Infection deluge at Singapore housing for foreign workers

Singapore reported its highest daily increase of coronavirus cases as infections engulfed more dormitories housing low-wage foreign workers amid a steady rise in cases across Asia.

The city-state said an additional 447 cases were confirmed, bringing its total to 3,699.

Of the new cases, more than 400 are tied to facilities that house migrant workers in close quarters. Workers in about 20 dormitories have been affected by the virus outbreak.

Singapore is grappling with a pace of infections that are picking up among workers staying in the dormitories, at a time when it appears to be stabilizing elsewhere across the country.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong promised to help domestic workers, especially those in dormitories, during the course of the pandemic.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expanded a state of emergency due to cover the whole country. It allows regional governors to urge people to stay indoors, but with no punitive measures or legal force, the measure is far weaker than strict lockdowns seen in other parts of the world.

The measure takes effect from today and lasts until May 6. Abe's previous state of declaration on April 7 only covered Tokyo and six other prefectures deemed at highest risks of infection.

China reported 46 new cases, 34 of them brought from outside the country. Four were reported in Heilongjiang province, where a new flare-up has occurred among mainlanders crossing the border from Russia.

China has now reported a total of 3,342 deaths among 82,341 cases.

In South Korea, the ruling liberal party secured a resounding victory in parliamentary elections, featuring the highest turnout in nearly three decades despite the pandemic forcing social distancing at polling places.

The Democratic Party and a satellite party it created to win proportional representative seats won 180 seats in the 300-seat assembly.

Philippine senators, meanwhile, demanded the immediate resignation of health secretary Francisco Duque III for what they say is his leadership failure, negligence and inefficiency that led to the mishandling of the pandemic.

The Philippines has the most number of infections in Southeast Asia with 5,453 cases, including 349 deaths.