Monday, January 11
Semi-lockdown comes to 5 regencies today; Bangli closes schools + BPOM says Pres. Jokowi will get vaccine on Jan. 13, but has not issued permit yet + Guv calls for crackdown on foreigners + more!
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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: As of yesterday, Bali has the highest number of people in treatment on record (1,513), but Dr. Ketut Suarjaya, Head of the Bali Health Service, said that island-wide, hospital beds are not yet in short supply, as many of the cases are asymptomatic or people who have mild symptoms. "Because most of them are without symptoms, the BOR (Bed occupancy Rate) of the hospital is still under control, today 42.08% for TT (bed) isolation and 66.08% for TT in the ICU," he said. However, over in Jembrana, the hospital isolation wards are full, so people with mild cases are being housed in local health centers (puskesmas). Tabanan is reporting that its hospital is 72% full and the government is in the process of adding 35 more beds. Click here to see the national numbers infographic and a Regency-by-Regency breakdown of yesterday’s local numbers, which includes a look back at last week’s overall totals.
The Big News
LOCKDOWN UPDATE: The new “semi-lockdown” (PPKM) that was supposed to have begun today actually went into effect early, on Jan. 9. Also, the original plan to have it in effect in just Badung and Denpasar has been expanded. It will now be in effect in Badung, Denpasar, Tabanan, Gianyar, and Klungkung. Buleleng is conducting a number of "tightening interactions" on its borders and is considering also implementing the full restrictions. Travelers using air transportation and ferries are required to show a negative result of the PCR-based swab test within 48 hours of their flight, or a certificate of negative result of the Rapid Test Antigen test no later than 24 hours before departure; all passengers must also fill out Indonesia's e-HAC health form.
Officials in Denpasar have made efforts to keep residents there calm by assuring them that the new measures would not stop all activities- only caps on how many people could gather and how long businesses could be open for. Governor Koster said that he was taking a “middle way” by ordering the PPKM, since most activities will still be allowed and closing hours for businesses have been set for 21:00 instead of the recommended 19:00. While opening hours have been restricted until 21:00 for most businesses, traditional markets are not being included, and will run as normal for now.
"Indonesia Crash: What to Know About the Boeing Plane" from The New York Times: The crash of a plane in Indonesia carrying more than 60 people comes at a difficult time for the aviation giant Boeing, which has seen its reputation battered by years of investigations over deadly crashes. While the authorities are still looking for the cause, the plane that crashed on Saturday near Jakarta, the Indonesian capital, was a 26-year-old 737-500, a workhorse model with a good safety record. The plane at the center of the Boeing crisis was the 737 Max, a later version with faulty antistall software that led to two deadly crashes. Here is what to know about the Boeing plane in the Indonesia crash.
Context: Yesterday, National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) chief Soerjanto Tjahjono confirmed that no foreigners were aboard the flight.
"Koster: Foreigners in Bali Who Do Not Have Masks Cannot Enter Tourist-restaurant Areas!" from Detik (Indonesian): Bali Governor I Wayan Koster highlighted the number of foreigners who did not comply with health protocols. Koster said he would take firm action. "There are only a few who are less orderly, for example, foreigners who are still in Bali, it is difficult to regulate. We will follow up on the meeting's decision. Even tourists, not wearing masks, not wearing masks, will not be given entry to tourist destinations and into restaurants," said Koster... Kasatpol PP Badung I Gusti Agung Kerta Suryanegara explained the fines to be given to foreigners who violated it were still being drafted. Later it will be differentiated from Indonesian citizens. "This means that we will still arrange it later, not Rp. 100,000. The problem is as if Rp. 100,000 means that the net effect is not there. Yes, we were asked to have higher fines than Indonesian citizens," said Surya.
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Other Headlines
"Jokowi Will Get His Vaccine Shot Next Week, BPOM Says" from The Jakarta Globe: Indonesia's drug supervisory agency has said it confident of finishing a review on the Covid-19 vaccine produced by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech and clear the vaccine for emergency use in the next couple of days, just in time for President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's scheduled vaccination shot on next Wednesday... Penny Kusumastuti Lukito, BPOM's head, assuaged those concerns, saying that the agency has been encouraged by results supplied from Sinovac's clinical trials in Brazil, Turkey, and in Bandung, West Java gradually since last year.
