Author: Ohart

On this episode of Red Carpet, more and more entertainment and sporting events around the world continue to be impacted by the spread of the Coronavirus. We also take a look at how Botswana’s first female boxer is preparing for this summer’s Olympics, and a special surprise from Childish Gambino. These stories and more on this week’s show. 

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MANCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE/LAS VEGAS, NEVADA — Two thousand “Vote for Tulsi” door hangers will arrive soon at Eileen Tepper’s Bronx, New York apartment.  But she’s not sure what to do with them. Her candidate, Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, dropped out of the Democratic presidential race on March 19. 

Tepper made eleven road trips, driving 400 miles north from New York to New Hampshire during the campaign, in support of Gabbard.  She stood for hours at a booth inside a New Hampshire sports arena, her hands resting on a stack of navy hoodies reading “Tulsi 2020.”
 
“I’ve never really done anything like this before in my life,” the energetic curly-haired blonde, told VOA in the midst of Gabbard’s campaign.

Her candidate’s polling in the low single digits did not faze Tepper. During the campaign, Gabbard won just two delegates, both from American Samoa, of the nearly 4,000 available nationwide.   

‘I dreamed a Tulsi dream’

Tepper is a Broadway performer, who took a hiatus during America’s 2020 campaign season. Her YouTube contribution to the campaign #WhyTulsi was a Gabbard tribute song to the tune of “I Dreamed a Dream” from the musical Les Miserables.

Effects of coronavirus

Once COVID-19 curtailed travel, Tepper moved to campaigning through social media. But with Gabbard’s run ending, she says she mourns the loss of her online campaign community, “especially at a time where online community is all so many of us have.”

COVID-19 has disrupted America’s presidential primary process, and some former contenders are reaching out to their supporters – not just to channel their political activism but also to urge them to heed health warnings and help block the spread of the virus.

“In any other kind of national disaster, we would rush to gather together,” former South Bend, Indiana, mayor Pete Buttigieg wrote in an email to backers of his now-defunct presidential campaign. “But this time, we must do something truly new: find a way to come together even while being kept physically apart.”

‘I’d carry debt for Andrew Yang’

Elsewhere, four young voters from different parts of the United States stood outside a polling site, holding signs and handing out hats for presidential candidate Andrew Yang. “I wouldn’t carry debt for myself, but I’d carry debt for Andrew Yang,” says Macaulay Kong.  The 27-year old – whose dad is Malaysian and mom Taiwanese – quit his job in Los Angeles and started traveling to Iowa, Oregon, and Nevada with “the Yang Gang” – supporters of Yang. 

Just one problem. Yang dropped out of the race Feb. 11 and became a CNN political commentator.  He has endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden, who now has a commanding lead in the delegate race over Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
 
Yet some of Yang’s most fervent supporters continued to campaign for him and his idea of a $1,000 a month universal basic income handout.  Kong had never voted before and chose Yang even after he suspended his candidacy.  “I’m a registered Republican all my life…and I switched to Democrat to vote for Andrew Yang,” Kong says.
 
Protest vote

“When a candidate has already dropped out, [residual support is] essentially a protest vote,” says political science professor Justin Buchler of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, adding that voters who cling to candidates no longer in the running usually are unhappy with the remaining candidates still in the race. 
 
Even so, Buchler predicts passionate voters who spent weeks or months serving as grassroots organizers for their favored candidate will continue to work as activists for the Democratic party and will vote for the eventual nominee in November.
 

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With the duration of the viral outbreak unknown, major corporations are piling up cash to ride it out. AT&T cancelled a $4 billion accelerated stock buyback program scheduled for the second quarter. COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronaviris, is starting to make inroads within companies. The chairman and CEO of Marlboro-maker Altria Group has contracted COVID-19. The company said in a regulatory filing that Howard Willard will be on medical leave.  

Less than three months ago came the first reports of cases of pneumonia related to a virus first detected in Wuhan, China. The outbreak of the virus that causes COVID-19 has caused unprecedented disruptions that have brought an unparalleled shock to the global economy.

 
Following are developments related to the outbreak, efforts by governments to stabilize their economies, companies that must navigate through an altered landscape, and the millions of people affected.  

Grounded: The lowest number of passengers ever recorded at U.S. airports is being reported by the Transportation Security Administration. Nearly 624,000 people passed through its outbound checkpoints on Thursday, the TSA said. That compares with 2.4 million on the same day a year earlier. It’s the lowest number of outbound passengers ever recorded by an agency created in November 2001 in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

The CEO and labor leaders at American Airlines wrote to Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and congressional leaders Friday imploring them to quickly approve aid for airlines or else workers will lose their jobs. The company says it will accept “appropriate conditions” on government aid.
Frankfurt airport operator Fraport AG has put 18,000 of its 22,000 employees on shortened schedules, saying that “traffic has come almost to a halt.” Wages will be partly covered by the German government’s short-work policy. The company said it would add payments to ensure at least 75% of pay. Fraport also took its northwest landing runway out of service. It will instead be used to park unused airplanes.  

An air traffic control supervisor in Indianapolis tested positive, the Federal Aviation Administration reported. Some work areas were closed Thursday night, but the center remained open Friday while crews cleaned work areas. It’s the third FAA facility affected by COVID-19. Earlier this week, airport towers in Chicago and Las Vegas closed temporarily, leading to hundreds of canceled and delayed flights.  

The Hong Kong low-cost airline HK Express, part of the Cathay Pacific Group, is suspending all flights through the end of April with millions of potential travelers shutting in. HK Express normally flies 25 routes throughout Asia. Cathay’s flagship carrier, Cathay Pacific Airways, has cut 90% of its flights and asked staff to take unpaid leave.  

American Airlines is initiating cargo-only flights between the US and Europe. FedEx and UPS were expecting to absorb a greater share of cargo typically carried by commercial airlines, which have severely cut capacity.

Air Canada is laying off more than 5,000 flight attendants, about 60% of that staff, according to a union official, as the country’s largest airline grounds its planes. Wesley Lesosky, who heads the Air Canada component of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, said the layoffs include 3,600 Air Canada employees, as well as 1,549 at Rogue, Air Canada’s discount carrier. The layoffs will take effect by April. Air Canada says the layoffs are temporary. The Montreal company said earlier this week that it will suspend the majority of its international and U.S. flights by the end of the month.

The Stores: With outbreak-related layoffs expected to surge, at least two major retailers are hiring in a big way. Walmart, the nation’s largest retailer, said late Thursday that it plans to hire 150,000 U.S. hourly workers for its stores and distribution centers through the end of May as online orders surge with households stocking up. The jobs are temporary, but many will become permanent, said spokesman Dan Bartlett. He said that the company is reaching out to industry groups in the restaurant and hospitality industry, both of which are getting slammed by lockdowns and travel bans. Amazon this week said it would hire 100,000 people across the U.S. to keep up with a crush of orders hires.  

Close to Home : The chairman and CEO of Marlboro-maker Altria Group has contracted COVID-19. The company said in a regulatory filing that Howard Willard is on medical leave. Chief Financial Officer William Gifford, Jr. will lead the company in Willard’s absence. The company is also suspending operations at its plant in Richmond, Virginia, for two weeks after two employees contracted the COVID-19 virus. Some domestic operations at its John Middleton Co. subsidiary will also be suspended due to supply chain issues. The tobacco giant said employees will continue to receive regular pay during the two-week shutdown.

