TASK 1(219 words)

TikTok donates Rp 100 billion for COVID-19 medical

workers
Ivany Atina Arbi
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta   /   Fri, April 10, 2020   /   10:39 am

Chinese video sharing platform TikTok, which has gained popularity among young Indonesians,
donated Rp 100 billion (US$6.28 million) to medical workers on the frontlines of the country’s
battle against COVID-19.

"During this difficult time, we are committed to providing support globally [...] including by
donating Rp 100 million for the government of Indonesia to buy protective equipment for
medical staff working on the frontlines in the battle against the coronavirus pandemic," Donny
Eryastha, the head of public policy for TikTok Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, said on
Thursday.
He symbolically handed over the donation to national COVID-19 rapid response task force head
Doni Monardo at the National Disaster Mitigation Agency’s (BNPB) headquarters in Jakarta on
Thursday.

Since April 7, the app has also invited its users to show their appreciation for medical
professionals by using the hashtag #PahlawanGardaDepan (#FrontlineHeros) on every
uploaded post. 
"Together with the government, businesses, NGOs and Indonesian citizens, we commit to doing
the best we can. We will survive and eventually rise as a united community," Donny said.
Originally called Douyin in China, TikTok was launched in 2016 by Zhang Yimin, who is also the
founder of Beijing news and information platform Toutiao. TikTok was brought to Indonesia in
September 2017 by tech company ByteDance. The app allows its users to create short music
videos.

TASK 2 (255 words)

COVID-19: No road closures in Jakarta during large-
scale social restrictions, police say
News Desk
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta   /   Fri, April 10, 2020   /   06:01 am

Ecuadorean President Lenin Moreno on Wednesday called for an investigation into how local
authorities handled the bodies of coronavirus victims in Guayaquil, the epicenter of the country's
outbreak that has overwhelmed health and sanitary authorities.
Family members have complained via social media that public hospitals have failed to quickly
locate the bodies of their loved ones and in some cases misidentified the remains.
"We will not allow anyone to be buried without being identified. They deserve a goodbye with
dignity!" Moreno wrote via Twitter.
The tweet included a copy of a formal complaint over alleged irregularities filed by Jorge Wated,
the state official tasked with handling corpses during the crisis.
The speed of the outbreak in Guayaquil left corpses uncollected in homes and even in some
cases in the streets, forcing authorities to store bodies in refrigerated containers and later to
open a cemetery to begin burying the dead, residents said.
As of Wednesday Ecuador had about 4,450 cases of the disease, with 242 confirmed deaths
and another 240 who are suspected to have died from the virus.
Of those, 3,047 cases and 144 deaths were in the province of Guayas, where Guayaquil is
located.
Health Minister Juan Carlos Zevallos said on Tuesday he had sacked an official who requested
money in exchange for handing over the remains of a victim in a Guayaquil public hospital.
"Shameful, outrageous and intolerable. I have ordered the removal of this individual and the
start of relevant legal actions so that this case does not go unpunished," he said.
TASK 3 (290 words)
Duterte says lockdown protesters can be shot if
they fight
Andreo Calonzo
Bloomberg
Manila, Philippines   /   Thu, April 2, 2020   /   03:10 pm

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte gave authorities the green light to shoot dead protesters
who attempt to riot or disrupt food distribution during a lockdown prompted by the Covid-19
outbreak.
More than 100 residents of a poor community in Quezon City in the capital region hit the streets
on Wednesday asking for food from the government, but were dispersed by cops for allegedly
violating quarantine rules, the Philippine Star reported. Local authorities said the protesters --
some of whom were arrested -- were wrongly told by an unidentified person that cash and food
would be distributed, prompting them to leave their homes.
“My orders to the police, the military and the village officials: if there’s a commotion, if they fight
back and your life becomes at risk, shoot them dead,” Duterte said in a televised address late
Wednesday. He also warned leftist groups against causing food riots.
Cops won’t shoot people dead, and they understand that Duterte “just overemphasized”
following the law during a crisis, police chief General Archie Gamboa told ABS-CBN News
Channel on Thursday. Declaring martial law is not being discussed as an option to maintain
order during the lockdown, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said in a separate briefing.
Duterte’s comments, which are similar to his orders in a drug war that has killed thousands,
come as his government seeks to enforce a monthlong lockdown of Luzon, the Philippines’s
main island. The country has 2,311 coronavirus cases, including 96 deaths, as of Wednesday.
Through a law that gave Duterte more powers, his government has allocated 200 billion pesos
($3.9 billion) for cash grants to 18 million poor families or at least $98 a month. The budget
department has released half of the funds for assistance, it said on Thursday.
TASK 4 (339 words)
Rights group welcomes draft rules that could
end China dog meat trade
News Desk
Agence France-Presse
Beijing, China   /   Thu, April 9, 2020   /   07:42 pm

