KUALA LUMPUR: Worshippers slept in packed tents outside the golden-domed mosque, waking before dawn to kneel on rows of prayer mats laid out in its cavernous central hall. All the while, the coronavirus was passing unnoticed among the guests.

The Muslim gathering held at the end of last month at a sprawling mosque complex on the outskirts of Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur has emerged as a source of hundreds of new coronavirus infections spanning Southeast Asia.

A 34-year-old Malaysian man who attended the event died on Tuesday, Malaysia’s Minister of Health Adham Baba said, the first death linked to the Feb 27-Mar 1 event at the Sri Petaling mosque compound.

It was attended by 16,000 people, including 1,500 foreigners.

Out of Malaysia’s 673 confirmed coronavirus cases, nearly two-thirds are linked to the four-day meeting, Adham said. It is not clear who brought the virus there in the first place.

READ: Malaysia reports 2 COVID-19 deaths, including one from mosque gathering: Health minister

Reuters spoke to six attendees and reviewed pictures and posts on social media, and the accounts and evidence showed several ways in which the outbreak could have spread.

The hosts, the Islamic missionary movement Tablighi Jama’at, which traces its roots back to India a century ago, on Monday suspended missionary activities but did not comment directly on the Malaysian event.

Tablighi Jama’at did not respond to a request for further comment. The mosque where the event was held was closed on Tuesday and a guest said he was one of dozens of worshippers still there under quarantine. Calls to the mosque went unanswered.

Malaysia plans to shut its borders, restrict internal movement and close schools, universities and most businesses, as it seeks to control its coronavirus outbreak. All mosques will be closed for two weeks.

READ: Malaysia confirms first COVID-19 death, victim is pastor from Sarawak

“I was very surprised actually that it went ahead,” said Surachet Wae-asae, a former Thai lawmaker who attended the event but has since tested negative for the coronavirus after returning home.

“But in Malaysia God is very important. The belief is strong.”

The prime minister’s office and the health ministry declined to comment further about the event.

HOLDING HANDS, SHARING PLATES

The packed gathering, where guests had to take shuttle buses to sleep at other venues, was attended by nationals from dozens of countries, including Canada, Nigeria, India and Australia, according to an attendee list posted on social media.

There were also citizens of China and South Korea – two countries with high rates of coronavirus infections.

Social media posts show hundreds of worshippers praying shoulder-to-shoulder inside the mosque, while some guests posted selfies as they shared food.

It was not clear how many guests were residents of Malaysia, but cases linked to the gathering are popping up daily across Southeast Asia.

“We sat close to each other,” a 30-year-old Cambodian man who attended the event told Reuters from a hospital in Cambodia’s Battambang province, where he was being treated after testing positive for the coronavirus on Monday.

“Holding hands at the religious ceremony was done with people of many countries. When I met people, I held hands, it was normal. I don’t know who I was infected by,” he said, asking not to be named due to fears of discrimination at his mosque.

None of the event leaders talked about washing hands, the coronavirus or health precautions during the event, but most guests washed their hands regularly, two guests said. Washing hands among other parts of the body is part of Muslim worship.

Another attendee from Cambodia said guests from different countries shared plates when meals were served.

Only half of the Malaysian participants who attended have come forward for testing, the health minister has said, raising fears that the outbreak from the mosque could be more far-reaching.

Brunei has confirmed 50 cases linked to the mosque gathering, out of a total of 56 cases. Singapore has announced five linked to the event, Cambodia 13 and Thailand at least two.

Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia, which had nearly 700 of its citizens attend, are all investigating.

That a large religious pilgrimage should have gone ahead, at a time when the epidemic had killed 2,700 people and was spreading from Italy to Iran, has drawn criticism.

More than 182,000 people have now been infected by the coronavirus globally and 7,165 have died.

‘IRRESPONSIBLE’

“That Tablighi event in KL (Kuala Lumpur) … could also cause a regional spike and it was irresponsible for the authorities to have allowed it to be held,” Singapore diplomat Bilahari Kausikan said on his Facebook page.

It is not the only religious event to spread the virus on a mass scale. Thousands of cases in South Korea are linked to services of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus in the city of Daegu.

At the time of the event in Malaysia, the country was in political turmoil. The country had a one-man government in the 94-year-old interim prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, who had quit and was temporarily re-appointed the same day.

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was sworn in as the new premier on Mar 1 and banned mass gatherings on Mar 13. Prior to that, there was only advice from the health ministry to minimise public exposure.

Some attendees defended the event, saying that at the time the situation in Malaysia – which had announced 25 known cases by Feb 28 – was not severe.

“We were not worried then as the COVID-19 situation at the time appeared under control,” said Khuzaifah Kamazlan, a 34-year-old religious teacher based in Kuala Lumpur who attended the event but has tested negative for the coronavirus.

