December 21, 2021
New Year’s parties banned, restaurants to close by 10 pm + Indonesia adds UK, Denmark & Norway to entry ban list + Govt mulls 14-day quarantine for international visitors + more
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The Bali Beat will be taking a break over the Christmas and New Year’s period, the last edition of 2021 will be on Friday, December 24 and we’ll be back in your inbox on Monday, January 3, 2022.
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National Figures
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The Big News
“Governor Koster Bans New Year’s Parties, Restaurant Must Close by 10pm” from Suara Bali (Indonesian): Parades, carnivals, processions, celebration parties and other New Year celebration activities that have the potential to cause crowds are prohibited from being held by the Governor of Bali Wayan Koster. This rule is in accordance with the Bali Governor's Circular No. 20 of 2021 regarding the prevention and control of Covid-19 at Christmas and the 2022 new year in Bali which was issued on Saturday. The next rule is for malls and restaurant operating hours from 09.00 WITA to 22.00 WITA with a limitation on the number of visitors not exceeding 75% of the total capacity and the application of strict health protocols. "This circular comes into force on Friday, December 24 until Sunday, January 2" he said.
Context: In related news, fireworks are banned (Indonesian). Meanwhile Jembrana will not be issuing crowd permits over the holiday period (Indonesian).
“Indonesia Adds UK, Denmark to Entry Ban List as Omicron Explodes in Europe” from Tempo: The Indonesian government has added more countries into its entry ban list after the first case of Omicron variant of Covid-19 was detected in Jakarta. People from the United Kingdom, Denmark and Norway are now barred from crossing Indonesia's borders. "Currently there are 11 countries on the no-entry list. Based on the development of Omicron, the government has added the UK, Norway and Denmark, and removed Hong Kong from the list," Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, said on Monday.
Context: This development was accompanied by requests for the government to further tighten controls at entry points into Indonesia, while the government has stated it is considering “further emergency curbs” amid intensified testing in Jakarta.
“Gov't Mulls 14-day Quarantine for International Visitors” from The Jakarta Globe: The government is considering extending self-isolation requirement for international visitors and Indonesian returnees to two weeks to prevent the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant, a senior official said on Monday. Indonesia has confirmed three Omicron cases so far with the government classifying them as "imported cases". International visitors and Indonesians returning from overseas trips are currently required to self-isolate for ten days. “The meeting we had just now discussed a plan to extend the quarantine period to 14 days if the Omicron variant is spreading further," Chief Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said.
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Other Headlines
“Civil Coalition Urges Govt to Erase Paid Booster Vaccination Plan” from Tempo: A civil society coalition composed of CISDI, Puskapa, LaporCovid-19, and Transparency International Indonesia urges the government to revoke the paid booster vaccine policy and argues that it does not go inline with the principle of justice. “The coalition urges the government to not further confuse the public with its paid booster vaccine narrative and remain true to the principle of justice and stand with vulnerable people,” said LaporCovid-19 volunteer Firdaus Ferdiansyah on Monday. He argues that the addition of the paid vaccination scheme will burden the vaccination management that is currently very limited and is still quite biased.
Vaccination Update
“Over 500,000 Children Aged 6 -11 Vaccinated in a Week” from Antara: More than 500,000 children in the 6-11 age group have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine across Indonesia within a week, the Health Ministry has said. "Since Tuesday, our system recorded that more than 500,000 population aged 6–11 out of the targeted 26.5 million has been vaccinated," Director General of Disease Prevention and Handling at the ministry Maxi Rein Rondonuwu said. The Sinovac vaccine being administered to children is considered by experts to be effective in preventing the spread of COVID-19 in families in the home environment, especially among the vulnerable elderly group, he said.
Context: Meanwhile, the Indonesian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization stated herd immunity requires the participation of children. Reports continue to flow in from regencies regarding the progress of child vaccinations, including Buleleng (Indonesian) and Bangli (Indonesian).
More...
