May 25, 2021
Man found dead in Denpasar 2 days after receiving vaccine + National Covid-19 caseload increasing after Eid holiday + British hotel owner and Italian tourist arrested for drug possession + more!
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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: Like Sunday, lower numbers were seen across the board on Monday. Total cases edged down to 62, of which Denpasar contributed just under half (30); recoveries rose slightly to 66; and there was 1 fatality.
Click here to see the national numbers infographic and a Regency-by-Regency breakdown of yesterday’s local numbers. And in case you missed it, check out Sunday’s update for a summary of last week’s overall totals, with perspective on how they stack up against previous weeks + detailed breakdowns of the virus’ spread on a Regency-by-Regency level.
The Big News
"Man Found Dead in Denpasar 2 Days After Receiving Vaccine: Reports" from Coconuts Bali: The man, identified as MAM, was found dead and alone in the room he rented at a boarding house (kost). Though MAM usually occupies the room with his family, they had been away for the last few days. MAM’s body was found when a friend visited him, who said the deceased had a history of high blood pressure. Officials in Bali have yet to put out a statement regarding the matter, but the chief of the village where MAM lived said that he got his vaccine shot on Saturday and AstraZeneca vaccines were used for the village. The potential link between MAM’s death and the AstraZeneca vaccine has yet to be established by health authorities at this point. Indonesia recently recalled nearly half a million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine for analysis amid concerns of severe side effects. However, the National Commission on Post-Immunization Accidents (Komnas KIPI) said that as of last Friday, there have been no deaths related to any COVID-19 vaccination in Indonesia.
"After Eid Holiday, COVID-19 Cases Increasing" from Liputan 6: During the previous week positive cases of COVID-19 were in the range of 3,800 to 4,000, now daily cases in recent days are in the range of 5,000. "There is an increase but it is still much smaller than last year's Eid holiday," said the Coordinating Minister for the Economy who is also Chairman of the Committee for Handling COVID-19 and National Economic Recovery (KPCPEN), Airlangga Hartarto. Several provinces that have experienced an increase in cases in the past week are Aceh, North Sumatra, Riau Islands, DKI, West Nusa Tenggara, North Kalimantan, Gorontalo, and North Maluku. Airlangga said that he would continue to monitor the increase in COVID-19 cases in the next 4-5 weeks. This is reflected in the Christmas and New Year holidays, where the increase in cases occurred on February 5, 2021.
Context: On Sunday there were 5,280 new cases nationwide, which climbed to 5,907 on Monday.
"Foreigners Arrested in Bali for Alleged Drug Possession" from Associated Press: A British hotel owner and an Italian tourist have been arrested for alleged possession of narcotics on Indonesia’s resort island of Bali, police said Monday. The two men, dressed in orange, were shown to journalists at a news conference. Kenneth Daniel Kutsch, a British man who has a hotel business on neighboring Lombok island, and his Indonesian partner, Ni Ketut Dewi Seniwati, were arrested in the parking lot of a restaurant in Bali on May 7 after residents reported narcotic transactions in the area, police said. Badung police chief Roby Septiadi said officers seized 223 grams (7.9 ounces) of marijuana from Kutsch and his partner. “We are still deepening the investigation. But judging from the evidence, it could lead to him being a dealer,” Septiadi said at the news conference. Badung police said they also arrested Italian tourist Francesco D’Alesio for possession of 94 grams (3.2 ounces) of cocaine valued at 400 million rupiah ($28,000) on May 13.
