Thursday, April 16
Dengue Fever cases rising along with COVID-19, setting up possible double whammy for the island + Cheap domestic flights may be a thing of the past + THE GARLIC HAS ARRIVED! + more!
Good evening! Welcome to the COVID-19 Update for Bali for Thursday, April 16. 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.
The Big News
"Alert! With Number of Patients Now At 84 Dengue Fever Cases In Tabanan Continue to Increase" from The IDN Times (Indonesian): Cases of Dengue Fever (DHF) in Tabanan have increased even though the larval free rate (ABJ) in Tabanan is still below the ideal number. The public is asked to remain vigilant because ABJ which is below the ideal indicates the potential for dengue infection will continue to occur and increase... To deal with this, the community is encouraged to continue to eradicate mosquito nests and routinely implement clean and healthy living behaviors.
"Residents Block Returning Migrant Workers Quarantined In Hotels Near the Sengkidu Area" from Berita Bali (Indonesian): A lack of consultation with local people, plus the close proximity of hotels being used for quarantine to homes caused residents of Sengkidu Village in Karangasem Regency to refuse the arrival of 24 Indonesian Migrant Workers (PMI) who were set to undergo quarantine there on Wednesday night... Dozens of residents to come down to blockade the vehicles carrying around 24 PMI as they headed to the hotel. Sengkidu Village Perbekel, I Wayan Darpi, told media crews that local residents could not accept the arrival of PMI residents to be quarantined at the Rama Hotel.
"Airline Ticket Prices Will Be Raised" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian): With passenger volumes down 50%, the Ministry of Transportation is now likely to raise airplane tickets... The plan if for the Directorate General of Civil Aviation of the Ministry of Transportation to study aircraft upper limit tariff adjustments during the Covid-19 pandemic. Also being factored in will be the special mechanisms to prevent the spread of Covid-19 through flight activities that all airlines will be required to deploy.
Other Headlines
"Collection of Plastic Waste Still Operational" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian): Many businesses have begun to experience a decline in production due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but this is not the case for businesses that count plastic waste. The Plastic House in Petangkap Village, Buleleng is still operating as usual, although it is undeniable that there is a decrease in waste supply of late... Owner of Rumah Plastik, Putu Eka Darmawan, said that it continues to produce raw materials in the form of shredded waste up to 1 ton. "Production depends on marketing, while marketing links are good, the market doesn't matter. Production is still continuing, despite the lack of supply," he said.
"Taiwanese Entrepreneurs Contribute PPE to Bali's BPBD" from Antara (Indonesian): Chairperson of the Taiwan Entrepreneurs Association (TETO) in Bali Su Wen-Ping donated personal protective equipment (PPE) designed by Taiwan and produced in Indonesia for the prevention of the COVID-19 pandemic submitted to the Bali Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD)... "This donation shows the concern and love of Taiwan and the joint determination of Indonesia to fight the plague of infectious diseases," TETO Surabaya Director General Benson DS Lin said. The Taiwan Entrepreneurs Association in Bali has planned to donate personal protective equipment to help prevent outbreaks.
"Food Task Force: 52,000 Tons Of Imported Garlic Have Entered Country" from Antara (Indonesian): National Police Task Force Chief Brigadier General Daniel Tahi Monang Silitonga said that to date 52,000 tons of imported garlic from China have entered Indonesia to meet the needs of the community... thousands of tons of garlic were distributed to markets throughout Indonesia. "For all people, including small traders such as fried rice artisans," he said as well. The additional stock of imported garlic is expected to reduce the price of garlic on the market which is now around Rp 50,000 per kilogram.
"In the Middle of the Corona Pandemic, Families of British Origin 'Escape' to Bali" from Kompass (Indonesian): The Covid-19 pandemic requires most people to stay at home. However, this British couple went through their quarantine period at home while on vacation. Corinne and Dave Pruden, together with their twins, took the last flight out of the UK to Denpasar to spend their lockdown time there... Both of them know they might be considered a little stupid and naive, but they also want to protect their children. So "running away" from England was taken as a solution.
The View from Outside
"Melbourne Nightclub Promoter to Be Freed from Bali Jail As Other Foreigners Flout Lockdown Rules" from 7News.com.au: Nine months after he was locked up in a Bali jail cell on drugs charges, Melbourne nightclub promoter David Van Iersel will next week be freed. The 39-year-old’s nine-month sentence, on a charge of personal use of cocaine, is due to expire on Monday and jail authorities say he will be freed and immediately deported to Australia, pending the availability of flights... Local authorities are angry at how some foreigners still in Bali are deliberately flouting social distancing rules. And social media is alive with images of westerners deliberately climbing over beach barricades to surf and go swimming in contravention of local calls for people to stay home.
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.
About This Newsletter
This newsletter is a product of Migration Media, the hub for stories from and about the international migrant experience.
Our standards
We only list news items from established media sources
We do not share rumors.
We do not include opinion pieces or forecasts.
For all stories marked "Indonesian" we have used Google Translate to convert it from Bahasa. When possible, we will provide a short summary in proper English to help get the details of the piece across more efficiently, and we will polish the excerpt to help clarify the details.
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