Firewall: Companies across almost every sector are raising cash to ride out the outbreak.  
Kohl’s has fully drawn its $1 billion unsecured credit facility. The department store chain, based in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, is slashing inventory and expenses. Kohl’s Corp. has closed its 1,100 stores for at least the rest of the month. It and many other major chains are temporarily closing stores to curb the spread of the coronavirus.  

AT&T cancelled a $4 billion accelerated stock buyback program scheduled for the second quarter. The company said in a regulatory filing that it’s also canceling any other stock repurchases so it can have financial flexibility and continue to invest in its business. AT&T said it’s currently unable to estimate the impact the virus will have on its financial and operational results.

Future Unknown: Coca-Cola Co. no longer expects to reach previously set financial goals for the year. Coke said in a regulatory filing that restaurant closures, suspended NHL, NBA and MLB seasons, reduced travel, social distancing, and more people working from home is straining operations. The Atlanta company said that it cannot reasonably estimate the negative impact the virus will have.  

Kohl’s withdrew its full-year and first-quarter forecasts. Several other chains like Nordstrom and Abercrombie & Fitch have also withdrawn their guidance given so much uncertainty.

Factories go Dark: Thousands of businesses have ordered employees to work remotely. It’s obviously not an option for a number of sectors and the impact on heavy industry has been immense. All major U.S. automakers, including Tesla, have shut down their factories.  

Volvo Cars said Friday that its Swedish and U.S. plants will close on Thursday and will remain closed until mid-April. Office employees are being ordered to work remotely with reduced hours. The company said it reopened four manufacturing plants in China earlier this month after an extended closure.  

Streaming Logjam: YouTube is reducing its streaming quality in Europe as more users self-isolate at home.  

The company, owned by Google, said Friday it would “temporarily default all traffic in the U.K. and the EU to Standard Definition,” instead of high definition. The measure will be in place for 30 days and users will still be able to manually adjust their video quality.

YouTube follows Netflix, which said Thursday that it expects the video bit rate reduction to cut its European traffic by a quarter.

The companies are responding to a call by the European Union’s internal market commission, which urged streaming services and network operators to help prevent network congestion as more people use their home internet connection to work or learn remotely or for entertainment.

iHoarding: Apple is allowing people to buy only two iPhones online. It may be attempting to prevent the large purchase and resale of its technology at higher prices. Apple is facing a potential demand decline and supply chain issues due to the virus pandemic spreading across the globe. It closed all retail stores outside of China to help fight the spread. Apple did not return a request for comment Friday. Apple announced  a new iPad Pro and MacBook Air on Wednesday. It made no mention of new iPhones during the announcement.

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U.S. markets closed higher Thursday after days of record losses driven by fear and uncertainty over the coronavirus pandemic. 

It looked like another rough day at first, with the Dow Jones industrial average down 3% at one point. The index recovered to finish the day 188 points, or 1%, higher — and back over the 20,000 mark. 

The Nasdaq Composite Index was 2% higher, driven by gains in the technology market, while the S&P 500 was up less than 1%. 

Thursday’s rise in the Dow was propelled by a 24% gain in oil futures after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would get involved in the price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia “at the appropriate time.” 

Trump said he was looking for a “middle ground.” 

The feud between the Saudis and Russia was sparked by disagreements over supplies. The Saudis want to cut supplies to drive up prices because the coronavirus means less worldwide travel and less demand. Prices are at a near 20-year low. 

Russia would like to see world prices remain low to punish the U.S. 

The U.S. has overtaken both countries as the world’s largest oil producer. 

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Doctors are warning that any outbreak of the coronavirus in refugee communities would have a devastating impact. The United Nations estimates there are more than 30 million refugees worldwide, many living in conditions that are ideal for transmission of the coronavirus. 
 
As even rich nations struggle to cope with the pandemic, health experts say it’s vital the international community is prepared for any outbreak among the world’s most vulnerable groups.  
 
People across the world are being told to stay home, to practice “social distancing” and keep away from other people, and to make hygiene a priority. Such actions are next to impossible in a refugee camp, says professor Richard Sullivan, co-director of the Conflict and Health Research Group at Kings College London. 
 
“Many of these refugees are often packed very tightly into camps. And that makes a big difference to transmission,” Sullivan told VOA. “The access, of course, to water, sanitation and hygiene makes a big difference. And also, just their general nutritional state. They’re in a huge state of stress, anyway, which suppresses their immune systems, but nutrition makes a big difference to how strong our immune systems are.”  

Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh is home to 900,000 mainly Rohingya refugees spread across 34 camps, most of whom have fled violence in Myanmar. When VOA visited the camp earlier this month, knowledge of the COVID-19 virus appeared varied. 

“I forgot the name of the virus,” one male refugee said. “I heard that disease has occurred in different countries, people are dying. So, we should clean our hands.” 
 
Forty-year-old Azim Ullah said aid agencies have been giving advice on preventing transmission. “They tell us to use soap after using toilet, washing hand and feet. Do not eat any fruits without washing, and also do not consume any food from outside that was not covered.” 
 
This good advice, though, is mixed with rumor and conspiracy theories. One refugee said the virus had been created to destroy Muslim nations. Another spoke of misconceptions about coronavirus symptoms. “I heard that if you are attacked by the new disease, the hands and feet are disabled. Saliva falls from the mouth. The injured person barks like a dog.” 

Doctors say the main symptoms are a dry cough and fever. 
 
The deputy commissioner of Cox’s Bazar, Dr. Kamal Hossain, says camp authorities are doing all they can to keep the virus out. “We have instructed the foreign aid workers to scan their health condition themselves, and to not bring any new workers from abroad. And awareness programs are continuing for the Rohingya,” Hossain said. 
 
Any outbreak would spread quickly, with devastating consequences, says Sullivan. “If COVID gets into a camp, for example, you’re going to see quite a spike in the death rate, because there’s simply going to be no way of keeping them alive until they recover. But of course, many refugees and particularly internally displaced populations live in makeshift camps very far away from any sort of external official help. And those are the ones that are really very, very vulnerable.” 

That includes the hundreds of thousands escaping conflict in Syria’s Idlib province and those stuck in makeshift camps on the Turkish-Greek border, hoping to reach Europe. Meanwhile, about 42,000 asylum seekers live in overcrowded camps on the Greek islands. Aid group Doctors Without Borders has warned that Europe must evacuate them urgently, describing the conditions as “the perfect storm for a COVID-19 outbreak.” 
 
“In some parts of Moria camp [on Lesbos Island], there is just one water tap for every 1,300 people and no soap available. Families of five or six have to sleep in spaces of no more than 3 meters squared,” said Dr. Hilde Vochten of Doctors Without Borders. 

Kakuma in Kenya is home to almost 200,000 refugees — among them is Burundian national and former nurse Renovat Manirageza. “Nothing has been yet done in terms of awareness,” Manirageza told VOA in a recent phone call.  

“The health officials I spoke to told me they are waiting for guidance and directions from the Kenyan health ministry. Those who have access to the internet, they use their smartphones to read news on the internet about the coronavirus, others listen to local and international radio to get more information about the spreading of the virus in other countries,” Manirageza said. 
 
Many camps are in countries with stretched or under-resourced health systems, such as Kenya, Bangladesh, Iraq and Lebanon. 
 
“They’re already operating at a very high capacity, and so the question is: Will they be able to redeploy to accommodate people who live in camps?” asked Kalipso Chalkidou, professor in global health at Imperial College London. 
 
Even wealthy nations are struggling to cope with the coronavirus. Any outbreak among refugee communities could have catastrophic consequences. 

