May 21, 2021
Work From Bali plan criticized by economists + Province's tracing efforts for UK, South Africa variants still awaiting results + 335,000 doses of AstraZeneca and Sinovac land in Bali + more!
Good morning! Welcome to The Bali Beat for Friday, May 21. If you’re not a subscriber, sign up here to get this update delivered directly to your inbox each weekday morning, along with every evening’s Covid-19 update. If you are already a subscriber, thank you! Please be sure to share it with others in the community by clicking the button below.
*A paid subscription is NOT required to access this content.* However, if you would like to support our news gathering efforts, please consider making a donation of US$5/month by becoming a contributing subscriber at the link above. Or if you prefer to make a one-time donation - in any amount - click here.
Weather & Waves
Today’s Weather for Southern Bali
Today’s Tides
Meteorology, Climatology & Geophysics Council (Link)
Tide table from Tide-forecast.com.
Local Covid Numbers
*Note: New cases dropped slightly yesterday from 112 to 83, of which one reported in Denpasar was contracted overseas. With 4 more deaths, total fatalities have reached 1,467.
Click here to see the national numbers infographic and a Regency-by-Regency breakdown of yesterday’s local numbers.
The Big News
"Luhut Invites Civil Servants Under His Ministry to Work From Bali, Receives Harsh Criticism" from Detik: Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, intensified the Work From Bali program for the ministries under his coordination. He has signed an MoU to support the provision of accommodation by 16 hotels in the area of The Nusa Dua Bali, which is managed by the Indonesia Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC). The Work From Bali plan was immediately heavily criticized. According to Bhima Yudhistira, an economist at the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF), the plan is considered a waste of budget. The state budget, according to Bhima, should be used to support health spending and social protection rather than for official trips of ministry employees. Bhima was confused that in the midst of a widening state budget deficit, that there were still funds to be used for meetings in Bali. According to him, the impact of official trips to the regions is not big. "Do not be redundant, so far the official travel budget has a limited impact and even tends to benefit government employees themselves," he said.
"Update: African and British Covid-19 Variants in Bali Province" from Tribun Bali (Indonesian): Since it was discovered a few weeks ago, the Provincial Government of Bali is currently investigating the new African and British variants of Covid-19. When confirmed, the Head of the Bali Provincial Health Office, Dr. Ketut Suarjaya, said that currently, his party was conducting an epidemiological investigation until the end of this May. Because the sample examination must be sent to the center, so at this time his party has not received the latest sample results. Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said, "The transmission of this new variant is higher. Therefore what we have to do as the people is make sure the health protocol is implemented."
"Accelerating Mass Vaccination Program, Bali Receives 335,300 Doses of Sinovac and AstraZeneca Vaccines" from Tribun Bali (Indonesian): The vaccines comprised 250,000 doses of AstraZeneca and 85,300 of Sinovac. All AstraZeneca vaccines are brought to the Bali Health Office, while the Sinovac vaccines were brought to two different warehouses, namely KFTD Kimia Farma Bali warehouse, and PT Tempo Scan Pacific warehouse. Head of the Bali Provincial Health Office, Dr. Ketut Suarjaya, said that after arriving in Bali, these vaccines will be distributed directly to all districts or cities.
>> Classifieds <<
The Daily Upside is a business newsletter that covers the most important stories in business in a style that’s engaging, insightful & fun. Traditional investment news is littered with jargon & filled with fluff; The Daily Upside peels out the insights so you can stay above the fray. Try it here.
Morning Brew covers the latest business news in a fun and engaging way. Long gone are the days of dry and dense traditional business news; with Morning Brew you can stay informed and entertained, Monday-Sunday. The best part? It’s absolutely free. Sign up here.
If you’re reading this newsletter then you care about Bali and what happens here. If you’ve got a product or message that you want other people on the island who are like you to know about, you can place a classified ad in this space to spread the word. Click here to learn more.
