Saturday, April 25
Mad dash as people take last-minute flights & ferries before travel ban + Governor: Bali's got plenty of hospital beds + More stupid foreigners being stupid + Cashless transactions on the rise + more!
Good morning! Welcome to the COVID-19 Update for Bali for Saturday, April 25. If you find this information useful, please subscribe and share it with others in the foreigner community on the island.
If you've got a tip on a story that should be included, please contact us at newsletter@migrationmedia.net.
Status Update
Country-wide Numbers:
Source:
Indonesia National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB Indonesia): @BNPB_Indonesia
Official updates are available from the Indonesian Government here.
Bali Numbers:
Confirmed Cases Distribution:
Key: Red = Infected | Green = Recovered | Black = Died
Trends:
Sources:
Infographic comes from Bali Provincial Government COVID-19 Task Force (link).
The geographic breakdown comes from the Bali Provincial Government's data collection department (link).
Charts have been compiled using their data.
More detailed information on the locations of positive cases within each Regency, as well as the number of suspected cases ("ODP") and people under observation ("PDP"), can be found in infographics on the official websites of each Regency's COVID-19 Task Force:
Badung | Bangli* | Buleleng | Denpasar City | Gianyar* | Jembrana* | Karangasem | Klungkung* | Tabanan
*Does not yet have a dedicated Covid-19 info page. Data can be found by reading official government news alerts.
The Big News
"As Number Of Active COVID-19 Cases Reaches 118, Governor Addresses Issue Of Hospital Capacity" from The Bali Post (Indonesian): In addition to the active cases receiveing treatment, there are still patients under surveillance (PDP) who are kept in isolation before the results of their swab tests are returned. Nevertheless, Bali Governor Wayan Koster claims that the capacity of hospitals, especially isolation rooms, is still sufficient to treat positive patients with COVID-19.
"Mengwi Terminal Is Still Operating for Non-PSBB Areas" from Antara (Indonesian): Head of the Mengwi Terminal in Badung, Bali, Cok Agung Suarmaya, said that at the moment the Mengwi terminal is still operating and serving passengers going to or coming from non-Large Scale Social Limitation (PSBB) areas... "The arrival and departure of passengers to or from Bali is still there, but to go to the PSBB area it is already restricted, especially those that enter the red zone are strictly prohibited from making a departure or arrival," Cok Agung Suarmaya said.
"188 Balinese Migrant Workers Stranded On Ship In Karangasem Waters" from Berita Bali (Indonesian): Hundreds of passengers, including 188 Balinese, are now stranded in the waters of Karangasem Bali. 2 days ago after the planned closure of the Airport and the Port on the instructions of President Jokowi, a number of large ships coming from abroad to Indonesia have been held offshore... According to one member of the KM Carnival Splendor's crew, I Nengah Satwika, at the moment they are still confused about not being able to enter Bali. They have coordinated with relevant agencies but have not received a response yet. "We are all healthy here and no one is sick. But if we are quarantined, we who are 327 people on the ship are ready to obey government regulations. We only ask the ship to enter Bali, we miss our hometown," he pleaded.
Other Headlines
"Viral Video Shows Foreigner Removing Sign to Enter Closed Tourist Spot In Badung" from Coconuts: Tourist destinations across Badung regency, including beaches, are still closed until at least May 29. But that certainly hasn’t stopped some people from ignoring the closures, as seen in one video that gained traction online today... The video shows two people on a motorbike approaching a sign posted on the entrance to Karang Boma Cliff in Pecatu, South Kuta that says "closed for visitor[s]" and later moving the sign to make their way in.
"Gilimanuk Still Open and Crowded with Vehicles Exiting Bali Last Night" from The Seminyak Times: There was a surge in vehicles leaving Bali yesterday afternoon and into the night dominated by motorcycles. Since Bali and Banyuwangi are not included in the areas designated for extreme distancing (PSBB), both ports remain open... "We have not received any direction for closing anything as yet. However, some large ports such as Merak in Jakarta and the Surabaya port have been closed because they are in PSBB areas. We will continue to follow directions from the central government," said Gilimanuk Port Satpel Coordinator BPTD Bali-NTB Region I Nyoman Sastrawan.
"Activities At Bali Airport Are Still Normal" (Video) from Antara (Indonesian): On the first day of the enactment of the Ministry of Transportation's regulation regarding the termination of commercial flight operations, activities at Ngurah Rai International Airport, Bali, until Friday 24 April, still look normal.
"Anticipating Violations, Satpol PP Officers Conduct Oversight" from The Bali Post (Indonesian): Officers of the Karangasem Civil Service Police Unit (Satpol PP) continue to conduct surveillance to prevent violations of the restricted opening and closing of traditional and modern market hours... Head of Vacuum Satpol PP Karangasem, I Made Aditya said that his team continues to conduct surveillance in traditional markets related to the operation of traders selling in the market. Because while traditional markets operate from 07:00 until 13:00, "there are still a number of traders who sell ahead of or before opening hours," he said.
"121,498 PMI Have Returned to Indonesia from 13 Countries" from The IDN Times (Indonesian): Head of the Indonesian Migrant Workers Protection Agency (BP2MI), Benny Rhamdani, claimed to have coordinated the return of 37,075 people from April to May 2020. This figure does not include the number that is not recorded or undocumented... "Until the end of the year, this will increase to approximately 260,000 people registered with us," he said. During this pandemic outbreak, BP2MI recorded 121,498 PMIs from 13 placement countries that had returned to the country. The biggest wave of PMI came from Malaysia, 15,429 people. Then followed by the return of PMI from Hong Kong at 11,303 people; Singapore with 3,507 people, and Taiwan at 3,026 people.
"In Buleleng, Green Open Space Is Closed" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian): Head of the Housing, Settlement and Land Agency of the Regency of Buleleng, Ni Komang Surattini, has ordered closed four (4) Green Open Spaces located in Singaraja... The action closed off access to all green space by installing a ban line and includes the following locations: Bung Karno open space in Sukasada sub-district, Singaraja city open green space, Yowana Asri Banyuasri open green space and the Kebangsaan open green space in Kampung Tinggi village.
"Non-cash Transactions Increase During Pandemic, 80,000 Merchants In Bali Use QRIS" from iNews (Indonesian): Bank Indonesia (BI) Bali says that 80,717 merchants used the Indonesian Standard Quick Response Code (QRIS). The numbers have increased since the coronavirus pandemic... "If you look at merchant data, it has actually increased by around 200% compared to January. Not only in Denpasar, we want the same thing to develop in the districts of Bangli, Buleleng and so on," BI Bali Chief Representative Trisno Nugroho said.
Resources
Important information for foreigners who are staying on the island, such as designated COVID-19 hospitals and emergency contact numbers, can be found by following this link.
The government has cancelled its visa-on-arrival process and rolled out enhanced entry requirements for people traveling to Indonesia; they have also granted automatic extensions to most foreigners who are still in the country on temporary stay visas. You can see a (translated) list of all of the relevant regulations on the Directorate General of Immigration & Ministry of Law and Human Rights' website here.
If you are trying to plan travel anywhere, here are two of the best up-to-date resources that can help you:
IATA Travel Center Update - The International Air Transport Association is the global lobbying body for the aviation industry. Their alerts feed into airlines' reservation systems, so it is the most reliable database of flight restrictions around.
Al Jazeera Travel Restriction & Border Shutdown Tracker - A companion list that includes less technical summaries of each country's travel restrictions, beyond just flights and airport access.
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