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In an effort to overcome its image as the home of two 21st-century pandemics, China has launched a humanitarian aid blitz by donating face masks, gloves and other medical supplies to countries hit hard by the coronavirus. 

With the aid, China is looking to recast itself as “a responsible power,” according to experts, some of whom doubt Beijing’s so-called “mask diplomacy” will restore an image clouded by suspicions of a government cover-up. A British study suggested that if China had acted sooner, the number of coronavirus cases could have been reduced by 95% and its geographic spread limited.

But China, having slowed the internal spread of COVID-19 to a standstill by locking down cities and imposing other controls to limit movement and contact, is now moving swiftly beyond its borders just weeks after it was accepting donations of masks and other medical supplies from donors worldwide. From Asia to Europe, South America to Africa, China is providing or has pledged humanitarian assistance in the form of donations or medical expertise.

On Wednesday, the French foreign minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, said China was sending 1 million surgical masks and gloves to help fight the coronavirus. The first shipment arrived Wednesday, the Reuters news agency reported, adding that France gave China 17 tons of equipment to combat the virus. Among other disruptions, the outbreak represents the biggest threat to France’s very visible and very profitable luxury goods sector since the 2008 recession.
 
On Tuesday, Chinese leader Xi Jinping pledged to the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, that “China is willing to respond to the urgent needs of Spain and spare no effort to provide support and help, and share experience in prevention, control and treatment.” Begona Gomez, wife of the prime minister, has tested positive for the virus. 
 
On March 11, Beijing sent a team of medical experts to help Italy battle one of the world’s most severe outbreaks of the coronavirus outside China. Italy on Thursday surpassed China in total coronavirus-related deaths, at 3,405. Last year, China signed a $2.8 billion deal with Italy, the first developed nation to participate in Beijing’s Belt and Road effort.

‘Resolutely’ committed

That China wants to burnish its image is clearly stated in an article published on March 19 in the official People’s Daily, “China’s Battling of the Coronavirus Demonstrates China’s Role as a Responsible Power.”  
 
The article begins with Xi saying, “We resolutely safeguard the life, safety and physical health of the Chinese people. We also resolutely safeguard the life, safety and physical health of people in all countries in the world, and strive to contribute to global public health security.”
 
It continues, “In the face of the sudden outbreak of coronavirus, General Secretary Xi Jinping clearly requested from the beginning that the safety and health of the people be the first priority, and explicitly requested that international cooperation in epidemic prevention and control be expanded to reflect the responsibility of a responsible power.” 
 
The People’s Daily report doesn’t mention that the disease originated in China. It does, however, report, “At present, the epidemic is spreading globally and the situation is worrying.”

The article also doesn’t mention that a suspected initial cover-up of the Chinese government delayed an effective global response by two months, as White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien suggested last week.
 
The People’s Daily article echoes another widely circulated article in Chinese media, “There Is a Warmth in the Global Pandemic Called ‘China Aid.’ ”
 
Published a few days ago, it focuses on the humanitarian aid China is providing to Pakistan, South Korea, Japan, Iran and Italy. It emphasizes how quickly China mobilized the aid and how grateful the countries were.  
 
“In the global epidemic, there is a kind of relief called ‘China Measures,’ a style called ‘China Responsibility,’ an attitude called ‘Chinese spirit’ and a kind of warmth called ‘Chinese aid,’ ” it read in part.

‘Responsible power’
 
The article continues, “China’s speed, Chinese power, Chinese spirit and Chinese aid, reflects the great superiority of the socialist system with Chinese characteristics, which highlights China’s international responsibility as a responsible power. As an important force to dispel the haze [the coronavirus outbreak], China is continuing to make its own greater contribution to maintaining global public health security and people’s health and well-being.”
 
Some scholars believe that mask diplomacy alone may not counter China’s image problem. As of Thursday evening, the virus had reached 166 countries, with nearly 208,000 confirmed cases and more than  8,600 deaths, according to the World Health Organization.   
 
Stephen Roach, faculty member at Yale University and former chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia, told VOA Mandarin that “the mask issue is significant [on] one level, but not a decisive factor in rebuilding the perception globally about China’s role in maintaining the quality of public health.”
 

He said that if China really wanted to restore its international image, Beijing should start by reforming its public health regulations and policies. The COVID-19 outbreak is the second pandemic that originated in China over the past 17 years.

“The most important thing I think China can do is to announce major reforms in public health regulations and policies, rather than respond as a producer of masks and other medical equipment,” said Roach. COVID-19 issued “a wake-up call” to Chinese authorities not to let “this type of situation happen again,” he said.
 
In 2003, SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) spread to 26 countries and resulted in more than 8,000 cases and 800 deaths. 
 
Like SARS, COVID-19 is believed to be a zoonotic disease, meaning it jumps from animals to humans. In both cases, human consumption of wildlife such as bats was the likely route of transmission.
 
Father Bernardo Cervellera is the editor of AsiaNews, an official press agency of the Roman Catholic Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME). He wrote on March 12, two days after China pledged to send the masks and medical experts to Italy, that Beijing was trying to mask its role in what the WHO called a pandemic on March 11.
 
He wrote: “And this is not just regarding the sale of wild animals at the Wuhan market: We are talking about the silence of the authorities that lasted for over a month, before raising the alarm.”

What about free speech?
 
Cervellera continued, “I think that China’s gifts to Italy would be even more welcome if Beijing and Xi Jinping gave his people and the press freedom of speech. He would do his people and the whole world a favor.”
 
Others believe that China will benefit geopolitically from its diplomatic offensive, especially since the U.S. closed its border with Canada on Wednesday, days after it began rolling out travel bans from Europe and other countries on March 11.
 
Douglas Paal, a special assistant to former U.S. President George W. Bush and senior director of Asian affairs at the National Security Council, told VOA Mandarin, “In many ways, I am concerned about the tragic and incompetent response of the Trump administration to this crisis. If China benefits from it, it is largely because we let it do it.”

Li Ya contributed to this report.

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The United States is calling on warring sides in Afghanistan to start a prisoner swap without further delay, citing urgency in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. 

U.S. reconciliation envoy Zalmay Khalilzad in a series of tweets Wednesday appeared frustrated at the delay in the next steps outlined in Washington’s peace-building agreement with the Taliban insurgency. 

“No prisoners have been released to date despite the commitment to do so expressed by both sides,” said Khalilzad, who negotiated and signed the Feb. 29 U.S.-Taliban pact in Qatar. 

“The time has come to move forward on prisoner releases,” he stressed. 

The accord required Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to free 5,000 Taliban prisoners in exchange for 1,000 detainees, mostly government security forces, in insurgent custody. The swap had to take place by March 10, when Afghan parties to the war were scheduled to open direct peace talks. 

The delay is largely blamed on the Afghan government that was not part of the U.S.-Taliban negotiations and the eventual agreement. 

Conditional prisoner swap 

Last week, Ghani allowed for a conditional release of 1,500 prisoners, saying the remaining inmates would be freed in batches, subject to a reduction in Taliban violence and opening of the peace talks. He also sought assurances the released men would not return to the battlefield. 

But the Taliban rejected the plan as a violation of its agreement with Washington, saying all the insurgent detainees were to be released at once, unconditionally, before the start of intra-Afghan negotiations. 

The differences prompted Kabul to halt the release process altogether while sticking to its stance.

A spokesman for the Afghan national security adviser, however, has rejected Khalilzad’s call for the prisoner swap, saying there is no change in Kabul’s stance.

“The Taliban will have to stop killing Afghans and provide guarantees that those getting released shall not be returning to war. Time for them to end violence and commit to a dignified peace,” said spokesman Javid Faisal in a video message.

