November 1, 2021
New rules on domestic travel are released + Quarantine rules remain unclear + Almost 120 million vaccinated + more
Good morning!
Welcome to The Bali Beat for Monday, November 1. If you’re not a subscriber, please sign up here to have this newsletter emailed to your inbox every weekday morning, along with a Sunday evening summary of the past week’s Covid-19 and vaccination data. If you’re already a subscriber, thank you!
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With the island reopening to visitors and the success of the government’s vaccination program, we here at The Bali Beat are happy to mark this new era by including a Local Events section in the newsletter. Starting next week, in the Monday, November 8 issue, we’ll be making space for up to 5 announcements per day from businesses and community organizations that want to let readers know what they’ve got going on.
This is, by far, the single most requested feature for the newsletter, but we don’t want to clutter the reading experience, so these announcements will be limited in length — no more than 100 characters — and they will run after the “Of Interest” stories. Also, as a way to support the reopening efforts, for the first two weeks we’re making these listings available for free on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information and to get your event included, please click here.
Weather & Tides
Today’s Weather for Southern Bali
Today’s Tides
Meteorology, Climatology & Geophysics Council (Link)
Tide table from Tide-forecast.com.
Daily Covid Update
National Figures
Local Figures
NOTE: Today is the third day in a row with under 100 people in treatment, the first time the figures have been this low in 2021. Deaths are likewise at an all time low for the year, having been in single figures since late September, and October had five days with no deaths at all.
The Big News
“Ministry of Transportation Issues New SE on Land Transportation Travel” from Detik (Indonesian): The Directorate General of Land Transportation of the Ministry of Transportation has issued Circular Letter Number 90 of 2021. Director General of Land Transportation Budi Setiyadi said that long-distance travelers using land and crossing modes of transportation with the provisions of a minimum distance of 250 km or a travel time of 4 hours from and to the islands of Java and Bali are required to show a vaccine card at least the first dose. In addition, travelers must also show a certificate of RT-PCR results a maximum of 3x24 hours or antigen a maximum of 1x24 hours before the trip. Budi added, specifically for drivers and assistant drivers of logistics vehicles traveling domestically in the Java and Bali regions, provisions are applicable for the mandatory showing of a complete dose of vaccine card and a certificate of negative rapid antigen test results whose samples were taken within a maximum period of 14x24 hours before departure.
Context: Logistics drivers have in the past been exempt from some of the testing requirements, so this is a notable change. The distance and time element is unusual as the crossing from Java to Bali is below the stated limits.
“Quarantine Rules Are Not Clear Yet” from CNN Indonesia (Indonesian): The Bali Travel and Tourism Agency Association (ASITA) stated that no foreign tourists had vacationed on Bali since the government opened the door for flights. Asita Bali DPD Chair I Putu Winastra said that some ASITA entrepreneurs have received bookings for travel packages and hotels from foreign tourists, however the time for booking is generally before Christmas and New Year's and the middle of next year. He suspects that tourist visits are still quiet because the government has imposed quarantine requirements, and the quarantine rules are not yet clear. "For example, whether tourists should actually stay in their rooms or not, this is still unclear. So we hope there will be clarity or the government will reconsider the quarantine requirements," he said.
Context: Thailand is set to open to selected countries today with a series of relatively clear criteria, including a single night of quarantine.
“Almost 120 Million Indonesians Have Got First Covid-19 Vaccine Shots” from Antara: The Indonesian Government's COVID-19 Handling Task Force announced on Sunday that 119,662,248 Indonesians have received their first shots of COVID-19 vaccines. According to the task force's latest data, the number of first dose recipients across the country has increased to 119,662,248 after 510,430 people had their first vaccine jab on Sunday. Meanwhile, the number of those having fully been vaccinated against the virus rose by 408,295, bringing the cumulative number of second dose recipients to 73,698,983 as of Sunday. In addition to that, the number of the third dose or 'booster' vaccine recipients, mainly health workers, rose by 3,795 to touch 1,134,177.
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Other Headlines
“As La Nina Returns, Indonesia Braces for Flooding, Landslides” from Antara: The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has cautioned of high precipitation that may trigger hydrometeorological disasters as a weak La Niña event is currently re-emerging over Indonesia for the second consecutive year. La Nina has been developing since October 2021 and is expected to strengthen in November and December and become a moderate La Nina by the end of 2021 to February 2022, according to BMKG Head Dwikorita Karnawati. In January 2021, a total of 372 natural disasters had hit Indonesia and left 216 persons dead and 12,056 others injured, partly owing to weak La Nina that had developed since late 2020 and raised monthly rainfall by up to 70%. The natural disasters comprised 227 floods, 66 whirlwinds, 60 landslides, seven earthquakes, seven high tides or abrasions, and four forest fires, according to the BNPB.
