November 15, 2021
Bali Peace Park plan scrapped + 387,000 children in Bali targeted for vaccination + Almost 50% of Bali vaccinations are AstraZeneca + more
Good morning!
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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: According to the official statistics, Bali’s case numbers and in-treatment figures are at an all time low for 2021. The official numbers however conflict with some recent statements by the Bali Task Force, which put numbers at low levels, but not zero.
The Big News
“Bali Peace Park Plan Scrapped as Site Owners Demand $15m” from The Sydney Morning Herald: A plan to build a memorial park on the site of the former Sari Club will be abandoned after the owner of the land set its price tag at almost A$15 million. The Perth-based Bali Peace Park Association has for 13 years attempted to acquire the vacant plot in Kuta and create a spiritual garden for reflection about the 2002 terrorist bombings which killed 202 people. There was renewed hope for a deal in recent months as the association had direct negotiations with site owners Sukamto Tjia and Suryana Chandra Jamhur. However the Australian organisation is set to withdraw after having its offer of 45 billion rupiah for the 1500 square-metre site rejected. Instead the owners offered to sell a 560 square-metre section for that price or the full 1,500 square metres for 150 billion rupiah, a fee including millions in compensation for lost earnings over the past 19 years. They also insisted the association build an underground car park across the whole site.
“387,000 Children in Bali Become Vaccination Targets” from Nusa Bali (Indonesian): A total of 387,000 elementary school-aged children in Bali have been targeted for the Covid-19 vaccination. The implementation of vaccination for children aged 6-11 years in Bali is waiting for the central command. The head of the Bali Provincial Health Office, Dr I Ketut Suarjaya MPPM, said during the Covid-19 pandemic 13,992 children aged 0-18 years in Bali were infected with Covid-19. According to Suarjaya, vaccination of children aged 6-12 years will be carried out through schools in regencies/cities throughout Bali. Suarjaya said the type of vaccine that will be used to vaccinate children aged 6-11 years is Sinovac. The Bali Provincial Government has prepared 800,000 doses of vaccine for children for 2 injections.
“Second Vaccine Coverage in Bali Reaches 87.43 Percent” from Antara: Bali Province's COVID-19 Handling Task Force reported that a total of 2,997,059 residents, or equivalent to 87.43% of the island province's population, had received their second vaccine doses. "To achieve herd immunity in Bali, we aim to vaccinate a total of 3,405,130 residents," the province's task force secretary, I Made Rentin, said on Saturday. The secretary drew attention to the varying levels of vaccination coverage in Bali's districts and city, with Denpasar City recording the highest coverage of 122.7%, while Buleleng District, with 69.2% coverage, was the lowest in the province. Rentin said Bali had received a total of 7,054,149 vaccine doses comprising 3,155,158 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, 3,779,140 doses of Sinovac vaccine, 30,607 doses of Sinopharm vaccine, and 89,264 doses of Moderna vaccine.
Context: This is the first time we have seen a breakdown of Bali’s vaccinations by type. The 45% by AstraZeneca is a contrast to nationwide figures, where Sinovac and Sinopharm have previously been reported to represent around 80% of the overall supply. Don’t forget you can follow Bali’s vaccination progress on The BaliBeat’s Sunday evening email.
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Other Headlines
“Only 196 Covid-19 Patients in Bali Are Being Treated” from Antara Bali (Indonesian): The Bali Province COVID-19 Handling Task Force reported the number of active COVID-19 cases still undergoing treatment on Bali until November 13, 2021, at 196 people. "Those affected by COVID-19 are being treated at referral hospitals and centralized isolation and are undergoing self-isolation," said Secretary of the Bali Province COVID-19 Task Force I Made Rentin on Sunday. Rentin said, of the 196 active cases, 68 people were undergoing treatment at a referral hospital (34.69%), in centralized isolation there were 113 people (57.65%) and 15 people undergoing self-isolation (7.66%).
Context: This contrasts with the official statistics which reports that as of November 13 Bali had zero active cases.
Vaccination Update
“Education Ministry Pushes for Vaccination of School Pupils Aged 6-11” from Antara: The Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology expressed support for government measures to vaccinate school pupils aged 6-11 to encourage the reopening of schools nationwide. "We always support government measures to control the COVID-19 pandemic, including the decision to expand the scope of COVID-19 vaccine recipients," the ministry's Cooperation and Public Relations Bureau acting head, Anang Ristanto, said on Saturday. Earlier vaccination drives, aimed at teachers and school pupils aged 12-18, have become the main factor while deciding to reopen schools for limited offline activities, as the health of teachers and pupils was assured despite health protocols remaining a necessary feature at the reopened schools.
Context: See the related story in the Big News section above, for a report from Bali noting that regional authorities are awaiting instructions from Jakarta with regard to vaccinating children.
More...
