Kremlin, the law will go in effect if it is approved by the Russian Constitutional Court and receives the support of more than half of those who participate in an all-Russian public vote slated for 22 April.
Top 4 | Britain's "herd immunity" plan against COVID-19 arouses debates
As Britain has switched from the "containment" to "delay" phase in response to the spread of COVID-19, the Downing Street hopes to create "herd immunity" to the disease instead of taking proactive and drastic countermeasures.
"Herd immunity," also called "community immunity" or "herd protection," technically means a form of indirect protection from infectious disease that occurs when a large part of a population is vaccinated and becomes immune to infections, thereby protecting vulnerable people such as newborns, seniors and those who are too sick to be vaccinated.
Despite the encouragement of more social distancing, travel advice against COVID-19 hotspots and a forthcoming ban on mass gatherings, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Thursday that he would not close schools when tackling what he described as "the worst public health crisis in a generation."
Top 5 | Trump wants cash payments of 1,000 USD per person in COVID-19 stimulus plan: media
The Trump administration's plan to send Americans relief money as part of a massive stimulus package in response to COVID-19 could be 1,000 U.S. dollars per person, and 500 dollars per child, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Thursday.
In a Fox Business Network interview, Mnuchin said the administration will get the first batch of money out in three weeks once approved by the Congress, adding that it will deliver more cash payments if the national emergency over coronavirus lasts longer.
The U.S. treasury secretary, who is still in discussions with lawmakers on the details of the stimulus package, said the plan would send total payments of 500 billion dollars directly to working Americans. At a White House news briefing Tuesday, Mnuchin said he was working with lawmakers on a "significant" economic stimulus plan, which includes supporting measures for small businesses, airlines and hotels, as well as potential cash payments for working Americans.
Top 6 | Greece's first female president is sworn in
Greece’s first female president, a former high court judge, was formally sworn in to office Friday, nearly two months after the country’s parliament voted overwhelmingly to elect her.
The swearing-in ceremony for Katerina Sakellaropoulou, 63, took place in an almost empty parliament, as part of measures to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. Only a handful of officials and a limited number of journalists were present.
After the swearing-in, Sakellaropoulou lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the square outside parliament, before a presidential honor guard. Despite the warnings about the virus, a small crowd gathered to watch, standing behind a security cordon across the street.
Top 7 | Brazil's Bolsonaro Tests Negative for Coronavirus
Brazilian Communications Secretary Fabio Wajngarten tested positive for the coronavirus on 12 March after he accompanied President Jair Bolsonaro on a visit to US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence.
The results of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's coronavirus test have come back negative. Bolsonaro has posted the statement on Twitter and Facebook.
Earlier this week, it was reported that Bolsonaro’s press secretary, Fabio Wajngarten, had tested positive for the virus. Given that Wajngarten posted a picture of himself standing next to Trump on 8 March, concerns have emerged online about the US leader's COVID-19 status.
Top 8 | Singapore may have to hold elections during the coronavirus outbreak, says minister
It’s “very likely” that Singapore will have to hold its next general elections in the middle of the new coronavirus outbreak, the country’s national development minister said on Wednesday.
The Southeast Asian country must hold general elections by April 2021 but there have been signs that polls could be called much sooner than that. Last week, the country announced changes to its electoral boundaries — which typically marks one step toward an election in Singapore.
The past three elections under current Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong — in 2006, 2011 and 2015 — were held roughly two to three months after changes in electoral boundaries were released. A Wednesday report by local newspaper The Straits Times, quoting activists from the ruling People’s Action Party, said the elections could be held as soon as early May.
Top 9 | Iraqi president urges new PM-designate to hold early elections
Iraqi President Barham Salih on Tuesday called on the new prime minister-designate Adnan al-Zurfi to hold early elections and carry out comprehensive reforms to meet the aspirations of the Iraqi people.
A statement by the Iraqi Presidency said that Salih asked al-Zurfi to form a new cabinet when he received the latter in his office in the Presidential Palace in central Baghdad.
Salih urged the prime minister-designate to "hold early and fair elections, fulfill the aspirations of Iraqis and to meet the legitimate demands of peaceful demonstrators by carrying out the required reforms." Salih also urged al-Zurfi to "preserve the sovereignty, stability and security of Iraq," according to the statement.
Top 10 | India hangs 4 men convicted for fatal New Delhi gang rape
Four men sentenced to death for the gruesome gang rape and murder of a woman on a New Delhi bus in 2012 were hanged Friday, concluding a case that exposed the scope of sexual violence in India and prompted horrified Indians to demand swift justice.
The four stood trial relatively quickly in India’s slow-moving justice system, their convictions and sentences handed down less than a year after the crime. India’s top court upheld the verdicts in 2017, finding the men’s crimes had created a “tsunami of shock” among Indians.
The victim, a 23-year-old physiotherapy student, was heading home with a male friend from a movie theater when six men tricked into getting on a private bus. With no one else in sight, they beat her friend and repeatedly raped the woman. They penetrated her with a metal rod, causing fatal internal injuries. They dumped both victims on the roadside, and the woman died two weeks later. Asha Devi, the mother of the victim, thanked the judiciary and government after the convicts were hanged.
Related news:
Trump’s economic rescue package could approach $1 trillion
Britain's "herd immunity" plan against COVID-19 arouses debates
(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)