Khalilzad said the U.S. was obligated to its commitments under the pact to help both sides in reaching an understanding to move the Afghan peace process forward. 

“The Taliban commit that released prisoners will abide by the commitments made in the peace agreement and not return to the battlefield. A violation will undermine the peace process,” the U.S. envoy noted. 

Washington last week began a “conditions-based” drawdown of U.S. forces from the country under the agreement to bring the troop level to 8,600 from the roughly 13,000 stationed in Afghanistan. 

The Trump administration has agreed to withdraw all American and allied forces within 14 months. In return, the Islamist Taliban has pledged not to harbor on Afghan soil terrorist groups that seek to target the U.S. 

Coronavirus outbreak 

Wednesday’s statement by Khalilzad came as war-ravaged Afghanistan has confirmed around two dozen coronavirus cases in the country, blaming them on returnees from neighboring Iran, where the virus has killed hundreds and infected thousands. 

“Coronavirus makes prisoner releases urgent; time is of the essence,” Khalilzad stressed in his tweets. He went on to note that the pandemic and the resulting travel restrictions likely would require “virtual engagement for now” between rival Afghan parties to work together “to begin prisoner releases as soon as possible.” 

Meanwhile, the U.S. military Wednesday dismissed reports that the coronavirus has disrupted the troop drawdown process. 

“Protecting the force is our top priority,” tweeted Col. Sonny Leggett, who speaks for the mission in Afghanistan.

“We continue to execute the ordered drawdown to 8600,” he wrote.

‘Decree of Allah’ 

Afghan officials and politicians fear the number of coronavirus infections could be much higher, citing extremely limited testing and capacity issues facing the deteriorated national public health care system thanks to years of conflict. 

On Monday, 38 patients fled a hospital in western Herat province with the help of relatives. Afghan health officials said one of them had tested positive for the coronavirus. 

The radical Taliban in a statement issued Wednesday said Afghans to must consider COVID-19 as a “decree of Allah (God).” It said the disease has been sent by Allah “because of the disobedience and sins of mankind or other reasons.” 

The insurgent group advocated a religious approach to dealing with the coronavirus and offered a safe passage to international relief organizations in Taliban-controlled areas to send medical aid, equipment and medicine. 

The Taliban controls or contests nearly half of Afghan territory.    

“The safety guidelines issued by health organizations, doctors and other health experts must be observed and all safety precautions followed to the best of one’s abilities,” the Taliban statement said. It also warned Afghan businessmen to refrain from “unlawful profit, price hikes and hoarding.”  

Political crisis  

But prisoner release is not the only issue holding up the Afghan peace process, critics say.  

A lingering dispute over Afghanistan’s contentious Sept. 28 presidential election has crippled the governance in Kabul.   

The election commission late last month declared incumbent Ghani the winner, but his rival Abdullah Abdullah rejected the outcome as fraudulent, and both held competing presidential inaugurations last week  

The political rivalry has blocked efforts to put together a united Afghan team of negotiators to engage in talks with the Taliban. Khalilzad urged Ghani and Abdullah to end the impasse, warning the political crisis is undermining security in Afghanistan.   

“It is time for Afghans to compromise and put their differences aside to resolve the political crisis resulting from elections and dual inaugurations,” the U.S. envoy said in subsequent tweets. 

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School closures caused by the coronavirus pandemic mean many parents are trying to come up with ways to educate and entertain their children at home. While there are many online options, some parents worry about too much screen time. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee has the details on a couple of applications that combine the physical and digital so students learning at home get the best of both worlds.

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In Chinese communities across New York City, the local economy has also been hit hard by the outbreak of the coronavirus. Business leaders in Chinatown in New York have called on the government to introduce emergency rescue measures to help Chinese businessmen survive the difficult times. Zhang Zhen reports from New York. 

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Missouri’s health department on Tuesday reported 15 positive cases of coronavirus as state and local governments took additional steps to limit large gatherings in an attempt stem the virus’ spread. Meanwhile, the state’s governor warned that he expects the crisis to last for “months.”

The agency has reported cases of COVID-19 in Boone, Cass, Cole, Greene, Henry, Jackson and St. Louis counties, as well as one case in the city of St. Louis.

Gov. Mike Parson on Tuesday ordered the closure of Missouri’s 13 casinos as of midnight through March 30. Meanwhile, some nonviolent jail inmates are being freed to reduce the risk of transmission behind bars.

Parson, speaking during an evening video posting on Facebook, said Missourians should expect a long crisis.

“I believe we have to consider that this is going to be here for months,” Parson, a Republican, said. “And I believe we have to prepare for that every day.”

The news came the same day that neighboring Kansas announced it was closing state-owned casinos through March 30. Illinois closed casinos on Monday for at least two weeks.
Missouri Gaming Commission Chairman Mike Leara said the impact of the shutdown could mean up to $1 million a day in lost revenue for the state. He said once local governments began taking actions in recent days to limit public gatherings to no more than 50, it became apparent that the casinos couldn’t remain open.

Leara said he felt especially bad for the thousands of casino workers in Missouri.
“These people, they love their jobs, they make good money,” Leara said. “Man, that’s really tough to tell them they can’t come to work.”

The virus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, for most people, but severe illness is more likely in the elderly and people with existing health problems. Worldwide, COVID-19 has killed over 7,800 people so far, while more than 80,000 have recovered.

Across the state, other steps were being taken to protect people from the virus.
At least six members of Kansas City, Missouri’s 12-member city council will self-quarantine this week because of possible COVID-19 exposure. a spokeswoman for Mayor Quinton Lucas told the Kansas City Star on Tuesday.

Officials in St. Louis, St. Louis County and St. Charles County announced that effective midnight Thursday, restaurants and bars are prohibited from offering dine-in service. Kansas City enacted a similar ban that began Tuesday.

Columbia Mayor Brian Treece said to expect an order from the city’s public health director Tuesday directing bars and restaurants in the college town to cut their capacity in half or limit occupants to 50 people, including staff.  

At St. Louis’ Gateway Arch, the visitor center, museum and grounds remained open, but the tram that transports visitors to the top of the Arch was shut down until further notice.

At St. Louis City Hall, visitors were being scanned for fevers before entering the building. The scan involved non-contact infrared thermometers. St. Louis Circuit Court suspended all jury trials through April 10.

Meanwhile, the top prosecutors in St. Louis city and county took actions to ease jail crowding and reduce the risk of spreading the virus.

St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell said in a statement that anyone arrested for a nonviolent crime who does not appear to pose a threat will be released with a summons to appear in court, rather than be jailed. People already housed at the county justice center awaiting trial will be considered for release if they are accused of a nonviolent or “low-level” crime, Bell said.

The decision is part of a cooperative agreement between his office, judges, the county health department and other county entities, Bell said.

Bell, who took office in January 2019, has made reducing the jail population a priority and said the population has fallen by 30% since he took office.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner said detention will be sought only for suspects who pose a threat to public safety. She also said her office is seeking “cash bail alternatives” and is taking steps to push back most court cases for 60 days to reduce courtroom contact during the health crisis.
Parson said decisions on releasing nonviolent inmates are up to local officials.

St. Louis Public Schools and St. Louis-area charter schools announced a program to provide free “grab-and-go” meals at 33 school sites while the schools are closed. The district has shut down classrooms until at least April 3. The meals will be available from 8 a.m. to noon for anyone age 18 and younger who lives in St. Louis city, but because of social distancing recommendations, the meals cannot be eaten on-site.

