Friday, September 25
Guv "No longer kidding" about health protocols as 20 staff in office & residence test positive + Country sets new case record for 2nd day + Police appear to target foreigners in mask patrol + more!
Good morning! Welcome to The Bali Beat for Friday, September 25. If you’re not a subscriber, sign up here to get this update delivered directly to your Inbox every Monday-Saturday 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: Click here to see the national numbers infographic and a Regency-by-Regency breakdown of yesterday’s local numbers + trendlines in our evening update.
The Big News
"Governor of Bali Admits that 20 People At His Official Home Test Positive for Covid-19" from The IDN Times (Indonesian): Koster emphasized that the public should be disciplined in implementing the COVID-19 health protocol. According to him, in implementing the protocol, the most difficult thing to control is the crowd. "Many people acting together. Can not be avoided anymore. I am horrified sometimes. Why are you scared? Because to be honest. I am already here, no need to cover up. It is in my ward, where I live, at the official residence in Jayasaba, that more than 20 people have tested positive for corona. Four of my adjutants, four of them have coronavirus. One is healed, the other is healed, but I can't let him go to the office. The two are still under quarantine," he said. Koster also said that waiters and gardeners at his residence were also positive for COVID-19. "Many. So no longer is considered to be kidding," he said.
"Indonesia Reports 60,000 Active Covid Cases, Death Toll Passes 10,000" from The Jakarta Globe: Indonesia has among the highest number of active coronavirus cases in the region, totaling 60,054 on Thursday or 22.9 percent of total cases, as the daily rise again set a new high. Southeast Asia’s biggest country has recorded 4,643 cases in the last 24 hours -- the highest single-day rise after the previous record of 4,465 only a day earlier -- to take its total to 262,022. Indonesia has beaten its own record seven times this month. The daily death toll rose by 128 for a total of 10,105, extending a run of three-digit daily deaths for 11 consecutive days now.
"Viral On Social Media: Are Police Singling Out Foreigners During the Yustisi Covid-19 Operation?" from The Bali Tribune (Indonesian): The Head of the Civil Service Police Unit (Satpol PP) of Denpasar City, Dewa Gede Anom Sayoga, said that in the act of curbing Yustisi's covid-19 health protocol, the team did not selectively choose between foreigners and Indonesian citizens or from age categories. According to him, the officers only consider the facts when they meet the facts in the field. "There is no difference between foreigners and local people, if they are wrong, they will still be punished," he said.
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Other Headlines
"13 Health Care Positive Covid, East Denpasar Community Health Center Closed" from Republika (Indonesian): Puskesmas I East Denpasar has been temporarily closed from Wednesday (23/9) to Monday (28/9), after 13 health workers tested positive for COVID-19. The health workers who were positive for COVID-19 consisted of doctors, midwives, nurses, analysts, pharmacies, counter staff, cleaning services and drivers. Head of UPTD Puskesmas I East Denpasar, Dr. IGA Mirah Herawati, said that the service will soon open with available personnel, but the service cannot be maximized. There are now 160 health workers who have tested positive for Covid-19 since the outbreak began.
"Research and Technology Ministry to Launch Rapid and PCR Test Kits" from The Jakarta Post: Research and Technology Minister and National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) head Bambang Brodjonegoro has said the ministry is developing COVID-19 test kits to improve screening for the virus. The ministry has launched 60 medical devices since May and is now developing a rapid antibody test kit and a rapid antigen, or swab test, kit. Bambang said the test kits were being tested for validity and sensitivity. “We hope to launch the test kits soon, probably next month because we want to ensure their accuracy through comparative or clinical trials,” he said. Bambang said he hoped that both test kits would be more accurate, more valid and more affordable than current tests. He also hoped they would provide faster results.
"Economy Beginning to Move, Regent Mahayastra Does Not Limit Tourism Objects" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): "Regarding the closure or restriction of tourism activities [in Gianyar], we are still conducting studies. Later when the study is out, we will consult with the governor,” said Regent Mahayastra. Now, since tourism was opened in this new normal era, the economy in Gianyar Regency has started to grow. "In this period of economic recovery, I will not be as sure as the beginning of the pandemic. Because it is very clear, as soon as tourism opens, the economic movement in Gianyar starts to stretch," he said.
"Authorities Reportedly Looking for Man Spotted Beating Dogs, Threatening People on Batu Belig Beach" from Coconuts: Authorities are reportedly looking for an unidentified man, believed to be a foreigner, who was seen chasing and hitting dogs on Batu Belig beach to the dismay of many onlookers and netizens. Several videos have widely circulated online since yesterday evening, showing a man holding a thick wooden stick, while threatening and occasionally brandishing it at people who appeared to be trying to stop him from chasing and beating dogs on the beach.
"A Total of 12 Hotels in Denpasar Have Been Verified Under the New Era of Tourism Protocol" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian): "There are 12 verified hotels that are currently submitting for processing 2, namely restaurant 1 and tourist destination 1," said Dezire Mulyani, Head of Denpasar City Tourism Office. The Denpasar City Government is targeting 2-star Hotels, 1-star Hotels, Budget Hotels, Home Stay, Villas, Restaurants, Restaurants, Tourist Attractions, Tours and Tourism Travel. Meanwhile, for 3-, 4- and 5-star Hotels, the implementation of certification and verification is carried out by the Bali Provincial Government. Dozens of hotels with 3-, 4- and 5-star status have received certification so far.
"Bali Prepares Quality Tourism, Dispar: 'Don't Get on the Road There is Selling Unhygienic Food'" from The Bali Tribune (Indonesian): The Tourism Office has begun preparing tourism standardization in an effort to organize quality tourism on the Island of the Gods. Putu Astawa, Head of the Bali Provincial Tourism Office, said that his party had begun to prepare Bali tourism standardization in accordance with the mandate of the Governor. "Do not let on the streets there are tourism objects that are currently developing and still selling food (and) unhygienic services, the food being sold is also not good," he said... Standardization in tourism involves various aspects, ranging from aspects of destinations, institutions to human resources (HR). Regarding human resources, drivers, tour guides to restaurant services, all must have ethics, behavior, knowledge, skills in accordance with the standards that will be set later.
"Even With Covid-19, Accidents in Bali Remain High" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): "The accident rate is still high even though there are restrictions in this pandemic situation. There is still a lot of movement in the community and there are also high accidents recorded at 1,350 accidents since January until now," said Kombes Pol Indra, Director of Traffic for the Bali Police. the number of traffic accidents is dominated by motorcyclists. The majority of them do not wear helmets and ride motorbikes at high speed... What is certain, he said, is that all accidents that occur are initiated by drivers who commit traffic violations. In order to minimize the high number of accidents, Kombes Indra hopes that motorists can order traffic.
The View from Outside
"Bali's Coronavirus Outbreak Was So Under Control, They Welcomed Tourists. Now Cases Are Exploding" from ABC News: As the spread of coronavirus accelerates across Bali, workers at the Bebalang crematorium say they are struggling to keep up with demand. The official COVID-19 death toll on the resort island is about 241, but Indonesia's rate of testing is among the lowest in the world... Bali now has one of the fastest-rising death rates from coronavirus in Indonesia, since the provincial government reopened the island to domestic tourism. The lack of testing for coronavirus makes it impossible to know the true rate of infection, according to local epidemiologist Dr I Gusti Ngurah Kade Mahardika. "The number of daily tests is very low," he said. "My data show there are only 600 to 700 people tested each day, so we can never know what the real situation is." Up to 4,000 tourists have arrived in Bali every day since July 31, which has fuelled the spread of the virus.
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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