May 7, 2021
South African Covid-19 variant traced in Sukawati, Gianyar + 500,000 to be vaccinated over 2 weeks across province + 59 travelers from India tested positive in Jakarta from December to April + 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: New Covid-19 cases in Bali were back up yesterday (146) after Wednesday's 128, bringing the 7-day average up to 128. Recoveries also rose to 140 after the previous day's 104. There were 9 deaths yesterday after Wednesday's 7, bringing total deaths so far for this month to 50.
Click here to see the national numbers infographic and a Regency-by-Regency breakdown of yesterday’s local numbers.
The Big News
"Gianyar Health Office Reveals New Variant Type Investigated in Sukawati" from Bali Post (Indonesian): According to the Head of Disease Prevention and Control of the Gianyar Regency Health Office, AA Anom Sukamawa, the search carried out in Sukawati was for the South African variant of Covid-19. He explained that currently his party was waiting for the results of the blood serum test. So far two new variants have entered Bali, the variant from England and the variant from South Africa.
Context: Yesterday we included this story about an unspecified Covid-19 variant being traced in Sukawati, which is about ten km south of Ubud.
"Bali Targets Completing 500,000 First Dose Vaccinations in 2 Weeks" from Bisnis Bali (Indonesian): The provincial government has set this target for various districts/cities on the Island of the Gods after it received about 671,000 additional supplies of the Covid-19 vaccine earlier this week. "On Monday an additional 501,000 AstraZeneca vaccines and 170,000 Sinovac vaccines arrived," said the Head of the Bali Provincial Health Office, Dr. Ketut Suarjaya. He did not deny that in the last week of April, the supply of the Covid-19 vaccine from the center had stalled. Suarjaya said that until now the Covid-19 vaccination in Bali Province has reached more than 770,000 people and 300,000 people have completed the second dose. "We continue to pursue this second dose so that nothing is too late," he said. Meanwhile, for Covid-19 vaccination in the three Green Zone areas (Ubud, Sanur and Nusa Dua) there are 170,000 people who will be due for the second dose of vaccine at the end of May.
"Indonesia Confirms 59 Travelers From India Tested Positive for Covid-19" from Antara (Indonesian): The Health Ministry's COVID-19 Spokesperson, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, said the 59 cases were detected from December 28, 2020, to April 25, 2021. Of the 59 positive cases, 49 were foreign nationals from India and 10 were Indonesian citizens. 26 positive cases were among those detected in travelers arriving from India from April 10-25, 2021. Of the 26 cases, 24 were Indian citizens and two were Indonesian citizens. Specimens were taken for the 26 positive cases to be examined for genome sequencing to look for new variants, such as B117, B1617, and B1351. "We are still awaiting the results from the 26 positive ones and specimens that were sampled during the previous period," she stated.
>> Classifieds <<
Business is tough in the best of times, but these days - Wow. Thankfully, there’s a supportive spirit among the people who remain in Bali; this newsletter is proof. If you’ve got a product or service that needs local support to succeed, let this community know about it here.
Other Headlines
"Epidemiologists are Worried That “Little India” Will Occur in Indonesia" from Bali Post (Indonesian): Epidemiologist from the Faculty of Public Health, University of Indonesia (FKM UI), Tri Yunis Miko Wahyono. She said two things that had caused the increase in cases were the Lebaran homecoming and crowding. "There may be a shortage of health service facilities in certain provinces, then an increase in cases in certain provinces, not all provinces, but there will be an increase. Learn from the significant spike in COVID-19 cases in India, one of which is due to religious rituals that ignore health protocols and generate large crowds."
Vaccination Update
"With Covid-19 Vaccination, Badung Regency Government Supports the Expansion of the Green Zone in North Kuta" from Antara Bali (Indonesian): Deputy Regent of Badung, I Ketut Suiasa, said, "Our hope is as stated by President Joko Widodo, to open international tourism in July where the three sub-districts in Badung, including South Kuta, Kuta, and North Kuta Districts, which are based on tourism, have 100% of the people vaccinated for stage one." He explained that in North Kuta District, the number of vaccinations had reached around 50,000, targeting the elderly, educators and public officials. “The rest is now done with the hope that within three weeks the North Kuta District has the entire community vaccinated. “We will wait for the second stage of the vaccine in June. Thus we are confident tourism actors will feel comfortable coming to the area.”
More...