Parson’s office said 432 of Missouri’s 555 public school systems have or will soon close.

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The COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic is threatening to worsen labor shortages experienced by Pacific Northwest farms and food processors. 

On March 16, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico said it would suspend routine immigrant and non-immigrant visa services due to COVID-19, potentially cutting off seasonal and migrant agricultural workers through the H-2A visa program. 

Dan Fazio, CEO of Wafla — formerly the Washington Farm Labor Association — told the Capital Press that the USDA is working with the State Department to obtain an emergency designation for H-2A visas, which would allow temporary farmworkers to continue entering the country. 

“We’ve got to get these people here in May so we can have a harvest in October,” Fazio said. 

Washington state had over 25,000 H-2A labor certifications in 2019, which accounted for 25% of seasonal workers, Fazio said. So far this year, Wafla has brought in more than 5,000 H-2A workers, with the biggest wave still to come in late May for the start of cherry harvest. 

Agriculture is a baseline industry, Fazio said, and any disruptions would trickle down throughout the economy.  

Spring is also peak shipping season for Oregon’s $995 million greenhouse and nursery industry. Jeff Stone, executive director of the Oregon Association of Nurseries, said it is already difficult to find workers willing to package products and load trucks. With coronavirus potentially stalling the H-2A program, he said it only adds to the pressure. 

“All this really shows is the fragility of the workforce,” Stone said. “This adds a layer of worry. I feel for every business.” 

…

It’s a sunny day in Miami, Florida with no chance of rain. But according to environmental scientist Margarita Kruyff, even on days like this, low-lying coastal communities like Miami and nearby Miami Beach may experience periodic flooding because of the porous bedrock underground that leaks water.

“On the roads it means water could be coming up our drainage systems,” said the City of Miami Beach environmental scientist, who explained that the annual seasonal King Tides, or very high tides, also take their toll.  

“Water may be coming up over seawalls for our residents, causing flooding in their homes and back yards,” she said.

Rising seas linked to climate change are triggering chronic inland flooding in many parts of the world. In southern Florida, high tides are also threatening drinking water and causing soil erosion.  

Scientific studies differ on how much farther the tides will rise there, but the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency, or NOAA, projects the sea level could increase as much as two meters by 2100. The elevated sea levels eventually could put vast stretches of Florida under water.  

“We’re trying to project how fast we’re expecting them to rise so we can plan how we’re going to protect our communities for the future,” said Kruyff.

To help control the damage from flooding, some roads and buildings have been elevated and seawalls are being reinforced.

Beyond man-made solutions, Mother Nature is lending a hand to hold back the tides.

Natural resources like restoring coral reefs and preserving mangrove forests can help with flood protection. Mangroves are trees that live in marshes or tidal shores and grow in salty water.  Their roots form dense thickets that help prevent erosion and provide a natural buffer against storm surges.

Miami Beach’s Oleta River State Park is a kayaker’s paradise where a forest winds around a creek. As marine scientist Laura Geselbracht dipped her paddle into the water, she said, “Even though this area is surrounded by a lot of high development, the mangroves will help reduce flooding.”   

Mangroves also combat the biggest driver of climate change, said the senior marine scientist who works for the Nature Conservancy in Florida.  

“Mangroves sequester more carbon than any other trees on Earth because they have quite a large underground root structure. So, by storing carbon it takes it out of the atmosphere which can reduce our greenhouse gases in our atmosphere,” she said.

Florida’s mangrove forests, however, are under threat, a problem that conservationists hope to reverse.

Geselbracht pointed out that “most of our mangroves have been eliminated for development. As sea level rises, some areas will no longer be habitable and maybe some homes and other structures will be removed,” she added.

Kruyff recalled when Miami Beach used to be a mangrove island, and said, “We recognize that bringing back mangroves is going to help us be better protected in the future.”

She has this advice for other places worldwide with rising seas.

“In areas that are undeveloped see how you can preserve nature, rather than trying to bring it in once you’ve developed those areas.”

…

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, who has been repeatedly accosted by protesters on the campaign trail, is receiving U.S. Secret Service protection beginning this week, the agency said. 

Biden made the request earlier this month after a handful of testy interactions with protesters at recent campaign events, including one in which two protesters rushed a stage in Los Angeles and came within a few meters of Biden during a Super Tuesday victory speech. Biden’s wife, Jill, and several staff members, including one trained security officer employed by the campaign, restrained the women and carried them from the stage. Neither the former vice president nor his wife was hurt. 

The leading candidates in the 2012 and 2016 presidential contests had Secret Service protection by this point in those races. Neither Biden nor Democratic primary rival Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders had requested protection until now. Sanders still has not made a request. 

The Secret Service protects, by statute, the president and vice president and their families, as well as some other senior government officials. It is also authorized to provide protection to major party presidential candidates, an authority granted after the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy in 1968. 

The process for assigning a security detail to a candidate generally requires that campaigns initiate the request for protection. The Secret Service does a threat assessment and consults with Department of Homeland Security officials and a congressional commission made up of the majority and minority leaders of both chambers, plus another member. The ultimate decision on whether to provide protection is made by DHS. 

Earlier this month, Rep. Cedric Richmond, D-La., said the House Homeland Security Committee had asked the Secret Service to provide protection to all remaining major presidential candidates. 

Richmond, one of Biden’s campaign co-chairmen, said members of Congress were “very worried” about the March 3 episode, when the protesters rushed the stage at the Biden speech in California. 

At an event in New Hampshire, a man approached Biden from behind. When the man tried to interrupt Biden, Biden’s wife put her arms around the man, turned him around and helped push him away. 

Biden isn’t the only candidate to have been accosted at a campaign event. Topless demonstrators crashed a Sanders rally in Nevada in February. 
 

…

The priority for most university students in the United States is clear: to move their belongings off campus as quickly as possible and set up to take classes online. 

As campuses and their satellites abroad close — many of them incrementally — students and parents are wondering how to pay for this rapid shift in learning. 

“They’re being very intentionally vague with their emails, because we can tell they don’t have much figured out themselves,” Lucia Macchi, a freshman at Pennsylvania State University, told VOA. 

While we spoke, Macchi, who had been staying in Florida with her family over the spring break holiday, was on her way back to her dorm room at Pennsylvania State University to gather her belongings — especially materials she would need to continue her classes remotely. 

But while Penn State, like most schools across the country, is shutting down to quell the spread of the coronavirus, students say the policy on reimbursement for room and board is still unclear. 

“They said that they could have a partial reimbursement or credit applied to next year,” Macchi said. “They’re not sure what exactly their programs are going to look like.”  

“But it won’t be automatic,” she said. “It will be something that the students have to be proactive about.” 

Room and board costs are not the only fees students and parents worry about losing. Besides meal plans, on-campus jobs, and campus activities fees, students also bear the financial burden of storing their items and buying expensive last-minute tickets to go home. 

A glance at many university websites about coronavirus shows a number of plans for reimbursements of costs. 

American University in Washington, D.C., has detailed its plans to financially assist students.  
 
“Students do not need to apply for refunds. Student accounts will automatically produce an ACH refund to all students with banking information on file,” the school’s website reads, under a list of which costs will be refunded. 

Many students trying to evacuate less-organized universities on short notice say they don’t have time to wait in line at the financial aid office to have all their questions answered. 
 
“Going into the financial aid office itself is a very time-consuming and exhausting thing for students to consider right now,” Jordan Barton, class of 2023 at Harvard University in Massachusetts, told VOA. 