Khuzaifah said some of the worshippers who attended the event have since refused to be tested for coronavirus, preferring to rely on God to protect them.

Karim, a 44-year-old Malaysian who attended the gathering and was later tested positive for coronavirus, says the government should have cancelled the event.

“We are a bit disappointed that this outbreak has been blamed entirely on us. That view is unfair. There was no ban on our gathering,” said Karim, who gave only his first name.

“Now I am concerned because I am positive. Please pray for me.”

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SINGAPORE: Companies are rushing to secure accommodation for Malaysian workers who commute daily to Singapore before Malaysia’s two-week-long travel restrictions kick in on Wednesday (Mar 18). 

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced on Monday that the government will implement a movement control order from Mar 18 to Mar 31 in a bid to contain the spread of COVID-19. 

Under the order, all Malaysians are barred from travelling abroad, including around 300,000 Malaysians who travel across the Woodlands Causeway and Tuas Second Link every day for work. 

Malaysian returning from overseas will need to undergo a health inspection and be placed under a 14-day self-quarantine.

Foreigners are also barred from entering Malaysia during this period. 

READ: Amidst uncertainty over restricted movement order, Malaysians working in Singapore look to temporary housing

Singapore transport engineering firm Wong Fong Engineering said that 34 of its 290 employees who work at their Tuas and Joo Koon facilities will be affected by the restrictions, impacting several functions across finance, engineering and manufacturing.

Supply chain disruptions and delayed deliveries that began when the coronavirus first emerged earlier this year will be further impacted, said the firm’s chief financial officer Jack Wong.  

The company said 12 of its workers are staying with colleagues, while beds have been secured at Tuas View Dormitory for an additional 12. The rest said they would make their own lodging arrangements, the company told CNA. 

At TranZplus Engineering, chief executive Nelson Lim and his senior management team met three Malaysian employees to decide on the steps to be taken ahead of the midnight deadline.

Due to family obligations, two of the employees – administrative staff in the sales department – will return to Johor and remain there. Their work will be taken on by their teammates in the human resource department. Mr Lim said he plans to pay them half of their salary during this time so that they will still have some cash flowing in. 

He called one dormitory to enquire about housing the third employee, a customer service officer. He decided to put her up in his home instead after the dormitory said it could only offer a room housing six workers for S$2,200 a month with a minimum lease of three months. 

National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) secretary-general Ng Chee Meng told reporters on Tuesday that about 1,300 affected Malaysian employees of supermarket chain NTUC Fairprice would be given free accommodation and some allowance to help with daily necessities. 

For Malaysian workers who are unable to stay in Singapore, Mr Ng called on their companies to be understanding of their circumstances, for example by allowing them to take their annual leave during this time.

Dormitory operator Centurion Corporation said more than 700 Malaysian residents had made bookings to stay in its dormitories as of 3pm on Tuesday. More are expected, said chief executive Kong Chee Min.

Centurion Corporation operates five dormitories with a total capacity of 28,000 beds.

But Mr Kong said that there is little spare capacity as they are operating at close to full occupancy and have also had to set aside quarantine and Stay-Home Notice isolation facilities.

The company is currently working with the authorities to temporarily re-purpose certain common spaces as living apartments to increase bed capacity during this period.

This will give them more than 5,000 additional bed spaces, he said. About 300 will be set apart for female residents. 

As for cost, Mr Kong said that they will waive the usual long-term lease requirements and charge close to normal rates for short stays, “despite significant additional costs incurred in preparing, fitting out and managing these special bed provisions”.  

He declined to say how much they charge, but pointed out that the market rate for a two weeks’ stay ranges from about S$210 to S$300, and S$400 to S$600 for a month. 

At the multi-ministerial task force press conference on Tuesday evening, Manpower Minister Josephine Teo said the authorities have matched more than 10,000 workers to accommodation providers so far, adding that housing a worker at a dormitory should cost about S$35 a day.

“For every affected worker, we will provide the firms with the support of S$50 a night for 14 nights,” she said.

The ministry has also released a list of hotels and dormitories companies can refer to for options. These include Fragrance Hotel Rose, the Ibis budget hotels and dormitories operated by Teambuild Engineering & Construction.

A customer service officer from the Fragrance hotel chain told CNA that he had been “answering enquiries” throughout the day but declined to reveal more. 

Though not on the list, the Royal Plaza on Scotts hotel has received bookings for more than 80 rooms for the duration of two weeks, said general manager Patrick Fiat. 

Most of the companies are from the technology industry, he added.

Two hundred rooms are still available and he expects more to be taken up before the end of the day.  

READ: Companies affected by Malaysia travel restrictions to receive S$50 allowance per worker for 14 nights

The hotel itself has 43 employees in departments such as housekeeping and the front office, who will be affected by the restrictions.  