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Other Headlines
"National Audit Agency Finds 3 Problems in Bali Provincial Government, 6 in Regencies/City" from Bali Express (Indonesian): Head of State Financial Audit Agency, Isma Yatun, explained that there are several problems that the Bali provincial government should pay attention to. "First, there are mistakes in budgeting for the realization of goods and service expenditures, as well as capital expenditures, which resulted in the value of goods and capital expenditures being overstated or understated." Second, the administration, safeguarding, utilization, and elimination of regional property is not yet fully adequate. Third, accountability for grant spending and subsidy spending is inadequate. For the regencies and city governments, the regional revenue administration is inadequate; tourism grant funds administration is not in accordance with the provisions so there are still aid recipients who do not meet the requirements, or receive grant funds that are not in accordance with the amount they should; the management of unexpected expenditures is inadequate; there are errors in goods and capital expenditure budgets; health insurance premium spending is not supported by valid data; and management and administration of fixed assets are not orderly, and presentation of fixed asset balances does not reflect the actual information.
Vaccination Update
"Indonesia Secures Supply Deal for 15 Million Sinopharm Vaccine Doses" from The Jakarta Globe: Indonesia has reached a commitment for the supply of 15 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine developed by China National Pharmaceutical Group or Sinopharm. Earlier this month, the World Health Organization issued interim recommendations for the global use of Sinopharm vaccine. The government has selected Sinopharm and Cansino vaccine, also from China, for the private sector vaccination campaign, known as the “gotong royong” (mutual works) program. The program attracted more than 22,700 companies who have agreed to procure and distribute Covid-19 vaccine for their own workers without charge. "For the gotong royong vaccination campaign, we select Sinopharm and CanSino. Thankfully we have secured a supply commitment from Sinopharm for 15 million doses to cover 7.5 million people until December," said State-Owned Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir.
More...
Karangasem: "AstraZeneca Vaccination in Manggis Karangasem District Exceeds Target" from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
Health Protocols (Prokes) & Patrols
"Tightening Extended at Gilimanuk Port" from Bali Post (Indonesian): The post-Lebaran checks were scheduled until Monday, however, the tightening of backflow checks has been extended to May 31. From observations, at the beginning of last week after the homecoming ban, there was a surge in people who entered. The Head of the Gilimanuk Marine Area Police, Commissioner I Gusti Putu Dharmanatha, said the number of vehicles and people entering Bali had now decreased. People who enter Bali through the Gilimanuk Port will continue to undergo routine checks as before, including checks of the COVID-19 free certificate based on PCR screening, antigen rapid test, or GeNose.
More...
Nation: "Latest Quarantine Hotel List in Jakarta" from Indonesia Expat
Badung: "Positive Cases of Covid-19 in Badung Highest in Mengwi Sub-district" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
Bangli: "Do Not Want Physical and Social Sanctions, Prokes Violators Choose to Be Fined" from Bali Post (Indonesian)
Karangasem: "More than 1,500 Use GeNose Test in Padangbai" from Bali Express (Indonesian)
Economy & Infrastructure
Nation: "Tanihub Bags $70m Series B, Aims to Expand Supply Chain" from The Jakarta Post
Nation: "Indonesia, Uzbekistan Explore Investment in Fertilizer Industry" from Antara
Nation: "Tax Revenue Reached Rp374.9 Trillion Until April-end 2021: Indrawati" from Antara
Province: "Deputy Governor Cok Ace Explains Provincial Government's Steps to Recover Post-Pandemic Economy" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Buleleng: "Construction of Television Tower in Buleleng Begins This Year" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
Buleleng: "Garbage Emergency, Mismanagement Results in Disaster for Children and Grandchildren" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Denpasar: "Plastic Bags Still in High Circulation at Traditional Markets" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
Gianyar: "Production of Barong Clothes Sluggish, Producers' Income in Freefall" from Bali Express (Indonesian)
Karangasem: "This is the Cause of the Electricity Outage in Sidemen Karangasem" from Suara Bali (Indonesian)
Education
"Limited Public Capacity, Hundreds of Elementary School Graduates Directed to Private" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): As many as 880 elementary school graduates will be directed to continue to private schools or religious schools. This is because the capacity of public schools in Buleleng is very limited. In the 2021/2022 school year there will be 11,472 elementary school graduates. Meanwhile, the capacity of state junior high schools in Buleleng Regency is only 10,592 places. The districts of Seririt, Gerokgak, and Sukasada will experience a shortage of public school places. It is estimated that in Seririt Subdistrict, 249 places are still needed, Gerokgak Subdistrict lacks 308 places, and Sukasada Subdistrict 343 places. Head of the Buleleng Disdikpora, Made Astika, said that the students were likely to switch to religious schools. "If we look at the community culture in Seririt and Gerokgak, after graduating from elementary school, their children enter the madrasa. Some enter the boarding school. Even though the data on paper has a lack of capacity for state junior high schools, all this time it has always been handled.”