Harvard said it will pro-rate room and board costs for students and apply a $200 credit for storage or travel. 
 
But for students like Barton, who has to purchase a last-minute ticket to Middleton, Texas, $200 won’t be enough. He says it’s not clear whether students like him will see more of a reimbursement. 
 
“I hope I can shoot an email here in a few days and see if I can get any reimbursement because otherwise it’s going to be significantly difficult to have stable income over the course of the next few months,” Barton added. 

Parent groups on Facebook are sharing advice about how to apply for reimbursements through university websites. 

Aside from all the costs and potential reimbursements, college students across the U.S. have taken to social media to remind universities that there are numerous barriers to simply shifting classes online. 

“Not every college student has broadband at home. Not every college student can eat without the meal plan/work study,” Em Ballou, a junior at Middlebury College in Vermont, wrote on Twitter. 

– not every college student has a home they can go to
– not every college student can buy a plane ticket for THIS FRIDAY
– not every college student has broadband at home
– not every college student can eat without the meal plan/work study
– not every college student can cope

— Em? (@em_ballou) March 10, 2020

“Coming to college is a source of humongous economic and housing stability for several months out of the year. Going home…puts an enormous strain on our families,” Barton said. 
 
Barton is still unsure how his work-study job will be affected at Harvard and is concerned about the burden he will place on his father, a single parent of two, without an additional income. 

Some students have noted that online classes generally cost less than in-person ones. A petition started by a student from Indiana’s Purdue University to reimburse tuition costs as well as room and board fees has more than 600 signatures. 
 
Of course, in a few rare cases, students are praising their school’s quick handling of the situation. 

“Gotta say im super impressed with the way @DavidsonCollege is handling this situation,” Ashly, class of 2022, wrote on Twitter, detailing that the North Carolina school which serves under 2,000 students is ensuring full pay for work-study students, providing laptops, free storage units, and airport shuttles among other amenities. 

students are getting $ back for room/board, full pay for work-study students, laptops/wifi-hotspots are being made available, dining services will stay open, airport shuttles to those going home, free storage units and much more..administration is truly looking out for EVERYONE.

— Ashley Ip (@AshleyIp1) March 14, 2020

In most cases, U.S. universities and colleges followed similar trajectories, first announcing they would move classes online but that campus facilities would remain open, and then either all at once or through a rapid series of announcements, finally deciding the campuses would close entirely. 
 
In the California Bay Area, six counties have issued a shelter-in-place order, meaning that students on campus are encouraged to remain in their dorms as opposed to moving out, even though the University of California, Berkeley has said all instruction will be remote for the rest of the semester. 

Still, those choosing to move off campus for the rest of the semester are able to apply for a pro-rated refund of their room and board costs. 

How quickly and efficiently colleges and universities will be able to deliver on promises of reimbursement is yet to be seen. 
 

…

The Rolling Stones are postponing its 15-city North American tour because of the growing coronavirus outbreak.

The band announced Tuesday that its No Filter Tour, originally expected to kick off in San Diego on May 8, is postponed. The band’s tour was also planned to visit some North American cities they haven’t played in years, including Cleveland, St. Louis, Austin, Texas, Louisville, Kentucky, Charlotte, North Carolina and Tampa, Florida.

“We’re hugely disappointed to have to postpone the tour. We are sorry to all the fans who were looking forward to it as much as we were, but the health and safety of everyone has to take priority. We will all get through this together — and we’ll see you very soon,” the Stones said in a statement.

Tour promoter AEG is advising concertgoers to hold onto their original tickets and wait for more information.

The Stones’ tour through North America last year was postponed after Mick Jagger had heart surgery, but the band rescheduled those dates and returned triumphantly to the road with a show in Chicago. Another of the rescheduled shows featured the announcement that NASA had named a tiny tumbling stone spotted on the Martian surface after the band.

The vast majority of people recover from the new virus, but for some, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. 
 

…

U.S. President Donald Trump’s new coronavirus guidelines for Americans lays out what people should and should not do for the next 15 days, giving strong encouragement to the public to stop most social activities to halt the spread of the pandemic.  

Announcing the new guidelines from his coronavirus task force, the president Monday said people should avoid social gatherings of more than 10 people and should avoid eating in restaurants, taking shopping trips and all discretionary travel. In states where there is community transmission of the virus, the guidelines advise governors to close areas where people congregate, including restaurants, gyms and other venues.   

“With several weeks of focused action, we can turn the corner and turn it quickly,” Trump told reporters at the White House Monday.   

The measures urge people to work or be schooled from home whenever possible and to not visit nursing homes or long-term care facilities unless it is to provide critical assistance. Governors are encouraged to close schools in areas where there is evidence of community transmission of the virus. 

Those who are instructed to maintain a normal work schedule are employees who work in critical industries, which include health care services, the pharmaceutical industry and food services. The guidelines say such workers “have a special responsibility” to keep showing up to work, unless they are sick.   

Anyone who is sick must stay home from work and contact their medical provider, according to the guidelines. Parents who have children who are sick must not send them to school, and if any household member is sick, all family members are instructed to stay home.   

The measures call for all older people, as well as all people with a serious underlying health condition, to stay home and away from all other people. Such health conditions include those that weaken the lungs or heart or impair the immune system.   

The advice tells those who are young and healthy that they are still at risk and that their activities can increase the risk for others. 

“It is critical that you do your part to slow the spread of the coronavirus,” the guidelines advise young people. 

In terms of hygiene, the guidelines call on people to wash their hands after touching any frequently used surface or item, to avoid touching the face, to sneeze and cough into a tissue or the elbow, and to frequently disinfect surfaces.  

The United States has recorded about 3,800 infections of coronavirus and at least 70 deaths. 

…

The White House is recommending people in the United States avoid social gatherings of more than 10 people for at least the next 15 days.

Commenting on the new guidance from his administration’s coronavirus task force, President Donald Trump said Americans should school at home, avoid traveling, and not patronize bars and restaurants.

“As we combat the virus, each and every one of us has a critical role to play in stopping the spread and transmission of the virus,” said the president, leading a nearly one-hour long briefing for reporters.

He denied a nationwide curfew is under consideration.

Asked how long the virus crisis would last, Trump predicted it would be until July or August or possibly longer.

“It could be right in that period of time where … it washes through,” Trump said.

As normal life in the United States quickly came to a halt with mandated closures of businesses beginning in many states, stock prices on Wall Street plunged Monday.  

Despite an extraordinary move taken by the Federal Reserve a day earlier to boost investor confidence, the Dow Jones Industrial on Monday dived 3,000 points to close 13 percent lower — the worst trading day since the start of the coronavirus crisis. 

“The market will be very strong as soon as we get rid of the virus,” Trump replied when told of the closing numbers while he was still at the briefing room lectern.

The Fed, which is America’s central bank, on Sunday made an emergency cut to interest rates, bringing them to near zero, amid deep concern that the coronavirus pandemic will hit corporate revenue globally. Despite the move, Asia markets fell sharply in Monday trading, a harbinger of what would happen hours later on Wall Street.  

Both Trump and the White House economic adviser, Larry Kudlow, acknowledged on Monday the country could be headed into a recession.

“No question about it, we are going to be challenged. I’m not going to label it one thing or another,” Kudlow responded to a question from VOA.

Kudlow added that while first quarter statistics will be fine, the second quarter “could be a very difficult quarter.” 

To help mitigate the impact to the domestic economy, Kudlow revealed the administration is considering offering companies 100 percent expensing to move their factories back from China.

