Thursday, March 11
Ubud, Sanur & Nusa Dua to be "Green Zones" for tourism; focused vaccinations planned; foreigners "strongly recommended" to get jabs + Minister says schools to reopen after teachers vaccinated + more!
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NYEPI REMINDER: The annual Hindu holiday will be observed this coming weekend, on Sunday, March 14. All travel and commerce will be paused, and people are expected to observe a “Silent Day” from 06:00 local time on Sunday until 06:00 local time on Monday. During that period, all broadcast TV, radio, and data (cellular 4G) services are scheduled to be stopped. Home internet + some public wifi service is set to continue as normal. Traditional Melasti processions will be allowed in the days running up to the holiday so long as participation is limited to 50 people, but regular Sunday services for Christians will be held virtually. You can find more information on Nyepi and the regulations surrounding it here. NOTE: The Bali Beat’s morning news edition will not publish on Monday, March 15 in observance of the holiday, but the evening Covid-19 update will publish as normal.
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: It was "steady as she goes," for the island's new case numbers yesterday, as they were nearly identical to Tuesday. Recoveries dropped, causing the In Treatment total to increase for the first time in 9 days. Deaths have snuck back up, but the month-to-date total (73) has slipped below February's pace, thanks to last weekend's lull.
Click here to see the national numbers infographic and a Regency-by-Regency breakdown of yesterday’s local numbers.
The Big News
"Bali Governor Designates Ubud, Sanur, and Nusa Dua as Covid-19 ‘Green Zones’ for Foreign Tourists" from Coconuts: The green zones are part of a “Free COVID Corridor” program, Koster said, and the first step of this strategy is to vaccinate everyone who resides and conducts activities in the designated areas. “This Free COVID Corridor Program is a precondition for steps to reopen tourism to foreign tourists,” Koster said at a press conference in Denpasar. The governor said that more than 50,000 people in Ubud are going to be vaccinated as part of this particular program, as well as over 60,000 people in Nusa Dua, and nearly 27,000 people in Sanur, who are residing in villages and sub-districts that have been officially selected.
"Mayor of Denpasar: Tourists Must Be Free of Covid-19 in the Green Zone" from Antara (Indonesian): Denpasar Mayor IGN Jaya Negara said that in he Free Covid Corridor (FCC) program, one of which is creating a Green Zone for Covid-19 in Sanur, Denpasar, Bali, tourists are required to be free of Covid-19 as evidenced by the results of swab tests or a negative antigen rapid test. "Later there be GeNose [a new rapid Covid-19 detection tool - ed.] which is more practical and cheaper. GeNose may be at the entrance door (Sanur), including the residents of Sanur," he explained. He emphasized that tourists who will enter the Sanur area are not vaccinated but are required to undergo a rapid antigen test or a Covid-19 swab test. "What is clear is that the negative swab Covid-19 will not be vaccinated only for expats in Denpasar so that it is suggested to be vaccinated immediately," he said.
Context: While the Mayor implied the creation of checkpoints with GeNose detectors, how movement into and out of the Green Zones - the borders of which have not been defined - will work has not been laid out yet. Furthermore, a check of the translation has confirmed that his message to foreigners living within the proposed Sanur Green Zone is that they are "strongly recommended" to get the vaccine "as soon as possible." It does yet appear to be an order/requirement. Further details will be carried here as they are released.
"Schools to Prepare for Direct Learning Once Teachers Vaccinated" from Antara: “After vaccines have been administered to educational practitioners, face-to-face learning is eagerly and quickly to be conducted for all educational institutions, starting from early childhood education, primary education, and middle education,” said Makarim. Direct learning must be accelerated by following the health protocols as well as participation in the COVID-19 vaccine program, Minister of Education and Culture, Nadiem Anwar Makarim remarked. Once they are vaccinated, teachers, educational practitioners, and regional governments are expected to push forward direct learning according to the situation of the educational institutions in each region.
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Some Covid Context
In this occasional section we share interesting or insightful stories from around the world that we come across that inform issues we’re facing here. Today, it’s background on mRNA and how the top two Covid-19 vaccines were made using the recently-developed technology that allows scientists to program it.
TL;DR:
NOTE: Click on the embedded player above to listen or open the episode in Spotify. You can also find it in your favorite podcatcher by searching for “Fresh Air,” or you can listen to it on the program’s website here. If you’ve heard a podcast or watched a video that you think can inform issues that we are facing here in Bali, let us know at TheBaliBeat@outlanders.global.
Other Headlines
"Dozens of Papuan Students in Bali Confess to be Victims of Police Violence" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): Dozens of Papuan students from the Papuan Care Students Front (Formalipa) admit to being victims of police violence in Denpasar. The alleged incident occurred when they staged a demonstration in the Renon area, Denpasar, Tuesday. "The peaceful demonstration was forcibly disbanded by the combined Police, Bali Police, and East Denpasar Police as well as reactionary mass organizations," Muno, one of the students from Papua, told the media. "There we were also forced to take an antigen test and a urine test. The reason is who knows if any of us use drugs," said another student, Andre.
