March 17, 2022
Immigration intensifies surveillance of foreigners + 18 additional countries proposed for Visa On Arrival + Motorcycle-mad Indonesia revs up to MotoGP + more
Good morning!
Welcome to The Bali Beat for Thursday, March 17. In today’s edition, we have news that the Immigration Department is ramping up surveillance of foreigners in Bali following the increase in tourist arrivals. In related news, an additional 18 countries have been proposed for inclusion on the Visa On Arrival list. Across the water, Lombok is in the final stages of preparation for the MotoGP which takes place this weekend. Scroll down for the full wrap on what has been happening in Bali and Indonesia since you last heard from us.
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Daily Covid Update
National Figures
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The Big News
“Immigration Intensifies Surveillance of Foreigners” from Nusa Bali (Indonesian): Following the opening of international flights, the Immigration Department has intensified monitoring of foreign nationals while in Bali. Head of Intelligence of Ngurah Rai Special Class I Immigration Office, Yoga Aria Prakoso Wardoyo, on Tuesday said the supervision of foreigners in Bali continues to be carried out. Under the rules, any foreigner who overstays for 60 days will be subject to deportation with a deterrence for 6 months. Some points that become attention, according to the working area of the Ngurah Rai Immigration Office, namely in three sub-districts namely North Kuta, Kuta, and South Kuta. "At the moment, we are continuing to monitor, including foreigners from Ukraine and Russia. So, we are intensifying monitoring to prevent violations," said Prakoso Wardoyo. A total of 18 foreigners, from Russia, the Netherlands, Venezuela, Ukraine, Germany, Vietnam, the United States, Australia, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Malaysia and Thailand, were deported in January and February.
Context: This related story suggests the onshore visa program may have some adjustments on the way (Indonesian).
“18 Additional Countries Proposed for VoA” from Radar Bali (Indonesian): A week after allowing 23 countries to enter Bali using a Visa on Arrival (VoA), now the Bali Provincial Government proposes additional countries that can enter Bali with VoA. "There are 18 additional countries that we propose to enter Bali with VoA," said Acting Head of Bali Tourism Office, Tjok Bagus Pemayun, on Tuesday. According to Tjok Pemayun, the proposal of the 18 countries is based on various considerations. The main consideration is the segment of the tourist market to Bali. Residents of these 18 countries have been known to love traveling to Bali. The 18 proposed countries are: Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, China, Denmark, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Mexico, Morocco, Poland, Russia, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tunisia and Ukraine.
“Motorcyle-mad Indonesia Revs Up for First GP in 25 Years” from Agence France-Presse: Indonesia hosts its first motorcycle grand prix in 25 years on Sunday, confident that concerns surrounding the new track will be forgotten once racing begins in front of a sell-out crowd. Sunday's race is the second stop on the 2022 MotoGP calendar after the opening race in Qatar two weeks ago, won by Enea Bastianini of Italy. The new 4.3-kilometre circuit hugs white-sanded coastline on the island of Lombok, which wants to rival its better-known neighbor, Bali, as a tropical holiday destination. The track complex is part of those ambitions. There is great anticipation, but also angst and anger -- the circuit is part of a mega-tourism infrastructure project denounced by the United Nations over the eviction of families. Some refused to leave and were still encamped at the track in November.
Context: The President, who held a welcome event in Jakarta for riders and plans to attend the event himself, said some 60,000 tickets for the event are sold out, while the ITDC has said 100,000 tickets have been sold (Indonesian). The Tourism Minister has noted there is still accommodation available, though other government officials have said 70% of the spectators are already in Lombok and accommodation is filling up. In Bali meanwhile, hotels in Karangasem are seeing hundreds of cancellations as guests shift their stay to Lombok (Indonesian). Vaccination levels in NTB are now over 80% for the second dose according to government officials. Vaccinated attendees are not required to take an Anitgen test.
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Other Headlines
“Indonesia Bolstering Green Economy Through Waste Management” from Antara: The Indonesian government is encouraging the implementation of green economy through waste management to realize social welfare and equality while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcity. "The garbage management has been directed at (green economy). There has been a paradigm shift in waste treatment, as plastic waste is now an issue," Rofi Alhanif, assistant deputy of waste and sewage management at the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment, said on Wednesday. According to the calculations of the National Plastic Action Partnership (NPAP), Indonesia produces 6.8 million tons of plastic waste per year, and 10% of this waste reaches the sea. If this problem is not resolved promptly, the amount of plastic waste flowing to the sea is predicted to reach 780,000 tons by 2025.
