Indonesia has reported almost twice as many coronavirus cases as the US in the past few days. Malaysia’s per capita number of cases is roughly on par with Brazil and Iran. And the recent increases in Covid in Japan and South Korea have led to strict new restrictions on movement there from Monday.
Across the Asia-Pacific region, the Delta variant is causing new outbreaks in locations where transmission was previously kept relatively low but the rate of vaccination was too slow to contain recent outbreaks. One result is that everyday activities will be restricted again, just like in the fearful early days of the pandemic – even as the West returns to normal.
Indonesia, the fourth most populous country in the world, is a case in point. His government once hoped that its archipelagic geography and young population would save it from a debilitating eruption. But only about 13 percent of its 270 million people have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, and Delta’s rise is marginalizing its healthcare system, forcing some patients to hunt for oxygen.
On July 3, the government closed mosques, schools, shopping centers and sports facilities on two of Indonesia’s largest islands for two weeks. But the daily average of new cases – more than 33,000 on Sunday – has continued to rise. Officials said Friday they would extend the same emergency rules to other islands.
Intensive care units in and around the capital Jakarta are at full capacity, doctors who have received the vaccine from the Chinese company Sinovac have fallen ill or died. The government has announced that it will give a third dose of the Moderna vaccine to around 1.5 million health workers starting this week.
In other Southeast Asian countries, too, the percentages of the population who even got a shot are in the single- or low-double-digit range. And as variant infections multiply, some are experiencing their worst outbreaks yet.
In Myanmar, where health workers went on strike to protest the military coup in February, cases are skyrocketing and schools were closed until July 23. People in several Malaysian cities are rubbing themselves under strict lockdowns as the country reports the highest per capita fall in the region. Vietnam is restricting freedom of movement in its two major cities and is trying to import vaccines. And at Thailand’s largest international airport, a terminal is being converted into a field hospital.
Richer countries in the region have more resources to fight the virus. But they too are vulnerable because they have made little progress in their vaccination campaigns. In Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea, less than one in three people has had an injection, according to a New York Times tracker.
New South Wales, Australia’s most populous state, reported the largest daily increase in cases this year on Sunday, as well as Australia’s first coronavirus-related death this year, a woman in her 90s. Sydney, the state capital, has already been on lockdown and authorities have warned it could be extended beyond July 17 when it expires.
South Korea reported 1,378 new cases on Saturday, the third day record in a row. The government plans to increase the restrictions in the capital Seoul and some neighboring regions to the highest level from Monday. Schools are closing, bars and nightclubs are closing, and no more than two people are allowed to meet in public after 6 p.m.
And in Japan, the fourth state of emergency will come into effect in Tokyo on Monday, less than two weeks before the start of the Summer Olympics. Restaurants, department stores and other businesses are being asked to close early, and the organizers of the Summer Games have announced that they will be banning viewers from most events in and around Tokyo. A ceremony marking the arrival of the Olympic torch in town was held in an almost empty park late last week.
On Saturday, Fukushima Prefecture said it would also exclude spectators from Olympic events due to the rising number of cases, reversing a position announced two days earlier by Olympic organizers.