Health Protocols (Prokes) & Patrols
Island: "Wangaya Bali Hospital Conducted 18,206 Rapid Tests for Covid-19 [in 2020]" from Antara (Indonesian)
Buleleng: "Approaching Nyepi, Sidak Prokes Continue" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
Denpasar: "2,600 Joint Personnel to Secure Nyepi and Isra Miraj in Denpasar" from iNews Bali (Indonesian)
Vaccination Update
Island: "Tourism Workers Enter Vaccination Program Phase Two, PHRI Badung Suggests One Stop Mechanism" from Tribune Bali (Indonesian)
Buleleng: "Intensive Vaccination during PPKM, Buleleng's Ambition to Return to the Yellow Zone" from Radar Bali (Indonesian)
Buleleng: "In the Last Month, Health Workers in Buleleng Were Not Confirmed After Vaccination" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Denpasar: "28,000 Denpasar Residents Have Received Covid-19 Vaccination" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian)
Denpasar: "Prevent Crowds, Covid-19 Vaccination in Denpasar Use Digital Queues" from iNews Bali (Indonesian)
Denpasar: "Bali will Vaccinate 26,000 Sanur Residents for the Green Zone" from Republika (Indonesian)
Gianyar: "Often Interacting with the Community, Gianyar Police Members Carry Out Covid-19 Vaccinations" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
Tourism Figures
"Approaching Long Holidays, Passenger Arrivals Through Bali's Ngurah Rai Airport Increase" from Tribune Bali (Indonesian): PT Angkasa Pura I (Persero) Bali Airport Branch Office I Gusti Ngurah Rai predicts that today and next Friday there will be an increase in the movement of domestic passenger arrivals. The peak of the increase in domestic passenger arrivals is predicted to occur today because tomorrow is the national holiday of the Isra Miraj Prophet Muhammad SAW. And Friday, March 12, 2021, because on Sunday it is Nyepi holiday. Furthermore, Taufan said that currently the average arrival of domestic passengers at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali reaches 3,500 people. Meanwhile, the movement of passengers on domestic departures reached 3,400 people. "Ahead of the Isra Miraj and Nyepi holidays there is a surge in passenger arrivals , because last Tuesday, March 9, it was seen that around 3,800 people entered Bali."
"Singapore Airlines to Pilot Digital Covid Travel Pass" from Agence France-Presse: Singapore Airlines will begin trialling a coronavirus digital travel pass developed by aviation's industry body next week, the carrier said Monday, the first airline to pilot the scheme as the pandemic-hit sector seeks to recover. The app, developed by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), will store information on passengers' health, including whether they have had virus tests or vaccines, to streamline travel as borders reopen. Singapore's flag carrier said it would offer travellers heading from the city-state to London between March 15 and 28 the chance to participate in the pilot if they have a phone operating on the iOS system.
"Former Female Volleyball Pro Aprilia Manganang Now Legally Male in Indonesia’s Rare Acknowledgement of Sex Change" from Coconuts: Aprilia Manganang, 28, represented Indonesia’s female volleyball team before he retired in 2020 and joined the army. The former volleyball pro was at the center of a gender controversy at the 2015 SEA Games when the Philippines appealed that the hulking athlete undergo a gender test. The appeal was rejected by the competition’s committee, and Aprilia remained adamant that he was female. But questions about Aprilia’s gender identity did not end there, as it was revealed that he was born with a rare condition called hypospadias, in which the urethra opening is placed on the underside of the penis instead of the tip. The military has accommodated his wish for corrective surgery and to be legally recognized as male.
Of Interest
"[On Rumors About] New Foreign Tourists Planned to Open April 2022, PHRI Reaction; Conditions in Bali Are Bloody" from Tribune Bali (Indonesian)
"The Effect of Nyepi Promo to Hotel Occupancy in Bali, This Said PHRI" from Bisnis Bali (Indonesian)
"Approaching Nyepi, Rice Availability in Bulog is Safe and Stable" from Bali Express (Indonesian)
"Bali’s Annual ‘Kissing Ritual’ to Smooch Ahead With Limited Participants for This Year’s Nyepi" from Coconuts
"Cashless Transactions at Bali Gas Stations" from Bali Discovery
"Chili Still Expensive, Regency Government Will Hold A Cheap Market" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian)
"NTT's Bolok Port Is Targeted to Be Able to Accommodate Large Ships" from Republika(Indonesian)
The View from Outside
"Will Mandalika Be the Next Bali?" from The Diplomat: According to Indonesia’s Investment Coordinating Board, from 2018 to 2020, Central Lombok Regency (where the 1,175 hectare project is located) booked $78.5 million worth of foreign investment in the hotel and restaurant sector. Room capacity has increased, which shows that there is investment and construction activity taking place, but not quite at the scale or pace that was envisioned and not necessarily in the high-value luxury hotels that ITDC is targeting. Construction of the Moto GP racetrack has also been slowed down by land disputes.
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 TheBaliBeat@outlanders.global.
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 include news items from established media sources
We do not share rumors.
We do not include opinion pieces or forecasts.
For all stories marked "Indonesian" I have used Google Translate to convert it from Bahasa. In most cases I try to polish the excerpt and/or write a short summary in proper English to help clarify the details.
For any questions, comments or tips, please contact us at TheBaliBeat@outlanders.global.