Vaccination Update
“Merah Putih Vaccine: Phase 3 Trials to Start in July” from Antara: The Phase 3 clinical trials for the Merah Putih vaccine are targeted to start in July this year, head of the National Agency of Drug and Food Control, Penny K. Lukito, said. "Currently, the Merah Putih vaccine is going to enter its Phase 2 (clinical trials). We hope that April this year, it will enter Phase 2 and if it goes well in terms of clinical trial data reports, the third phase will be continued in July," she said on Wednesday. Penny assured that the Phase 1 pre-clinical trials that were conducted on animals went well. "Currently, we are still waiting for the interim data on research for the second dose injection in the next two weeks," she said.
More...
Province: “Bali Booster Vaccination Reaches 30% of Target” from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
Badung: “Badung Government Increases Covid-19 Vaccination Booster Dose” from Antara Bali (Indonesian)
Buleleng: “Given Rice, Residents in Buleleng Flock to Get Vaccinated” from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
Health Protocols (Prokes) & Health Services
“Omicron BA.2 Sub-variant Detected in 19 Provinces” from Antara: The Omicron BA.2 sub-variant has been detected in 19 provinces in Indonesia, spokesperson for the COVID-19 Handling Task Force Wiku Adisasmito said on Tuesday. "No matter what the current condition is, our collective goal is to control positive cases and deaths to consistently reduce them," he said. According to data from GISAID on March 13, since the start of 2022, Indonesia is experiencing a rise in the number of Omicron BA.2 cases. The sub-variant has been detected in 19 provinces and the total number of cases has reached 8,302 based on the genome sequencing examination. Unfortunately, this occurs when the COVID-19 vaccination coverage is declining at the national level. Hence, Adisasmito urged the people to immediately visit the nearest health facility to receive the complete dose and booster vaccination.
More...
Province: “Proper Covid-19 Handling Guarantees More Tourists” from Antara
Economy & Infrastructure
“A Number of Temples are Affected by Gilimanuk-Mengwi Toll Road” from Radar Bali (Indonesian): The existence of temples and holy places crossed by the Gilimanuk-Mengwi toll road, became one of the records and inputs from the indigenous village assembly (MDA) of Bali. This was revealed by the Chairman of Commission III of the Bali IGA Parliament Diah Werdhi Srikandi Suyasa when checking the location of the planned Gilimanuk - Mengwi toll road, on Tuesday. The team checked at least four locations crossed by the toll road. The four points, Cekik, Gilimanuk, Melaya Subdistrict, Banyubiru-Kaliakah District, Batuagung-Jembrana Subdistrict and in Mendoyo District. Regarding the construction of the toll road, there is input from the MDA related to the temple passed by the toll road. From checking in the Jembrana area, not too many temples are affected, but still be an input later.
More...
Nation: “West Manggarai Provincial Government Targets 150,000 Tourists” from Republika (Indonesian)
Badung: “Dozens of W Bali Seminyak Hotel Workers Protest” from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
Bali Reopening
“There’s Ten Additional International Flight Routes to Bali: Ministry” from Tribun Bali (Indonesian): The Ministry of Transportation conducted an evaluation for the arrival of international and domestic aircraft passengers at Bali's I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport. Director General of Air Transportation Of The Ministry of Transportation Novie Riyanto said on Wednesday "Then there are 3 new international flight routes that will operate, namely Garuda Indonesia Sydney-Denpasar route, KLM Singapore-Denpasar route and Malaysia Airline Kuala Lumpur-Denpasar route." He also said in the summer period ten new international flight routes will be opened. "Currently four routes have been approved and six other routes are in the process. In the near future AirAsia on Kuala Lumpur-Denpasar and Batik Air on Singapore-Denpasar, "said Novie. The flights that are applying for the activation include Jetstar on Melbourne-Denpasar, AirAsia on Singapore-Denpasar, Turkish Airlines on Istanbul-Denpasar, Qantas on Melbourne-Denpasar and Emirates on Dubai-Denpasar.
Context: The Perth-Bali route, which Jetstar is currently running a heavily discounted sale on, was not mentioned as a flight route for which approval has been sought.
More...
“Bali Upbeat for Tourism Rebound as More International Travelers Arrive” from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall)
“Airasia to Join List With KL–Bali Route Relaunch” from Coconuts Bali
Of Interest
“The Indonesians Who Hunt for Wild Mushrooms” from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall)
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