Nation: “Over 84 Million Indonesians Receive Full Vaccination” from Antara
Nation: “Indonesia Receives Eight Million Sinovac Vaccine Doses” from Antara
Health Protocols (Prokes) & Health Services
“Police Prevent the Spread of Covid-19 in Several Churches in Mengwi” from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian): During the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of churches in Badung Regency were closely monitored by the joint police force on Sunday. Christian congregations who will enter the Church to worship are asked to apply health and 3M protocols. Namely wearing masks, keeping a distance to washing hands in running water. This anticipation is carried out to prevent a spike in Covid-19 cases which is currently falling on Bali. "This activity is a routine part of carrying out worship every week during the Covid-19 pandemic. To provide a sense of comfort and security, the congregation is obliged to implement prokes,” explained Aiptu Wiranata while on duty.
Context: This is the first report we’ve seen in some time of the Task Force specifically targeting houses of worship of any faith.
More...
Nation: “Pneumonia Vaccination to Boost Children's Life Expectancy in Indonesia” from Antara
Nation: “68 Million Indonesians Obese Due to Unhealthy Diet” from Antara
Province: “Bali Satpol Reminds Tourism Managers to Remain Disciplined” from Antara Bali (Indonesian)
Denpasar: “During the Pandemic, Mask Fines in Denpasar Totalled Hundreds of Millions” from Bali Post (Indonesian)
Klungkung: “Prokes Raids on Tourist Route Finds Dozens of Offenders” from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Economy & Infrastructure
“Bali Fast Cruises Complain about Unfair Price Competition” from Tribun Bali (Indonesian): Domestic tourists who use fast cruise services have increased since tourism reopened. "The increase compared to the pandemic period is approximately 75-80%, it's domestic only," said The Tanis Fast Cruise Director, Kadek Alit Putra, on Friday. "My market used to be China. At that time there were 800-900 Chinese guests per day, since the pandemic everything is just a memory," he said. "If the promo is said to be for domestic, this is actually very scary. The current price since it was opened has been devastated. Maybe it's not just fast boats. If you look at hotels in Denpasar, there are also many who experience this. Competition is very unhealthy at this time," he said. The fastboat company is only trying to cover operational costs. "He doesn't think about maintenance, for example oil, he doesn't think about the depreciation costs, nor does he think about the percentage of his name at sea, there will definitely be problems later," he said. "Do those who are open pay taxes? Does it benefit the state or even harm?" he said.
Context: In a related story the same business owner is quoted as saying almost all of his business is from Jakarta and that he can count Balinese customers on his fingers (Indonesian).
More...
Province: “LPEI Will Give Credit Guarantees Of Up To Rp100 Billion To Bali Tourism Actors” from Bisnis Bali (Indonesian)
Buleleng: “Branding of Geographical Indications of Local Salt Proposed” from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Klungkung: “Nusa Penida Residents Complain About Fuel Shortages” from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
Bali Reopening
“A Month After the Opening of International Tourism, Bali Has Zero Tourists” from Bali Express (Indonesian): A month after international tourism in Bali opened on October 14, the arrival of foreign tourists is still nil. Based on flight data released by I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport, Bali, from October 14 to November 13, 2021, it was recorded that there were no international flights with commercial status coming from abroad to Bali. The Governor of Bali said last Thursday that in the data he held, at least 19 countries were allowed to enter Bali, there are already 20,000 tourists have booked to come to Bali in November. However, until now the facts on the ground have not been a single foreign tourist who visited Bali directly. The Chairman of the Regional Board of the Association of the Indonesian Tours and Travel Agencies Bali, Putu Winastra said, when it comes to bookings, especially Europe, they have made reservations long ago. "The problem with bookings is that in December there are bookings, even until 2022 there are also bookings, but what is clear is that the bookings are realized or not? That's the most important thing, so now, if you want the booking to be realized, the rules (which are applied) must be clear," he said.
More...
“Highly Transmissible Delta Plus Overshadows Indonesia Reopening Plan” from The Jakarta Post (Metered Paywall)
“Deputy Governor Hopes Tourism Ambassadors Can Introduce Indonesia to the International Stage” from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
“Luxury Restaurant Burns Down As Firefighters Can't Reach Location” from iNews Bali (Indonesian): The luxury restaurant on Karma Kandara Beach in South Kuta caught fire on Sunday. Karma Kandara Beach restaurant is built at the base of a 300 meter high seaside cliff and burned down because the fire engines could not reach the fire site. The luxury restaurant, which is equipped with villa facilities, is not equipped with a hydrant for use in the event of a fire. According to the Platoon Commander of the Badung Fire Department I Komang Guna Arta, the fire spread quickly because the entire roof of the building was made of wood. "To get to the location, the terrain is very difficult," said Arta, on Sunday. The fire was extinguished after six hours.
Of Interest
“Police Arrest 48 Foreigners for Alleged Extortion on Dating Apps” from The Jakarta Globe
“President Does a Lap on Custom Bike to Inaugurate Mandalika Circuit” from The Jakarta Globe
“Arrangement of Bali's Mangrove Forest Area is Speeding Up” from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
“Soekarno-Hatta Immigration Refuses Entry of 541 Foreigners to Indonesia” from Republika (Indonesian)
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How You Can Help Bali
Due to the collapse of the tourism sector in Bali, tens of thousands of families have found themselves with a greatly reduced income—if any. If you’d like to support organizations working to help those in need, you can see a list of some here.
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