In Myanmar, the loudspeaker gave the monk's advice: placing 7 pepper seeds on the tongue will avoid corona virus spreading throughout the world.

Myanmar is one of the Southeast Asian countries that have not made a decision to restrict travel to China in the context of the acute pneumonia caused by a new strain of corona virus (nCoV).

In Indonesia, Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto advised people not to stress and avoid working overtime to prevent pneumonia, which has killed more than 427 people and more than 20,000 people infected worldwide.

"It's very easy to translate, as long as your immunity is good," Terawan added.

In Cambodia, Prime Minister Hun Sen said at a press conference last week that he would fire any journalist wearing a mask, because it created an atmosphere of unnecessary fear. "If the Prime Minister doesn't even wear a mask, why do you have to?" He said.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has considered the nCoV pneumonia outbreak in Wuhan City, China as a global medical emergency. But the move does not seem to have triggered alarm bells in some Southeast Asian countries, which attract many Chinese tourists and workers.

According to NYTimes correspondent Hannah Beech, some Southeast Asian countries have reduced the severity of the disease or are afraid to take aggressive measures for fear of offending China, which has a great influence on their economy. . To date, at least 57 people in Southeast Asian countries have been infected with nCoV.

Health experts worry that the delayed response may accelerate the spread of the disease. "Our biggest concern is the risk of the virus spreading to countries with weaker health systems," said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General.

On January 1, a 44-year-old Wuhan resident died in the Philippines, the first case of nCoV to die outside of China. The virus has spread to 25 countries and territories around the world.

Hours before the death notice was released, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte issued a ban on entry to most travelers to mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau recently. Earlier this week, Duterte, who advocated bringing the Philippines closer to China and away from the traditional US ally, once said that there was no reason to ban travelers from mainland China. Many Filipino health experts have criticized Duterte's statement.

Activist Anthony Leachon urged the Philippine government to ban Chinese entry, although the move threatens to upset Beijing. "Countries should break the ritual to save people," Leachon said.

With 19 confirmed cases, Thailand is the country with the most cases of nCoV in Southeast Asia, followed by Singapore with 18 cases.

Thailand last weekend announced a taxi driver positive for nCoV, most likely after interacting with a Chinese tourist. Another case in Thailand is a Chinese man who came to Chiang Mai. He was initially diagnosed negative for nCoV and moved out of isolation to a general ward before being found positive for the virus.

"The risk of him spreading the disease to others is very low," said Rungrueng Kitphati, a spokesman for Thailand's Ministry of Health, saying the distance between the beds is over one meter. "Health workers always wash their hands when entering and leaving the room. The virus will not spread to others."

But in Wuhan, health workers have been infected with nCoV, including a doctor who warned of the mysterious virus since December 2019, but was later warned by the city police about its spread. "illegal" rumors.

Countries with nCoV patients. Click on image to see details.

As the virus spreads throughout the region, some countries have not yet properly assessed its risk. At a hospital in Yangon, Myanmar's largest city, a presentation on preventing the nCoV epidemic read: "Don't be afraid of nCoV. It won't last long because it's 'made in China'. .

"Health is not a joke, so is the virus," said Aung Aung, a surgeon at Mandalay General Hospital. "I don't think Myanmar has the modern technology to determine if there is a virus here."

On January 31, Myanmar announced the first suspected case of nCoV infection as a Chinese man from Guangzhou. Myanmar is not able to check if a person is infected with nCoV, but must send samples to Thailand or Hong Kong (China) and may need to wait a week for results.

Even senior officials in the country believe in rumors of folk remedies for nCoV. After a Facebook user in Myanmar wrote that onions could help prevent the spread of the virus, many people shared the post, including U Myint Mg, the leader of the Tanintharyi region. "The Chinese government announces that everyone should take and carry as much onions as possible," he wrote without real evidence.

Cambodia has a case of Chinese citizens in Sihanoukville, where tens of thousands of Chinese workers work. About 3,000 tourists from Wuhan have flown to Cambodia since the translation was announced last month, according to Cambodian civil aviation authorities.

Some Cambodians fear the potential impact of the virus has not been fully informed for political reasons. Meanwhile, the country's health minister said Cambodia's hot and humid climate could help them avoid nCoV.

China is said to have pressured countries to prevent its citizens from entering the country due to the corona virus. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying called the US entry ban "inappropriate" and "unjust".

In Thailand, airports are always bustling with tourists. Tourism officials say the number of visitors from China may decrease by 80% in the first four months of the year. Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul recommends stopping the airport visa program for people from mainland China.

However, more than 180,000 Chinese tourists who have entered Thailand in the past two months remain in the country. Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha asked Anutin to check with tourism officials before submitting an official proposal to the cabinet, which could take several days.

Meanwhile, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said he would not ban flights from China. He will also not evacuate Cambodians from Wuhan like other countries, because they "must remain there and work together with China to fight the disease".

"Has any Cambodian or foreigner in Cambodia died of this disease? At present, the real disease occurring in Cambodia is a disease of fear, not nCoV in Wuhan City," Hun Sen said.

Indonesia, which has a direct flight with Wuhan to take tourists to the resort island of Bali, did not confirm any cases of nCoV, worrying that it had laxly monitored visitors. Cases have been detected in Malaysia, Singapore and Australia, three surrounding countries with fewer people than Indonesia.

Laos has not confirmed any cases, despite the large influx of Chinese tourists and workers in the country.

On February 1, hundreds of residents of Indonesia's Natuna Islands protested against the government's decision to send about 240 people to Wuhan to quarantine there.

"People are angry," said Andes Putra, head of parliament Natuna, saying local officials were given very little information about the corona virus.

Like other countries in Southeast Asia, Indonesia depends heavily on Chinese tourists. On January 30 alone, 10,000 Chinese tourists canceled plans to visit Bali. But on February 2, Indonesia banned travelers from mainland China for 14 days.

Indonesian Health Minister Terawan said that nCoV will not affect those who exercise properly and get enough sleep. "Don't worry," he said. "Just eat and sleep well."