“It’ll help everybody in America,” said Kudlow, who explained Trump has not yet signed off on the proposal.

Trump later in the day also said the government is looking at bailing out domestic airlines suffering severe turbulence from the loss of passengers due to the pandemic.

“We’re going to back the airlines 100 percent. It’s not their fault,” he told reporters.

Trump on Monday spoke with other G-7 leaders to coordinate action in response to COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

“It was a very good discussion,” said Trump, describing great camaraderie among the leaders, although he gave no specifics on the outcome.

After the G-7 call, Trump held a similar call with state governors on the same topic.  

The president acknowledged he told the governors that if they are able to acquire needed ventilators and respirators for their hospitals quicker than they can get them from the federal government, they should do that.

The United States has more than 4,100 coronavirus cases in all but one of the 50 states.    

There are 69 deaths reported from the disease in the country.      

The Senate, controlled by the president’s Republican Party, this week is considering a coronavirus relief package.

The legislation, as approved by the Democrat-controlled House, ensures individuals would have access to free coronavirus testing, ensure displaced workers get paid leave and other benefits.

Trump suggested the bill might be made “even better” by Senate Republicans to include sick leave for a larger group of workers. 
 

…

Seven million Californians living in and around San Francisco are being ordered to shelter in place — the most draconian step taken so far to stop the spread of the coronavirus. 

“We know these measures will significantly disrupt people’s day-to-day lives, but they are absolutely necessary,” San Francisco Mayor London Breed said Monday. “This is going to be a defining moment for our city and we all have a responsibility to do our part to protect our neighbors and slow the spread of this virus by staying at home unless it is absolutely essential to go outside.”  

The order affects not only the city of San Francisco, but six surrounding counties in Northern California. 

All stores and businesses will be shuttered except for such essential places as supermarkets and drug stores. 

San Francisco Police Chief William Scott says officers will take what he calls a “compassionate common sense approach” toward anyone who starts suffering from cabin fever and has to leave his house. Scott says police will treat a violation as a misdemeanor, but only as an “absolute last resort.” 

The lockdown will remain in force through April 7.  

Other U.S. cities have banned gatherings of more than 250 people, closed schools and restaurants, and canceled a variety of events. But this is the first large municipality to order people off the streets — the same action that has been taken in all of Italy. There have been no reports of any major ill-effects from the lockdown there so far.  

Keeping people as far apart as possible during the pandemic has given birth to the first new global catch phrase of the 2020s: “social distancing” — the practice of keeping people at least 1.8 meters away from each other to avoid spreading the coronavirus.    

The World Health Organization said Monday it welcomes social distancing as a necessity. But WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said more importantly, every suspected case must be tested.   

“If they test positive, isolate them and find out who they have been in close contact with up to two days before they developed symptoms, and test those people too,” Tedros said.  

U.S. health officials have decried the lack of coronavirus testing kits despite White House assurances that everyone who wants a test would soon be able to get one. 

Meanwhile, many schools around U.S. and other countries are shut down. New York and Los Angeles have ordered movie theaters closed and restaurants are offering only delivery and food to go. 

The Netherlands and Turkey have ordered similar closures, while New Zealand on Monday became the latest country to ban large gatherings of more than 500 people. 

The Vatican announced Pope Francis will hold Easter week services without an audience.   

Argentina, Canada, Colombia and Panama are the latest countries to seal off their borders to foreign visitors. 
 

…

A lockdown of Metro Manila to contain a coronavirus outbreak in the Philippines will cut national economic growth that depends largely on the flow of people through the 13 million-person capital and its suburbs, analysts say. 

President Rodrigo Duterte ordered last week that the National Capital Region be sealed off from March 15 through April 14. The order came after officials discovered local transmission of the deadly virus that has infected people in 125 countries over the past two months. 

Land, air and sea travel will stop during the lockdown month and anyone entering the metro area for work from its farther-flung suburbs must show proof of employment, according to official documents and people living in Manila.  

The lockdown will set back GDP growth this year by 0.3% to 0.5%, said Jonathan Ravelas, chief market strategist with Banco de Oro UniBank.  

The Southeast Asian country initially forecast by the Asian Development Bank to grow 6% this year depends heavily on consumer spending, which is growing because of job creation on the back of new investments in factories, infrastructure and call centers. Officials hope GDP growth will help ease poverty that afflicts one in five Filipinos. 

Many inbound workers lack company ID cards, sources in Manila say. They say malls are supposed to shutter and erode the income of people who work there. Duterte himself encouraged younger people to stay home. 

“If people can’t get to work, then they can’t get paid,” said Christian de Guzman, vice president and senior credit officer with Moody’s Sovereign Risk Group. “That has a feedback loop into the confidence effect and what it means for consumption.” 

Countries such as China and Italy, which have many more coronavirus cases than the 140 reported by the Philippines as of March 15, also declared mass lockdowns. In most of the world, however, lockdowns apply to communities with sudden or uncontrolled outbreaks.  

Nearly 170,000 cases of the virus have been recorded worldwide since it was discovered in China three months ago. 

The “unprecedented” move in Manila will hurt tourism and business meetings by suspending flights over the coming month, de Guzman said. If overseas workers can’t leave the country for jobs abroad, the Philippine economy would miss their remittances from abroad, he added. Those remittances make up 9% of the $356.8 billion economy. 

It’s unclear, he said, whether equipment for Philippine infrastructure projects can get in through Manila over the coming month. 

Officials haven’t made it clear either how the government might compensate people who can’t work or stores that must close, said Maria Ela Atienza, political science professor at the University of the Philippines Diliman. Normally the capital’s giant Robinsons Malls and SM Supermalls do steady business after work and on weekends. 

The degree of damage to economic growth in the Philippines will depend on how well lockdown measures control disease spread, market strategist Ravelas said. 

“I think the government just took a drastic measure because we don’t want to be like South Korea or maybe Iran or Italy,” said Aaron Rabena, research fellow at Asia-Pacific Pathways to Progress Foundation. He plans to work from home. “We can’t be just a country who will just act when the problem is already there, it’s already worse.” 

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said the lockdown’s economic impact will be “minimal and ephemeral,” as quoted Friday by domestic media outlet GMA News Online. 

The lockdown is raising questions about effectiveness, especially if workers are still allowed to come and go and health workers can’t keep up with new virus cases, Atienza said. National police will find it a challenge to check all roads leading into the capital region, she added. 

“People are scared, because in a way it shows lack of trust in government because our public health system for the past few years has suffered from lack of funding,” Atienza said. “We really are unprepared for pandemics.” 

Over the weekend, people packed bus stations and the airport to get out of Manila before the lockdown started at 12:00 a.m. Sunday, she said. 

…

Haiti will close its border with the Dominican Republic as of midnight on Monday, Prime Minister Jouthe Joseph announced Sunday.   

Joseph said an exception is being made for merchandise, which will still be allowed across the border after screening.  He said Dominican officials will test those aboard the vehicles prior to entering Haiti, and Haitian health officials will also test them upon entry.   
 
The move aims to keep the coronavirus, which has sickened 11 people in the neighboring Dominican Republic, out.  So far Haiti has no confirmed cases of the deadly disease. The country’s first suspected case, an unidentified foreign woman who had traveled to one of the countries where the coronavirus has spread, tested negative for the disease.  

“We are asking people to take this pandemic very seriously,” Joseph said. “We are asking for the cooperation of all Haitian citizens as well as foreigners living in Haiti.” 

The prime minister announced that Haiti is also suspending all flights from Europe and Latin America. Flights from the United States are under evaluation, he said.  
 