Other Headlines
"President Jokowi Tells Regional Leaders to Be Tuned in to Covid-19 Data" from Coconuts Jakarta: President Joko Widodo is lamenting how some regional leaders don’t know their respective regions’ COVID-19 data off the top of their heads, amid accusations that they may be tinkering with the data. During an official virtual meeting with regional officials this morning, the president said he was surprised to find that some regional leaders drew blanks when he asked them about their real-time COVID-19 data, which he said is essential to determine government policy to tackle the outbreak. “If they don’t know the numbers, how are they going to solve [the crisis]?” Jokowi said, without specifying the names of the officials. Jokowi added that he reads the latest data on COVID-19 in Indonesia daily, even down to the city and regency level. The president’s statement came after Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin derided unnamed regional officials he said have been suppressing their COVID-19 counts so their regions officially remain low-risk for COVID-19 transmission.
Vaccination Update
"Indonesia’s Vaccine Campaign Hits Speed Bumps" from East Asia Forum: The Indonesian government set an ambitious goal to complete mass COVID-19 immunisation by the end of March 2022, covering the 181.5 million Indonesians eligible for vaccination. The first phase aimed to vaccinate 40.2 million healthcare workers, public officials, and elderly citizens by the end of April 2021. The second phase targets a further 141.3 million Indonesians from vulnerable populations as well as the general public. Yet the vaccine rollout has been slow and disorganised.
More...
Nation: "9.5 Million Indonesians Have Finished Their Covid-19 Vaccination" from Antara Bali (Indonesian)
Buleleng: "Seririt Becomes Vaccination Priority, Covid-19 Task Force Prepares 7,000 Doses" from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
Buleleng: "17,000 AstraZeneca Vaccines Ready to Target Districts Outside Buleleng" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Denpasar: "After the First Phase, Kesdam IX Udayana Focuses on Vaccination for Public Servants" from Tribun Bali (Indonesian)
Health Protocols (Prokes) & Patrols
Badung: "Passed without Covid Certificate in 2 Ports, 26 were caught in Mengwi Terminal" from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
Denpasar: "There Are Still Many Stubborn People Who Don't Use Masks, Dozens of Prokes Violators Take Rapid Antigen Test" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Denpasar: "Not Wearing Masks, 17 Fined Rp.100,000" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
Tabanan: "Beware of the Covid-19 Tsunami, Religious Activities Must Be Strictly Supervised" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Economy & Infrastructure
"The Use of Non-cash Payment Systems in Bali is Increasing" from Bisnis Bali (Indonesian): The use of the non-cash payment system with QRIS in Bali increased by 5.1% or 217,936 merchants in May 2021, compared to the previous month. Head of the Bali Bank Indonesia Representative Office, Trisno Nugroho, said non-cash payment transactions were the community's choice in the midst of a pandemic. Based on data from Bank Indonesia until 11 May 2021, the number of Indonesian Standard Quick Response Code (QRIS) merchants on the Island of the Gods reached 217,936. The highest number of users is in Denpasar City with 106,267 merchants or 49% compared to eight other regencies. Meanwhile, the lowest was in Bangli Regency, with a total of 1,987 merchants or 1%. "This number makes Bali occupy the 7th position in Indonesia with the most QRIS merchants. The target this year is up to 350,000 merchants."
More...
Nation: "Indonesia Books Trade Surplus for 12 Consecutive Months" from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall)
Nation: "No Income and No Reunions: Transportation Industry Workers Lament Travel Ban" from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall)
Province: "Supporting the Gilimanuk-Mengwi Toll Road Megaproject, Council Ensures Toll Roads Do Not Kill MSMEs" from Tribun Bali (Indonesian)
Province: "Blue Bird Starts Operating Electric Taxis, Adding Centers to Showrooms" from Bisnis Bali (Indonesian)
Badung: "Badung Tourism Revenue Drops by 85%, the Board Asks Executives to Fight for Central Funds" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Gianyar: "Many Subak in Gianyar Do Not Have Adequate Machinery" from Bali Express (Indonesian)
Klungkung: "Klungkung Runs Out of Budget, Compensation for Death is Temporarily Suspended" from IDN Times Bali (Indonesian)
"Investigation into Corruption in Procurement of Rp.2.9 Billion Worth of Masks at the Karangasem Social Service Escalates" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): The case of alleged corruption in the procurement of scuba-type masks at the Karangasem District Social Service continues. Most recently, for this case which allegedly caused losses to the state's finances amounting to Rp.2.9 billion, investigators from the Karangasem Prosecutor's Office upgraded the status of the investigation from inquiry to investigation. Head of Intelligence Section of the Karangasem Kejari, I Dewa Gede Semara Putra, said some of the witnesses targeted were parties who were deemed to have a connection with the procurement of the masks in 2020, such as officials, partners, and others.
