Friday, January 15
Gov Koster kicks off vaccination program, says new case surge "is still within the limits we tolerate" + Foreigner entry ban extended to Jan. 25 + Individuals can't buy vaccine dose until 2022 + more!
Good morning! Welcome to The Bali Beat for Friday, January 15. If you’re not a subscriber, sign up here to get this update delivered directly to your Inbox every Monday-Friday morning, along with each evening’s Covid-19 update. If you are already a subscriber, thank you! Please be sure to share it with others in the foreigner community on the island by clicking the button below.
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Weather & Waves
Today’s Weather for Southern Bali
Today’s Tides
Surf Outlook
Weather forecast from Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology & Geophysics Council (Link)
Tide table from Tide-forecast.com.
Surf outlook via Windy.com.
Local Covid Numbers
*NOTE: Indonesia set another new record for new cases (11,557), with deaths (295) just below the high mark of 306 that it hit yesterday. While not a new record, Bali’s numbers yesterday are in the neighborhood and have pushed the 7-day average to an all-time high of 251. At this point last month it was 95. when asked about the drastic rise in cases since the end-of-year holidays yesterday, Governor Koster said that "Everything is going well," and that the increase “is still within the limits we tolerate... So there is no change in policy." Click here to see the national numbers infographic and a Regency-by-Regency breakdown of yesterday’s local numbers.
The Big News
"Bali Governor Wayan Koster Gets First Jab of Covid-19 Vaccine in Bali" from Coconuts: The mass vaccination program against COVID-19 officially kicked off [yesterday] in Bali, with Governor Wayan Koster being the first person in the province to receive a dose of the CoronaVac vaccine. “Frankly I’ve been a little nervous since last night. It’s a bit nerve-racking but [I was] guided by prayers and good will to go through with this for the public,” Koster said after getting his first vaccine dose. Recipients are scheduled to receive their mandatory second dose of CoronaVac in two weeks.
Context: If you missed the livestream of the governor’s vaccination, you can catch the video here. Local governments are clarifying the vaccination plan. Distribution has begun to first priority recipients (healthcare workers) in Denpasar, Badung, and Gianyar, which have been designated as being in “Term I.” The other regencies, Karangasem, Bangli, Jembrana, Buleleng, Klungkung, and Tabanan, have been designated as being in “Term II,” and will see their allocated vaccine doses delivered for distribution in early February. (Announcements from yesterday for each regency - if available - are linked.) Within each regency, vaccinations will be conducted across four prioritized groups, with each group being inoculated in turn. The goal is to vaccinate 2.9 million people, or about 70% of the population.
"The Prohibition of Foreigners Entering Indonesia Is Extended" from Bali Express (Indonesian): The Task Force for Handling COVID-19 has extended and updated the rules for foreign citizens (WNA) and Indonesian citizens (WNI) who have just arrived from abroad in an effort to prevent the transmission of the new SARS CoV-2 virus variant B117. Circular Letter No.2 of 2021 concerning the International Travel Health Protocol in the 2019 Corona Virus Disease Pandemic is in effect from 15-25 January 2021 and can be changed according to developments in the situation. This prohibition for foreigners to enter Indonesia is exempted for holders of diplomatic and official residence permits, holders of limited stay permit cards (KITAS) and permanent residency cards (KITAP) and foreigners with special considerations and permits in writing from the Ministry / Institution.
"No Independent COVID-19 Vaccine Options" from Indonesia Expat: Deputy Minister of Health Dante Saksono Harbuwono has emphasized that until now, the government has not opened the option of independently acquiring the COVID-19 vaccine. The government is still focused on the free vaccination program. Dante said that people who have sufficient finances and intend to get a vaccine still have to wait for their vaccination priority. This means that people who are able must follow the timeline set by the Ministry of Health.
>> Classifieds <<
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Business is tough in the best of times, but these days- Wow. Thankfully, there’s a supportive spirit among the foreigners who remain in Bali; this newsletter is proof. If you’ve got a product or service that needs local support to succeed, let this community know about it here.
Other Headlines
"Positive Covid-19 Patients in Bali Soar in the Last 3 Days, BOR at PTN Unud Hospital Approaches 70%" from The Bali Tribune (Indonesian): The addition of new positive cases of Covid-19 resulted in an increase in the Bed Occupancy Rate (BOR) at the PTN Unud Hospital. "The impact is that the current BOR is close to 70%. There has been an increase of approximately two weeks," said the Director of PTN Unud Hospital, Dr. dr Dewa Putu Gede Purwa Samatra. "Hopefully by the end of January we can add 26 more beds. New clusters or how I don't know exactly because we are Covid-19 Referral Hospital so we have received referral patients from anywhere. But I think most are still family clusters."