Nation: "The Covid-19 Vaccine Has Been Given to 12,995,710 People in Indonesia" from Antara (Indonesian)
Badung: A Shopping Mall in Kuta Bali Holds a Vaccination Program" from Tribun Bali (Indonesian)
Bangli: "Bangli Targets 7 Villages, Slow Internet Interrupts Vaccinations in Several Posts" from Bali Post (Indonesian)
Bangli: "Achievement of 22% Elderly Vaccination Target" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
Buleleng: "A Number of Villages in Buleleng Have Not Yet Vaccinated Against Covid" from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
Buleleng: "For the First Time, AstraZeneca Vaccine Was Used in Buleleng" from Bali Express (Indonesian)
Denpasar: "Denpasar Artists, PKB Ambassadors, Take Part in Covid-19 Vaccination" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Karangasem: "Health Service Vaccines 40,000 Targets in the Red Zone" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
Health Protocols (Prokes) & Patrols
Denpasar: "The Yustisi Denpasar Team Conducted Antigen Swab Tests on 11 Prokes Offenders" from Antara Bali (Indonesian)
Karangasem: "Padangbai Port Begins GeNose C-19 Service" from Antara Bali (Indonesian)
Karangasem: "Prohibition of Going Home, 15 PMIs From Lombok Are Allowed to Cross Through Padangbai" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Jembrana: "Forced to Turn Back, Hundreds of Homecoming Travelers from Bali Bite their Fingers and Fail to Go Home" from iNews Bali (Indonesian)
Economy & Infrastructure
"Demand Drops, Traditional Salt Production Decreases" from Bali Prawara (Indonesian): Before the pandemic, the demand for salt from hotels and other markets was quite high. However, due to the pandemic, demand began to plummet. Not only has market demand been impacted, to support production, the supply of firewood is also choked up. Previously, most of the firewood was obtained from project demolition and ex-project wood, now the supply has started to decrease as project work has decreased. According to Desti, who is one of the workers at the traditional salt production site around the Suwung area, Denpasar, production used to be up to 40 sacks a day. “Before the pandemic, because of the high demand, we cooked salt until morning. However, now sometimes we don't even produce it."
"Productivity of Buleleng Rice Fields Has Severely Decreased" from Bali Post (Indonesian): In the past year, Buleleng's local rice production fell by up to 1,000 tons. The production shortage is covered by rice supplies from other districts in Bali and also from rice supplies from other provinces in Indonesia. Head of the Buleleng Agriculture Service (Kadistan), Made Sumiarta, said that the area of productive rice fields in his area currently covers 9,048 hectares. There are several important factors that cause local rice production in North Bali to drop dramatically, starting from the narrowing of the paddy fields due to a wave of conversion to housing or other functions. There are also factors of pest and disease attacks that have not been handled optimally by farmers. The unfriendly weather factor also triggered a decline in rice production over the past year.
Education
"Worried About Students' Mental Health, Education Minister Insists on Opening Schools" from CNN Indonesia (Indonesian): Minister of Education, Culture, Research and Technology (Mendikbudristek) Nadiem Makarim insists on holding face-to-face learning in schools even though the Covid-19 pandemic is not over. "It is clear that the PJJ (online learning) process has taken too long now and we cannot wait anymore and sacrifice the learning and mental health of our students." Nadiem said that so far many students have experienced stress because they have to study online, children were mentally burdened because the teaching and learning conditions were not dynamic, they're not meeting friends, and they are always bored at home. The former Gojek boss is also worried about children being left behind in learning and that this could endanger the development of future generations. "The government takes the stance that, thank God, teachers have become a priority for vaccination. When these teachers have been vaccinated, schools are required to open face-to-face options.”
"BaliFest a Mess?: Organizer Defends Australian Bali-themed Festival" from The Jakarta Post: “BIG name Australian Acts, Themed Bar, Bali Markets, Chill Beach, Carnival Rides & Cultural performances ... and of course $7.50 BINTANGS”. This was how BaliFest, held in Mandurah, Western Australia, was promoted. Taking place during the Easter long weekend, tickets cost AUS$30 per day, with 10% of sales slated for charitable causes. BaliFest was about “bringing Bali and its culture, food, entertainment, shopping and leisure lifestyle to Australia”, its tagline promised. However, after the event took place, critics wrote on BaliFest’s Facebook page that it had not delivered what was promised, particularly in terms of representing Balinese culture and traditions.
Of Interest
"Jakarta Makes Bid for UNESCO Titles in Literature" from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall)
"45 Years in Indonesia – Eleonora Detmers" from Indonesia Expat
"The Origin of the Name Denpasar in Bali, From the Words "Den" and "Pasar" from Kompas (Indonesian)
"Allegedly Due to Leaking Gas Cylinders, Tens of Thousands of Baby Broiler Chickens Burned" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Weekend Reads
"Indonesia’s Invisible People Face Discrimination, and Sometimes Death, by Database" from Rest of World: Indonesia’s identity document, known as the KTP, is the gateway to officialdom in the country. You need one to access basic public health care and education; to participate in elections; to register births, deaths, marriages, and SIM cards; and to apply for jobs and bank accounts. Starting in 2011, the simple laminated document with a photo and fingerprints was to be replaced by a microchipped card backed up by a huge online database. Digitizing IDs was supposed to streamline access to public services for millions of people and make Indonesia’s notoriously tangled bureaucracy more efficient. But, for [many in the trans community], all digitization has done is hard-code existing inequalities and prejudices in Indonesian society, making it harder than ever to get access to vital health care and protections.
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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