"The Origin of the Island of Bali, Once Submerged on the Indian Ocean Floor" from Suara Bali (Indonesian): Compared to the islands of Java and Sumatra, geologically, Bali is considered "young" or was formed later in the tertiary era. It is much younger than Sumatra, which has rocks from the Perem era, about 300 million years ago. About 3 million years ago, the island of Bali was not yet born and there was only the ocean. The subduction arc of the Indo-Australian Plate, which continues to slowly move northward, was taking effect. Due to the push of the plate from the south, the ocean floor was raised. Along with the initial stages of magma formation in the depths, the seabed became shallower and volcanoes began to appear on the seabed. A volcano, Mount Ulekan, that was under the surface continued to rise to about 600 meters above sea level. The island of Bali began to form when Mount Ulakan surfaced. At that time, the Batur and Agung volcanoes did not exist.
"Indonesia Votes ‘No’ on UN Crimes Against Humanity Resolution" from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall): Indonesia has placed itself in the company of largely undemocratic states like China and North Korea by voting against a United Nations General Assembly resolution regarding the responsibility to protect (R2P), an international norm intended to prevent crimes against humanity. The procedural resolution, introduced by Croatia, officially puts R2P on the annual UNGA agenda and requires the UN Secretary-General to report annually on the subject. In a vote at the UN headquarters in New York, the resolution received overwhelming support from 115 member states, including from several ASEAN members, such as Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines. Another 28 countries chose to abstain. Indonesia was among 15 countries to vote “no”.
"GoTo Plots Global Expansion on Backbone of SME Merchants" from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall): Top executives from the newly minted tech giant GoTo, a merger of homegrown decacorn Gojek and e-commerce platform Tokopedia, joked about their companies’ taglines. Tokopedia uses “Mulai Aja Dulu” (start first) while Gojek has adopted the slogan “Pasti Ada Jalan” (there must be a way) in recent years. “There’s a lot of things that we need to do and prepare for the IPO [initial public offering] and it will be very hard, but yes, there is certain to be a way,” Andre Soelistyo, CEO of GoTo and GoTo Financial, said with a chuckle. He was referring to the merged group's planned dual listing in the US and on the Indonesian Stock Exchange (IDX).
Of Interest
"Digital Attacks Bedevil Government Critics" from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall)
"Family of Sriwijaya Air SJ 182 Passenger Sues Boeing in the US" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
"Jakarta Ready to Take on Brisbane in 2032 Olympic Bid" from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall)
"Celebrating Lebaran Ketupat, Javanese Village Residents Crowd Sanur Beach" from iNews Bali (Indonesian)
"Head of Kumbasari-Denpasar Market Sentenced to 3 Years for Parking Money Corruption" from Antara Bali (Indonesian)
"The Kingdoms of Bali: Establishment, Rulers, Social Life, and Legacy" from Kompas (Indonesian)
"Burnt Shophouse, 2 Elderly Almost Trapped by Flames in Gianyar" from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
"More Whales Stranded on Gianyar Beaches Helped by Residents to Return to the Sea" from iNews Bali (Indonesian)
Weekend Reads
"‘We Can’t Go on Like This’: a Year on Bali Without Tourists" from Fast Company
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 TheBaliBeat@outlanders.global.
About This Newsletter
This newsletter is a product of Migration Media, the hub for stories from and about the international migrant experience.
Our standards
We only include news items from established media sources.
All headlines and excerpts appear exactly as they do in the source articles.
We do not include opinion pieces, forecasts, or rumors.
We do not comment on or express opinions in the newsletter about the news items included.
All headlines marked with "Indonesian" point to articles that are published in Indonesian. We use Google Translate to convert the headline and excerpt from Indonesian to English, then correct any translation errors where the intended meaning is lost or unclear. These changes are kept to a minimum to accurately reflect the source material. To provide context for certain developing news stories, we may include a short summary in English with links to relevant articles that may also be in Indonesian.
For any questions, comments or tips, please contact us at TheBaliBeat@outlanders.global.