Eighteen of the employees will be staying in Singapore during the lockdown and accommodation will be provided for them at the hotel, while the rest of the employees have chosen to stay with their families.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan wrote that there are ”a number” of Singapore’s bus captains and technicians who are Malaysians and commute from Johor to work in Singapore.

Public transport operators like SBS Transit and SMRT have secured sufficient hotel accommodation for those who are planning to continue working and staying in Singapore, he said. 

In a separate Facebook post, NTUC assistant secretary-general Melvin Yong said that more than 2,500 of these workers have found accommodation. 

They will also be given a daily allowance to defray some of the unexpected living expenses that they might incur, said Mr Yong, who is also the National Transport Workers’ Union executive secretary.

Fortunately, for water supplier Wanin Industries, none of its workers at their Singapore plant come in from Malaysia every day. But the company has other concerns right now.

They are unsure if  their seven Malaysian drivers who transport the cartons of water into Singapore from a factory in Johor will be able to come in, or whether as a food supplier, their operations in Malaysia will be allowed to continue given the lockdown, said its head of special projects, Eugene Tan. 

Wanin Industries, which supplies water products to supermarkets and airlines in Singapore, doubled its deliveries into Singapore today from 50,000 bottles to 100,000 bottles to ensure they have enough stock here, Mr Tan said. 

Singapore Manufacturing Federation’s (SMF) president Douglas Foo said that the group has been regularly sending updates to its members since the announcement of the lockdown, and contacting dormitories to help members find available accommodation.  

A SMF member is also consolidating a list based on inputs from other members of the critical raw materials needed for the next two weeks, he said. This list will be sent to officials from Malaysia’s Ministry of International Trade and Industry.

-Additional reporting by Zhaki Abdullah.

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SINGAPORE: A “global effort” is needed to tackle the growing economic crisis brought on by the COVID-19 outbreak, in addition to coordinating public health measures, said Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong on Tuesday (Mar 17). 

Noting that countries around the world have been “realising the seriousness of the situation” and more are actively pursuing containment and mitigation measures, Mr Wong said: “Doing all that unfortunately means there will be more economic impact. Because the stringent measures that are needed to save lives and to flatten the epidemic curve will lead to more economic impact.

“And the actions that you talk about at the global level goes beyond public health coordination now. There is also a need for economic coordination in terms of monetary and fiscal policies. 

“Because we do need to ensure that while we address the public health emergency, attention and global effort is also needed to tackle a growing economic crisis.”

READ: Singaporeans urged not to travel as ‘it puts everyone at risk’ of COVID-19

Speaking to reporters at a press conference, Mr Wong noted that the G7 and G20 leaders have met to discuss the COVID-19 outbreak. For example, G20 finance ministers and central bank governors had met in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in February, he added.

“This was still at the early stage, at that time the epidemic had not broken out in such a major way in Europe and America. There continues to be close communication since then at the G20 level, but more importantly at the G7, where the major economies have been discussing,” said Mr Wong. 

“This is a twin emergency. It is a public health emergency, it is also an economic emergency, an economic crisis,” he added. 

“It is a crisis where I think for perhaps the first time in modern history where you have an economic crisis where supply chains are disrupted in a very significant way and where travel, international travel, is grinding to a halt.” 

READ: Companies affected by Malaysia travel restrictions to get financial support 

Stressing that all major economies are “concerned”, and that some countries have already made changes to monetary policies, Mr Wong said: “We do what we can for Singapore. 

“But if you talk about the global economy, then you do need the major economies with policy space on both the fiscal and monetary front to do something promptly.”

Health Minister Gan Kim Yong also highlighted that the measures implemented in Singapore are affected by the actions taken by other countries.

“A significant number of our cases are actually imported cases. Therefore it’s important to us to work with countries around us as well as beyond, to best manage the infection and spread within each country, so as to minimise the risk that we’ll have imported cases.” 

READ: 23 more infected with COVID-19 as daily cases in Singapore reach another high

On Tuesday, Singapore reported 23 new COVID-19 cases, of which 17 were imported cases.

As of Sunday, 90 per cent of the imported cases were Singapore residents and long-term pass holders who had returned to Singapore from overseas, the Ministry of Health had said.

Mr Gan noted that a few weeks ago, ASEAN foreign ministers met to discuss the possibility of coordinating COVID-19 efforts. This continues to be in progress, with several more discussions with other ASEAN ministers scheduled, he added. 

“I think collaboration within ASEAN is an important effort towards regional cooperation,” said Mr Gan. 

“Beyond ASEAN, we also need to look to other countries to see how we can coordinate, share experiences, exchange views and also coordinate our collective effort in battling this crisis.”

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