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COVID-19
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Pacific nations grapple with COVID’s terrible toll and the desperate need for vaccines
Having been protected by geography early in the pandemic, Pacific nations are now battling serious outbreaks and struggling to get their people vaccinated, writes regional expert Patricia A. O'Brien.
Thailand's COVID crisis
At the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Thailand won global praise for the quality of its response. It has since watched a rising caseload overwhelm world-class public health defences. Craig Keating argues that government complacency left the country unprepared for the influx of new, highly-transmissible, virus strains.
Coronavirus compounds Myanmar's coup crisis
Having suffered the depredations of a violent military takeover and a collapse in medical care, the people of Myanmar are now confronted with one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the region. Former ambassador Nicholas Coppel argues that the past record suggests little action can be expected from a military regime that is likely to “callously welcome” the impact of the disease on dampening civil unrest.
Could COVID-19 provide an opportunity to invest for the future?
As Australia steps up to meet a sudden upsurge in COVID-19 cases in neighbouring countries, Ambassador for Regional Health Security, Stephanie Williams, argues the pandemic might be a once in a lifetime opportunity to invest in better health outcomes for the region.
To lockdown or not? Indonesia's dilemma in handling the COVID-19 second wave?
A hard lockdown is looming for Indonesia's populous islands of Java and Bali as a new wave of COVID infections tests the country's ability to cope. But as Yanuar Nugroho writes, the government has to first overcome a longstanding hesitancy to adopt drastic measures that could hurt the economy.