Draft rules by Chinese authorities that specify dogs as "companion animals" rather than
livestock were hailed by a rights group Thursday as an "encouraging" step towards ending the
dog meat trade in the country.
China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs published a list of animals that can be traded for
meat Wednesday that included pigs, cows, chickens and sheep, but excluded dogs and cats.
The new list also specified that livestock refers to animals that have been domesticated and
bred by people for a long time in order to provide products such as meat, eggs and fur.
China in recent weeks banned the sale of wild animals for food, citing the risk of diseases
spreading from animals to humans. 
The illegal animal trade has been blamed for the emergence of the new coronavirus outbreak
that has spread across the globe and killed more than 87,000 people.
While trade and consumption made a comeback despite similar measures taken after the 2003
SARS outbreak, there are signs that such moves are being taken more seriously this time.
The southern city of Shenzhen passed a law last week banning the consumption of wild
animals, including dog and cat meat, a step also welcomed by animal rights activists.
Humane Society International said in a statement Thursday that the latest draft document "could
signal a critically important shift in China's desire to see an end to the dog and cat meat trade".
"Coming so soon after Shenzhen's dog and cat meat ban, it is incredibly encouraging," said its
international media director Wendy Higgins.
"This is the first time the national government in China has explicitly explained why dogs... are
excluded from the official livestock list, stating that these are companion animals and not for
eating," she added.
The animal protection group estimates some 10 million dogs a year are killed for China's dog
meat trade.
According to activists, thousands are killed for a festival in the town of Yulin in southern Guangxi
province every year, and eaten to mark the late-June summer solstice.
TASK 5 (302 words)
'Dead city': Singapore closes workplaces in virus
fight
News Desk
Agence France-Presse
Singapore   /   Tue, April 7, 2020   /   12:51 pm

Singapore's usually bustling business district was almost deserted Tuesday as most workplaces
in the city-state closed to stem the spread of the coronavirus after a surge in cases.
The financial hub has won praise for using a tough regime of testing and tracing contacts of the
sick to keep its outbreak largely in check, but has seen a jump in new infections in recent days.
Authorities previously resisted the kind of draconian measures seen in worse-hit countries -- but
have now ordered the closure of all businesses deemed non-essential as well as schools, and
have asked people to stay home.
There were just a handful of people in a usually packed major square in the business district
Tuesday morning as workplaces closed.
"It feels like a dead city, everyone is scared, they're all hiding at home," Jenny Lee, who works
at an insurance brokers, told AFP.
"All the crowds have disappeared."
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong urged Singaporeans to "do our part to support our healthcare
professionals by staying at home, and complying with the enhanced measures in place".
Schools will close from Wednesday, with the tougher restrictions set to last a month.
The city-state reported 66 more COVID-19 cases Monday, bringing its total so far to 1,375,
including six deaths.
While these figures are low compared to many other countries, authorities nevertheless decided
to take action after a rise in locally transmitted cases in the city of 5.7 million.
The government at the weekend quarantined almost 20,000 foreign migrant workers for two
weeks after a growing number of infections were discovered in their dormitories.
Large numbers of foreign laborers, mostly from South Asia, work in construction in the city-state
and usually live in sprawling dormitory complexes.
Globally, the virus has claimed more than 74,000 victims out of 1.34 million confirmed cases.