“We are evaluating fights between Port-au-Prince and New York, Port-au-Prince and Miami, Cape Haitian and Miami, Cape Haitian and Fort Lauderdale,” he said. “We have an agreement with American air transportation officials that all passengers boarding planes for Haiti must be screened for coronavirus.” 
 
He said Public Health officials at the nation’s two international airports – in Port-au-Prince and Cape Haitian  – are already screening passengers for the virus upon arrival. Quarantine facilities have also been set up for passengers who exhibit flu-like symptoms. They will be required to fill out a special form, regarding the disease.  
 
“If you are asked to undergo testing or if you are ordered to be quarantined, we urge you to cooperate.  Don’t be angry, this is being done to protect our country,” he said. 
 
Joseph appealed to avoid traveling outside of the country, unless it’s an emergency. 
 
“We urge all Haitians to avoid all non-essential travel. Do not travel to any foreign country unless it’s urgent that you do so,” Joseph said.  

According to the prime minister, the extra measures to reinforce the country’s land and maritime borders and its airports have been successful in keeping the pandemic out so far.    

In addition to new restrictions affecting civilian travel, the prime minister said the government has cancelled all official travel.  Joseph said any official who wants to travel abroad must first get approval from either President Jovenel Moise, the prime minister or the foreign minister.  

…

The last two major U.S. Democratic presidential candidates – former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders – clashed Sunday night in a spirited debate on a range of issues as they made their best case to be the party’s nominee to face Republican President Donald Trump in November’s national election.

The two candidates attacked Trump repeatedly, with Biden calling him “an existential threat to the country,” while Sanders declared that Trump is a “pathological liar” overseeing a “corrupt administration.”

Both assailed Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S., with Sanders accusing him of “undermining scientists” and Biden faulting the administration for refusing in the early stages of the crisis to import test kits from other countries when the U.S. had the opportunity to do so.

“This is like we are being attacked,” Biden said. “In a war, you do whatever is required to do to take care of your people. Everything you would need to take care of this crisis would be free. It would be paid for by the U.S. taxpayers.”

Biden said he would call in the military to cope with the crisis while Sanders skirted the issue. Instead, Sanders complained about Trump undermining the government’s response by contradicting what government experts and scientists have recommended.

“What we have to do is shut this president up,” he said.

The two also virtually agreed on naming a woman to be their vice presidential running mate. Biden said he definitely would pick a woman and Sanders said “in all likelihood” he would, provided he could find someone who agrees with his progressive policies.

But the two Democrats quarreled with each other on how best to take on Trump, the New York real estate mogul and first-time politician who won an upset victory in 2016 to become the country’s 45^th president.

Biden and Sanders often argued over the minutiae of legislation in the U.S. Congress when both were senators and later when Biden served two terms as vice president under former President Barack Obama from 2009-2017.

Sanders called for a political revolution to take on special interests that control health care and energy production in the U.S. Biden promoted less dramatic changes, but ones that also would move American policies significantly to the left philosophically from the Trump administration.

Sanders argued that his plan for a government takeover of health care in the U.S. – he calls it Medicare for All – was a moral imperative so that “everyone will get the care they need.” Biden said his plans for more measured improvements on top of the health care plan adopted under Obama – popularly known as Obamacare – would help more Americans at less cost.

“People are looking for results, not a revolution,” Biden said. “What people want is hope and they need it now, not four years from now.”

Biden at one point cut off Sanders, saying: “With all due respect to Medicare for All, you have a single-payer system in Italy. It doesn’t work there.” Biden was referring to the coronavirus crisis in Italy that is among the worst in Europe. “It has nothing to do with Medicare for All — that would not solve the problem at all. We can take care of that right now by making sure that no one has to pay for treatment period because of the crisis,” he said.

On another issue, Sanders attacked Biden’s support for the 2008 bailout of floundering Wall Street financial giants as the recession worsened more than a decade ago. Biden retorted, “It kept us from going into a depression.”

Sanders also criticized Biden’s support of the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, which Biden now admits was a mistake.

Sanders claimed Biden supported cuts in the country’s cherished Social Security payments to older Americans.

“No, I did not,” Biden responded sharply.

Sunday’s debate had been scheduled before a live audience, just as with a string of previous Democratic encounters. But the spread of the deadly coronavirus forced the two longtime politicians into CNN’s Washington studio for their two-hour debate and there was no audience, in an effort to limit the possibility of exposing even more people to the virus.

Biden in the lead

At the moment, Biden holds a clear edge in the delegate count in the race for the Democratic nomination. The two squared off in what could turn out to be the last debate before the party’s national nominating convention in July.

After a stumbling start in the first three presidential nominating contests in February, Biden has won 16 of the last 21 state elections and is heavily favored in the next four on Tuesday. They are scattered across the U.S., in Florida in the South, Ohio and Illinois in the Midwest, and Arizona in the Southwest. 

Biden needs a majority of at least 1,991 delegates at the convention and currently leads Sanders, 809-666. Projections at the fivethirtyeight.com political forecasting site say Biden is likely to add another 200 delegates to that margin in Tuesday’s voting.

The earlier debates have had at least six candidates on stage, often leading to a verbal free-for-all with candidates talking over each other and leaving television viewers at a loss to understand any single individual.

Even with the debate stage narrowed to two candidates, Biden and Sanders frequently interrupted each other.

All of the other Democratic candidates who have dropped out of the presidential race have endorsed Biden as they exited, with the exception of Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who has yet to endorse either Biden or Sanders.

But with Biden now projected to win the party nomination in his third run for the presidency over three decades, Sanders, a self-declared democratic socialist, has sought to make the case that he is best-suited to take on Trump, who at 73 is younger than either Biden, 77, or Sanders, 78.

Biden, known widely for verbal gaffes, in recent campaign appearances mixed up what day the last primary elections were occurring and also was unable to recall key words from the country’s Declaration of Independence that many school-age children could recite.

In recent campaign appearances, the normally verbose Biden has read his speeches off a teleprompter and the addresses have been noticeably shorter to minimize the chance for more verbal missteps.

That, of course, wasn’t possible with Sunday night’s give-and-take with Sanders and Biden standing two meters apart behind podiums. Biden seemed self-assured throughout the debate and assertive in his exchanges with Sanders.

But both said they would support and campaign for the other against Trump, no matter which of them wins the Democratic nomination. 

…

Long wait times and panic were seen at airports across the United States as authorities work under new regulations imposed to deal with the spread of the novel coronavirus.

“We are aware of the reports of increased wait times at some airports across the nation. CBP along with medical personnel are working diligently to address the longer than usual delays,” acting commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Mark Morgan wrote in a statement.

“Nothing is more important than the safety, health and security of our citizens,” the statement added.

We are aware of the reports of increased wait times at some airports across the nation. CBP along with medical personnel are working diligently to address the longer than usual delays. Nothing is more important than the safety, health and security of our citizens. Full statement: pic.twitter.com/JyPRSS9snr

— Acting Commissioner Mark Morgan (@CBPMarkMorgan) March 15, 2020

U.S. nationals and permanent residents who are returning from countries that are part of a new travel ban will be required to undergo additional screening and questioning to determine if they can return to their communities, Department of Homeland Security officials said.

If not required to seek medical help, they will be sent home and will spend two weeks in self-quarantine. Foreign nationals living in the U.S. who have traveled to countries on the ban, however, will not be allowed to return in the United States. A DHS official said they would have to travel to a third country, not included in the ban, and wait out the two-week period of self-quarantine before traveling to the U.S.

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