"Why Indonesia's 'New Bali' is Accused of Trampling on Human Rights" from BBC News: Think of pristine waters, endless beaches, lined with palm trees and lush green mountains as a glorious backdrop. With travel for many a distant memory during the current Covid pandemic, it sounds like a tourist's dream come true. And that's exactly what the Indonesian government is going for with Mandalika, a new tourist area touted as the next Bali. But a massive government-backed programme to develop it as a luxury travel destination has run into allegations of numerous human rights violations at the site. In late March, UN experts denounced the mega project as "trampling on human rights". It said the locals had been "subjected to threats and intimidation" and were "forcibly evicted from their land without compensation," according to a joint statement by a whole panel of UN specialists. The harsh criticism also took direct aim at the AIIB and French group VINCI which is the largest investor, in charge of the racing circuit, several hotels, and a hospital.
"Facebook, Tiktok Face Indonesia Ban if They Don’t Register With IT Ministry Within 6 Months" from Coconuts Jakarta: On November 24, 2020, the Communications and IT Ministry issued a regulation requiring digital services to register as Electronic System Providers (PSE), for the purposes of cybersecurity and user protection, within six months. The three aforementioned social media platforms were among those that were said to be targeted by the regulation. The deadline for registration was supposed to be May 24, but the ministry has extended the deadline by another six months as its online registration system will only be launched on June 2. The major social media platforms have not publicly stated their intention to register as PSE in Indonesia since the ministry passed the regulation last year. The ministry has been known to ban apps and platforms on legal and/or moral grounds in recent years. These include gay dating app Blued, which was banned for its “immoral” LGBT content, TikTok for its general “negative content,” and Telegram for allegedly facilitating the spread of radical content, though the bans for the latter two have since been lifted.
The View from Outside
"Emission Impossible" from Planet Money: More and more corporations want to be more environmentally friendly, or at least to seem that way. Many of them are turning to the tool of carbon offsets. It's leading to a boom in new offset offerings. But how well do they really work? And how can you tell?... This right here is the key reason why there's a business opportunity in Indonesia's massive forests. See, trees - they're kind of incredible. They suck carbon out of the air and store it, which is why companies will pay Indonesians to keep forests standing rather than let them get clear-cut.
Of Interest
"Book Piracy: Cash-strapped and Hungry for Knowledge, or Simply Fraud?" from The Jakarta Post
"Indonesia, Australia Agree on Joint Operation Against Illegal Fishing" from Antara
"17 Soldiers Dismissed for Attacking Police Station" from The Jakarta Globe
"Singapore Provisionally Approves 60-second Covid-19 Breathalyser Test" from Reuters
"Social Agency Facilitates Independence Program for Persons with Disabilities" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
"Metatah, Tradition of Teeth Filing to Mark of Maturity in Bali" from Merdeka (Indonesian)
"Ahead of Waisak, People Clean Buddha Statue at the Vihara" from Tribune Bali (Indonesian)
"Green and Hawksbill Turtles Released in Gianyar, Bali" from Suara Bali (Indonesian)
"Mt Bromo, Mt Semeru Reopen to Climbers, Tourists" from Antara
"Motorist Killed on Jalan Raya Batubulan, Sukawati" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
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
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