Friday, November 13
Foreigners targeted in Kuta mask patrols + Trial of Sinovac vaccine in Indonesia unaffected by issues in Brazil; no problems reported + Alcohol prohibition bill re-filed in natl legislature + more!
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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: Click here to see the national numbers infographic and a Regency-by-Regency breakdown of yesterday’s local numbers.
The Big News
"Not Using Masks, Dozens of Foreigners Are Prohibited from Entering the Beach Area in Bali" from iNews Bali (Indonesian): Dozens of foreign nationals ( WNA ) have been caught by health protocol raids in the Kuta area , Bali . Those who do not wear masks are not allowed to enter the beach. the joint team carried out the raid at Batu Bolong Beach, Canggu, North Kuta, Badung Regency. The area became a location for raids because there was information from residents who said that many foreigners visited the beach without paying attention to health protocols. In the raid, the joint team caught dozens of foreigners who were found not wearing masks. In general, they brought masks but were reluctant to use them. But there are also those who really don't wear masks. Firm action was taken by the joint team by prohibiting foreigners who did not wear masks from entering the coastal area. Identity data of foreigners caught in raids are recorded and reported to Immigration.
(Ed. Note: There have been increased reports of mask patrols happening in Kuta and North Kuta, with Canggu receiving attention as well. The second half of this story makes clear that locals are complaining more about foreigners not wearing masks, and police say that they intend to continue to crack down by conducting more patrols.)
"Clinical Trials of Sinovac's Vaccine in Indonesia Still On Track" from The Jakarta Post: The team of Indonesian scientists conducting phase three clinical trials on a COVID-19 candidate vaccine developed by Chinese biopharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech has said that the trials are still ongoing, despite the suspension of a similar trial in Brazil. Padjadjaran University’s (Unpad) team spokesperson Rodman Tarigan said the trial in Indonesia, which involves more than 1,600 volunteers, had yet to encounter a serious adverse event (SAE). Meanwhile, team leader Kusnandi said that all volunteers had received their first and second doses of the would-be vaccine. “All shots have been administered. Now, we’re observing [for developments],” Kusnandi said. In Indonesia’s trials, each volunteer who has received the first and second doses of the vaccine is under the team’s observation until March 2021.
"Islamic Parties, Gerindra Revive Alcoholic Drink Prohibition Bill" from The Jakarta Globe: Lawmakers from three parties that hold 26 percent seats in the House of Representatives have proposed to restart a discussion on an alcoholic drink prohibition bill, seeking to impose a blanket ban on the sale, production, distribution, and consumption of any beverage containing alcohol. The House first discuss the bill in 2015 but later decided to drop it after oppositions from the country's tourist center Bali, and Christian-majority eastern provinces. "This new bill is a continuation from the previous one," Ibnu Multazam, a deputy chairman of the House's Legislation Body, said.
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Other Headlines
"Positive COVID-19 Pregnant Mother and Her Baby Died at Tabanan Regional Hospital" from The IDN Times (Indonesian): The pregnant woman, who was seven months pregnant, underwent treatment at Tabanan Regional General Hospital (RSUD) for five days. She tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday (10/11/2020), and died Wednesday (11/11/2020) night. The patient was admitted to the Tabanan Regional Hospital because she had severe pneumonia. The patient then underwent a swab test and was confirmed positive for COVID-19. The head of the Tabanan Communication and Information Office revealed, based on data received from the Health Task Force, the baby in the mother's womb was around seven months old, and died before the mother died.
"550 Badung Police Personnel Take Swab Test" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian): In an effort to prevent the 2020 simultaneous regional elections as a new cluster of the spread of Covid -19, the Badung Police and Polsek again carried out a Mass Swab Test. "This is the second stage of the Swab after having previously carried out 300 swab tests," said Kompol Ni Putu Utariani, Deputy Head of Badung Police. "This is a form of awareness from us in collaboration with the hospital so that the health of the Badung Police members is guaranteed," he said. So far, they have carried out 550 Swab tests and for the results we are still waiting.