Vaccination Update
“Disinformation Slowing Elderly Vaccinations” from Antara: The spread of disinformation regarding vaccinations has led to the slow progress in vaccinations among the elderly in the country, spokesperson for COVID-19 vaccinations at the Ministry of Health, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, has said. "Based on research, one of the causes of the slow progress in elderly vaccinations is that there are still many people who do not get the right information and receive a lot of disinformation," Tarmizi said on Friday. According to a report from the Indonesian Ministry of Health, around 40% of the 21.5 million targeted elderly recipients have received the first vaccine dose. Meanwhile, 25% of the targeted recipients have received the second dose. "We continue to educate and intensify dissemination. The active role of the family and the surrounding community is highly expected in helping encourage COVID-19 vaccinations among the elderly," she added.
More ...
Nation: “Indonesia Urges G20 to Reduce COVID-19 Vaccine Gap” from Tempo
Nation: “Indonesia Receives 6.5 Million Covid-19 Vaccine Doses” from Antara
Nation: “Indonesia Receives 819,600 Moderna Vaccines From Dutch Govt” from Antara
Health Protocols (Prokes) & Health Services
“Covid-19 Situation in Indonesia Reaches Level 1 Category” from Antara: The United States Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) has downgraded Indonesia to Level 1 category in terms of its COVID-19 situation, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said. "With Indonesia entry's into Level 1 or low from the CDC, it means that the hard work of our government has shown results and appreciated by international agencies," Minister Hartarto said on Friday. According to information accessed on the CDC's official website, the agency is still urging people traveling to Indonesia to get fully vaccinated. It has also laid down other requirements such as wearing masks and keeping a two meters distance from others.
More...
Economy & Infrastructure
“Jokowi Invites World Leaders to Bali 2022” from Detik (Indonesian): Indonesia has been elected as the chair or presidency of the G20. The handover of the presidency was carried out at the closing session of the G20 Rome Summit which took place in La Nuvola on Sunday. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi symbolically handed a hammer to President Jokowi who then knocked on the hammer. Indonesia's G20 presidency will encourage joint efforts for world economic recovery with the big theme "Recover Together, Recover Stronger." Inclusive, people-centered, environmentally friendly and sustainable growth is the main commitment of Indonesia's leadership at the G20. Jokowi directly invited the world leaders who were present to continue discussions at the G20 Summit which is planned to be held in Bali on October 30-31 2022.
More ...
Nation: “Kemenparekraf Supports Bicycle Racing in Mandalika” from Republika (Indonesian)
Badung: “Minister Reviews Progress of Construction of Sanur Port” from Antara Bali (Indonesian)
Bali Reopening
“Mandatory Quarantine Deters International Tourists” from Channel News Asia: Two weeks after Bali’s reopening on Oct 14 to travellers from 19 countries, no international flight has landed at its airport. “We cannot predict (when they will arrive), but one thing for sure, informally or formally the airlines have not filed a request to us. We cannot predict when the first flight will be,” said its spokesman Taufan Yudhistira. A receptionist at a villa in Ubud said that although there has been a spike in occupancy by domestic travellers in recent weeks as the impact of the second COVID-19 wave dampens, there are still no signs of international tourists. Among the reasons for the slow inflow of international tourists is believed to be the government’s abrupt announcement of the reopening. Another issue is the quarantine requirement upon arrival in Bali.
Context: This long story details a number of grievances held by some in the tourism industry regarding the handling of Bali’s reopening.
More...
“Ending Tourist Discrimination in Bali” from CNN Indonesia (Indonesian)
“Minister Sumadi Reviews Arrival Protocols at Ngurah Rai Airport” from Antara
“11 Nusa Dua Hotels to be Quarantine Hotels” from Detik (Indonesian)
“House Member Supports Cancellation of PCR Test as Flight Requirement” from Antara
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Of Interest
“Recently Released US Ex-convict to Be Deported” from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall)
“Beach Erosion Worsens” from Bali Post (Indonesian)
“Turning Cigarette Butts into Bali Island Statues” from Suara Bali (Indonesian)
“Gangs of Drunks Slash Residents on Kuta Roadside” from Bali Express (Indonesian)
“Ukrainian and Russian Deported for Fake Rapid Test Letters” from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
How You Can Help Bali
In response to the collapse of the tourism sector in Bali and the resulting economic crisis due to Covid19, tens of thousands of families have found themselves with a greatly reduced income—if any. By the middle of 2020, over 100,000 people on Bali had lost their job. While government support has been limited, Indonesians and foreigners have sprung into action, raising funds and distributing badly needed food and everyday essentials to those most in need.
We've been raising awareness of these efforts, and if you’d like to make a contribution of any kind, you can see a list of some organisations here. Further projects have registered themselves with Bali Solidarity. 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 Outlanders.
Our standards
We only include news items from established media sources.
We do not include op-eds, forecasts, or rumors.
We do not express any opinions about any included news item.
A “Context” note, along with a reference link may be added after an excerpt to include additional information and/or links to further reading on the topic.
Any headline marked with “Indonesian” point to an article in the Indonesian language. We use Google Translate to translate headlines and excerpts into 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.
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