Nation: “Indonesia Receives 162nd Batch of Vaccines” from Antara
Nation: “Out of Stock, Mataram Hospital Stops Covid-19 Vaccinations” from Republika (Indonesian)
Nation: “A Number of Vaccines Being Studied For Boosters” from Bali Post (Indonesian)
Health Protocols (Prokes) & Health Services
“Soekarno-Hatta Quarantine Queue Goes Viral; Officials Tight-Lipped” from Tempo: A video which has gone viral in social media shows a large number of travelers who just arrived at Soekarno-Hatta Airport’s arrival area waiting in queue for multiple hours for the quarantine process at the Wisma Atlet Hospital. The woman recording the situation said they had to wait until dawn at 04:00 Western Indonesia Time. In her narration, she and fellow travelers queued from noon the previous day. Her video shows many people sleeping on the floor and baggage conveyor belt, waiting for their turn for the quarantine process. “We have the right for the services at Wisma Atlet. But there were many brokers who kept persuading us to take the hotel quarantine option instead. Mam, Rp19 million per person. That is insane, these mafias are insane,” she said.
Context: In related news, the Wisma Atlet Kemayoran Emergency Hospital has been locked down.
More...
Nation: “Epidemiologist Suspect Omicron Not Only in Jakarta: Bali Must Have Leaked” from Kompas (Indonesian)
Nation: “No Omicron Case in Manado” from Antara
Nation: “Methods Used to 'Dodge' Travel Quarantine; from Special Letters to Bribery” from Tempo
Nation: “Luhut Slams the Wealthy For Wanting Free Quarantine” from Bali Express (Indonesian)
Economy & Infrastructure
“Garuda Scheduled Flight Income Slides 6% in Q3” from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall): Garuda Indonesia suffered declines in scheduled flight income in the July to September period, the first quarterly decline for the key income segment this year, disrupting the company's financial recovery. Garuda's scheduled passenger flight income hit US$99.8 million in the third quarter, down by 48% from the previous quarter due to PPKM introduced in July to curb the Delta wave of COVID-19. Income from unscheduled charter flights also dipped 3.8% quarter-to-quarter to $18.2 million in the third quarter, continuing its downward trend since the fourth quarter of 2020.
More...
Nation: “Malaysian Investors Plant IDR 75 Billion in Gili Tangkong” from Bali Bisnis (Indonesian)
Province: “Tourists Gone, Bali’s Young Entrepreneurs Eye Sustainable Future” from Aljazeera
Province: “Koster Calls Domestic Tourists the Savior of the Bali Economy” from Bali Express (Indonesian)
Bali Reopening
“End of Year, Nusa Dua Occupancy Reaches 50.37%” from Bali Express (Indonesian): The ITDC Nusa Dua area recorded an occupancy rate that continued to show a positive growth trend towards the end of 2021. The occupancy rate from December 1-18 was recorded at 50.37%, an increase from the average monthly occupancy rate in three months previously. According to The Nusa Dua Managing Director, I Gusti Ngurah Ardita, the achievement for 18 days in December 2021 is also higher than the average occupancy rate in December 2020 of 23.56%. "This increase in occupancy rate is influenced by the increase in tourism activities in The Nusa Dua area, ranging from organizing sports events to international-standard Meeting, Incentive, Convention and Exhibition events," said Ardita on Monday.
Context: The hotels in Nusa Dua represent a fraction of the overall supply of hotels on Bali but traditionally attract many conferences and events. In related news, other media examined comments by the Vice President earlier this month stating Bali hotels were at capacity and found his statement to be inaccurate (Indonesian). Meanwhile Minister Uno suggested the target for domestic tourists to Bali for 2022 was between 1.6 and 2.2 million (Indonesian). Bali’s airport is seeing record traffic levels (Indonesian) for the year, and the Tourism Minister asks for increased caution and monitoring of entry points (Indonesian).
More...
Province: “Minister Asks Bali to Prepare for Increase in Travelers” from Antara
Of Interest
“Spate of Cyberattacks in Indonesia Shines Spotlight on Complacency, Public Education” from CNA
“In the Next Three Days, Most of Bali Will Be Drenched in Rain” from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
“1,100 Tons of Trash Cleared From South Bali Beaches” from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
“Sanur Beach Restructuring 80% Complete” from Bali Post (Indonesian)
“Bali Turtles Are Expected to Be a Featured Destination” from Bali Express (Indonesian)
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