"Effects of Covid-19 Cases in Denpasar Rise, Face-to-Face Simulations Postponed" from Bali Express (Indonesian): The sharp spike in Covid-19 cases in Denpasar City has made face-to-face simulations planned for kindergarten / early childhood to junior high school levels have to be postponed. In fact, this delay cannot be confirmed until an indefinite time limit... Head of Junior High School Education, Disdikpora Denpasar City AA Gede Wiratama, Thursday (14/1) revealed that not only the simulation has been postponed, but the face-to-face learning process plan is also almost impossible.
Context: While in-person learning has been cancelled by all districts, some “simulations” at a few schools had been left in place. These schools were allowed to open in order to study the effectiveness of health protocols on the health of the students & staff, as well as on the learning process.
"800 Residents of the Pejeng Kangin Inflation Undergo Rapid Antigen Test" from Bali Express (Indnonesian): The handling of dozens of residents who carried out isolation in Banjar Pengembungan, Pejeng Kangin Village, Tampaksiring District, Gianyar Regency, was followed up with a rapid antigen test, Thursday. Hundreds of residents who have undergone the Rapid Antigen Test (RTA) are those in close contact with people who have tested positive for Covid-19. Acting Head (Plt) Head of Gianyar Regency Health Office, dr. Ida Komang Upeksa explained that the mass RTA steps were carried out as a follow-up to the development of the situation in the local village. "There are as many as 800 people who have close contacts in the village," he explained.
"Streets, Houses Submerged Following Heavy Rain Across Bali’s Badung Regency" from Coconuts: [Yesterday] morning, some parts of Bali’s Badung regency woke up to houses submerged in flood and streets turning into streams following some heavy rain last night, scenes from which are making the rounds on social media. In several viral videos, some residents can be seen draining flooded rooms while others decided to play around in the “instant” pool with their surfboards. Most reports on social media seem to be coming from Berawa, Canggu, Pererenan, and Kerobokan.
Context: Damage was widespread, with some people saying that heir cars had been swept 2km away. Disaster management officials in Badung have said that there were no casualties reported from yesterday’s flooding.
"Bali’s Trash Solution in Action" from Indonesia Expat: In May 2020, Janur started with two Banjar (village councils) in Tabanan, and it gathered steam quickly. “This is a true grassroots movement,” Janur explained, “and it runs deeper than collecting plastic and exchanging it for rice. It is about education and action,” he said... With a few dedicated volunteers in his core team, the initiative spread across the island like wildfire and now, 200 Banjar across Bali are on board. To date, 200 tonnes of plastic waste have been collected and 35 tonnes of rice have been given out. The program has now spread to over 6,000 households in Bali who are actively participating in this new wave of cleaning up their local area.
"Bali’s Thieving Monkeys Can Spot High-value Items to Ransom" from The Guardian: Shrewd macaques prefer to target items that humans are most likely to exchange for food, such as electronics, rather than objects that tourists care less about, such as hairpins or empty camera bags, said Dr Jean-Baptiste Leca, an associate professor in the psychology department at the University of Lethbridge in Canada and lead author of the study... Mobile phones, wallets and prescription glasses are among the high-value possessions the monkeys aim to steal. “These monkeys have become experts at snatching them from absent-minded tourists who didn’t listen to the temple staff’s recommendations to keep all valuables inside zipped handbags firmly tied around their necks and backs,” said Leca.
The View from Outside
"Indonesia Coronavirus: the Vaccination Drive Targeting Younger People" from The BBC: Indonesia has rolled out a mass free Covid-19 vaccination programme in an attempt to stop the spread of the virus and get its economy going again. But the country is taking a markedly different approach to others. Instead of vaccinating elderly people in the first phase, after frontline workers, it will target younger working people aged 18 to 59... Professor Amin Soebandrio, who is on a board that has advised the government on its "youth first" strategy, argues that it makes sense to prioritise immunising working people - those "who go out of the house and all over the place and then at night come back home to their families. We are targeting those that are likely to spread the virus," he told BBC Indonesia.
How You Can Help
In response to the collapse of the tourism sector in Bali and the resulting economic crisis, dozens of individuals and organizations have sprung into action, raising funds and distributing badly needed food and everyday essentials to the innumerable families who have suddenly found themselves without any source of income. We've been making an effort to document and raise awareness of these efforts. We will add information on projects in this space as we are able to confirm them. If you'd like to see a list of the efforts that we've featured so far and contribute to them with either time or money, visit our complete list here. You can also see a list of projects that have registered themselves at BaliSolidarity.org. If you know of an effort and would like to have them listed, please send their information to newsletter@migrationmedia.net.
About This Newsletter
This newsletter is a product of Migration Media, the hub for stories from and about the international migrant experience.
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