"Results of Rapid Test of a Number of KPPS Officers in Karangasem Reactive" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian): A number of KPPS officers in Karangasem Regency who have undergone the Rapid Test are reportedly reactive. There are 10,035 KPPS officers who have been appointed to take the rapid test starting on November 10 to 19, 2020. From the information obtained, it was reported that in other districts there were KPPS officers whose Rapid test results showed reactive results. It's just that, the number is only one to two people out of thousands of officers who have undergone rapid tests so far.
(Ed Note: In addition to the mass swab testing of all police and government workers in many Regencies, mass rapid testing is being conducted on tens of thousands of election officials, poll workers, and neighborhood canvassers in the run up to next month’s local elections. As this article notes, so far, only a handful of reactive results have been seen in all of the testing that’s gone on to date.)
"East Denpasar District is the Most Consistent Green Zone" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian): East Denpasar District (Dentim) is the area that is most consistently included in the green zone for the spread of Covid-19. This means that the spread of the corona virus in this area is still under control. Even so, the Denpasar City Covid-19 Handling Acceleration Task Force (GTPP) still urges to always limit activities so that there is no spike in positive cases. Spokesperson for Denpasar's GTPP, I Dewa Gede Rai, said that even though several areas in Denpasar City were in the green zone, activities were still restricted. According to him, the green zone does not mean that it guarantees freedom of activity... Likewise, the issue of opening a school in Dentim cannot be done. Given that to open schools, it must be evenly distributed and the condition is that the city of Denpasar must be consistent without a Covid-19 case for 14 days. Although they are included in the green zone, said Dewa Rai, there are also areas in East Denpasar that fall into the yellow zone, but the numbers are not many.
"965 Prokes Violators Netted in Jembrana" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian): For more than three months carrying out the joint justice operation of the enforcement of the Jembrana Covid-19 prevention protocol, the joint team of Satpol PP and TNI / Polri has netted 965 violators. Of the 965 violators, 18 were fined. Meanwhile 947 other offenders were given coaching sanctions. Head of Satpol PP Jembrana I Made Leo Agus Jaya, said that since it started on September 7 to November 11 (yesterday), the number of violators per day has decreased. From the beginning, many did not wear masks, now they have become more orderly. "But there are still some who have not used masks properly. Like used on the chin. There are also those who actually carry masks, but they are not used,” he said.
(Ed. Note: This report out of Jembrana follows on other Regencies’ disclosures of their own health protocol patrol results since the rules were enacted in early September. Police in all areas continue to conduct mask patrols daily, and news about them remains prominent across the media. While trends show that on average there are fewer people being caught without masks, the chances of a fine being issued to somebody who is stopped, as opposed to a warning, is increasing. Wear your mask!)
"Soekarno-Hatta International Airport Receives ACI’s Airport Health Accreditation" from The Jakarta Post: the accreditation program evaluates health and safety protocols at airports, including cleaning and disinfection, physical distancing, staff protection, physical layout, passenger communications and passenger facilities. The airport has applied 12 steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19, combining strict health protocols and technology. The 12 steps include providing body temperature screening using a thermal scanner, thermal gun and smart helmet, adding touchless facilities in elevators and security checkpoints as well as offering rapid test stations in the airport area. The list of airports in Southeast Aisa that have received ACI accreditation includes Changi International Airport in Singapore.
The View from Outside
"Indonesia's Bali Hopes for Tourism Revival As Vaccine Trials Progress" from Reuters: Residents and businesses on the Indonesian island of Bali are hoping that news on the progress of experimental coronavirus vaccines will help them rebuild confidence in travel and lure tourists back to the struggling holiday hotspot. Hotels and street markets around Bali’s Legian beach have this week seen only a trickle of guests and no shortage of open water for surfers waiting to catch waves or paddling back out to sea. “I hope that the vaccine findings are correct, we hope that tourism in Bali will quickly return to normal as before, and our economy will continue as before,” said Arta, who runs a stall selling colourful clothes.
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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