Context: Dr. Ketut Suarjaya, Head of the Bali Health Service, said that there was still no word from BPOM as to when the final authorization would be issued. "So far there has been no (the latest developments regarding the BPOM permit),” and that they would wait to activate their vaccination plan until it is.
"The Coordinating Minister Asked for the Construction of Tourist Hotels to Be Reduced" from Antara (Indonesia): Coordinating Minister (Menko) for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan asked that hotel construction in tourism destinations be reduced in the midst of preparing for tourism recovery during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to MenkoLuhut, the recovery of foreign tourist visits (tourists) will last longer than the recovery of domestic tourist visits. So, during that time the government will focus on preparing for tourism recovery, as well as encouraging domestic tourist visits. "Domestic tourism recovery is faster than abroad because of course there are still problems because traveling distance may also be an issue . Now I think it will take 1-2 years, so I think, hotel construction may be minimized later."
"Transport Bribes Bibes Officers to Gain Entry Into Bali Without Test Documents" from The Bali Sun: The Jembrana Military recently received information of bribery at Gilimanuk Port. A transport bus allegedly bribed officers to gain entry into Bali without adequate testing documents. “As the bus arrived at Gilimanuk Port, the driver got out and presented the rapid antigen test documents to the officer. Instead of showing documents of all passengers, he only showed three of them. He then got away after bribing the officers on duty,” said Lieutenant Colonel Haruna. Jembrana Military is currently investigating the officers on duty that day.
Context: In addition to bribing officials at Gilimanuk Port, some people have resorted to paying the owners of small fishing vessels (jukung) to ferry them over from Java for Rp. 300,000 - Rp. 500,000, which is cheaper than the cast of the antigen test, and avoids the extra lines and bureaucracy.
"Just After a Week, the Bangli Education Office Stopped Face-to-face Learning" from Bali Express (Indoesian): Head of the Education, Youth and Sports (Disdikpora) Bangli, I Nengah Sukarta, acknowledged that he had issued an SE for the termination of face-to-face learning (PTM). This must be done because of the surge in the Covid-19 family cluster. There are concerns that this condition will affect schools. Apart from the spike in cases, the termination of PTM was also because a number of teachers lived or came from districts that imposed restrictions on community activities (PKM). As is known, a number of districts / cities have implemented PKM, namely Klungkung, Gianyar, Badung, Tabanan and Denpasar City Regencies. "Learning online systems, I don't think is a problem," said Sukarta.
Context: Over the last week when Bangli had their schools open, at least 17 had been closed after students tested positive for the virus.
"In 2020 Ngurah Rai Airport Serves 6.2 Million Passengers" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian): Throughout 2020, I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport, Tuban Village, Kuta District, Badung, recorded that it had served 6,238,774 passengers. The passengers are served by 56,173 aircraft movements. Although serving millions of passengers and tens of thousands of aircraft, this total is still far below the 2019 record of 24,169,561, representing a decrease in passenger volume of 74.2%.
"Police Apprehend Dozens of Youths for Illegal Street Racing in Badung Regency" from Coconuts: “What they’re doing has been a great concern for local residents. We received information that every night there’s wild street racing in the area,” Ketut Suandi, an officer from the Badung Police, said today. Just before 2am today, police seized 20 motorbikes and apprehended 36 people, who were later taken to the sub-precinct and given a warning. Suandi also said that their parents will be summoned.
"240.15 Kilometers of Karangasem Regency Roads Severely Damaged" from Bali Puspsa News (Indonesian): Out of a total of 1,202.54 kilometers of district roads in Karangasem, only 55.67% of roads are in good condition. The rest is in medium condition 15.20% or 182.79 kilometers long. Lightly damaged 9.16% or along 110.12 kilometers and 19.97% in severely damaged condition or along 240.15 kilometers. In 2021 alone, PUPR Karangasem, especially Bina Marga, will also carry out road maintenance and repair in accordance with the existing budget and is estimated to be 40.54 kilometers long.
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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