Tuesday, October 20
Dozens of foreigners caught in Kuta mask patrol + Island legislature call for free tests for all (except foreigners) + Singapore travel requirements released (you probably don't qualify) + more!
Good morning! Welcome to The Bali Beat for Tuesday, October 20. If you’re not a subscriber, sign up here to get this update delivered directly to your Inbox every Monday-Saturday morning, along with each evening’s Covid-19 update. If you are already a subscriber, thank you! Please be sure to share it with others in the foreigner community on the island by clicking the button below.
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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: Click here to see the national numbers infographic, trend charts, and a Regency-by-Regency breakdown of yesterday’s local numbers in our evening update. And in case you missed it, check out Sunday’s update for a summary of last week’s overall totals, with perspective on how they stack up against previous weeks + detailed breakdowns of the virus’ spread on a Regency-by-Regency level.
The Big News
"Dozens of Foreigners Caught in Mask Raids in Kuta, Sentenced to Sweeping and Push Ups" from iNews Bali (Indonesian): Dozens of foreigners couldn't escape when their vehicle was stopped by the joint team. Although repeatedly reminded to wear masks when leaving the house, many are still stubborn without using masks. "Here there are many foreigners who carry out activities but do not comply with health protocols," said Head of North Kuta Sub-district, Putu Eka Parmana... Parmana said that social sanctions in the form of sweeping the road and physical punishment in the form of push-ups will deter the foreigners. With these sanctions, it is hoped that foreigners will not make the same mistakes over and over again. "We remind them to be deterred, so we tell them to clear the road. So later he will remember having been punished," he said.
(Ed. Note: Nearly every media outlet that I monitor continues to carry stories every day about mask patrols and people being fined in every region of the island. They are always on the lookout for incidents of foreigners being caught, and police are always on the lookout for good press. Be sure to wear your mask.)
"Bali DPRD Asks Governor of Koster to Give Free Rapid and Swab Tests for the Community" from The Bali Tribune (Indonesian): "We ask the Governor to allocate a budget to provide free services to people who carry out rapid tests and swab," said the chairman of the Golkar faction of DPRD Bali, I Wayan Rawan Atmaja. Meanwhile, the Deputy Chairperson of the DPRD said that his party had proposed a rapid and free swab test in the General Policy Meeting. "We propose that the swab and rapid test (fees) be waived on certain matters. All rights of outsiders are not free. We are still (checking) whether this is possible,” he explained.
"Singapore-Indonesia Corridor Opens Next Week; Here’s the Passenger Flow" from Indonesia Expat: The travel corridor only applies to Indonesian and Singaporean citizens who wish to undertake urgent business trips, diplomatic trips, and official services. President Director of PT Angkasa Pura II (Persero) Muhammad Awaluddin said several provisions agreed by the two countries would be implemented at the airport as the main procedure for passenger safety, both for departures and arrivals. “A number of checkpoints will be passed by passengers on the Indonesia-Singapore route who use this TCA system. The procedures that are applied focus on the health aspect,” Awaluddin said.
(Ed. Note: Click the headline to read details on the procedures for passengers.)
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Other Headlines
"Bio Farma Produces 16 million -17 million Sinovac Vaccines Per Month" from Antara (Indonesian): "About 16 million to 17 million doses per month that we can produce, but this will also depend on the availability or supply time from Sinovac," said PT Bio Farma Corporate Secretary Bambang Heriyanto. Bambang said Bio Farma has the capacity to produce 250 million doses of vaccine per year. He said the current temporary commitment of the vaccine supplied from Sinovac is 260 million doses. Bio Farma will start producing the vaccine in stages if it has received permission from the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM).
"Bali to Host UN Disaster Conference in 2022" from Bali Discovery: President Joko Widodo has announced that the Island of Bali will host the 2022 gathering of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (GPDRR), a biennial meeting convened by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction. The President emphasized that the large-scale international conference must be utilized in the Country’s best interest. The forum must also highlight Indonesia’s role in reducing the risk of major disasters. “Because of this, preparations must be well done. I believe that Indonesia as the host will bring its great experience of acting as the host of major international events,” the President said.
"2 Police Officers in Bali Sanctioned for Using Patrol Car to Escort Socialite Jogging on Denpasar Road" from Coconuts: Two police officers in Bali have been lightly sanctioned for escorting three men while they are jogging on a road in Denpasar. The incident became a hotly discussed topic among Indonesian netizens over the weekend, especially as one of the escorted men is believed to be Jakarta socialite-slash-drug convict Richard Muljadi... The Bali Police have not confirmed nor released identities of the three joggers, but said that the officers involved have been found guilty of doing so. “If you have seen the video then I don’t have to explain anymore, our focus is on the police officers regarding their escort violations,” Bali Police spokesman Syamsi said. The officers were given administrative sanctions, comprising individual letters of apology promising they won’t repeat their mistakes.
"North Bali Airport in a Holding Pattern" from Bali Discovery: plans to build a second airport in Northeast Bali at Kubutambahan now appear highly doubtful after discovering that a large portion of the acreage needed for the air gateway is already under a long-term lease. This unexpected development has effectively sidelined any effort to acquire the land necessary for runways, terminals, and supporting facilities in that location. With many in Bali fiercely committed to North Bali having its own international airport, the focus has now shifted to a second location in the Village of Sumberklampok in Gerokgak in Northwest Bali. However, residents in Sumberkelampok are voicing their opposition to the creation of an airport in their area.
"Non-cash Transactions in Bali During the Pandemic Are On the Rise" from Bali Express (Indonesian): The Head of the BI Bali Representative, Trisno Nugroho, said that during the recommendation to stay at home alone, non-cash transaction activities had increased to over 40%. "With stay at home and WFH, millennials in Bali quite like non-cash payments," he explained... Meanwhile, the circulation of cash in Bali until September 2020, said Teisno, reached Rp. 9.7 trillion or 61% of the projected amount of Rp. 15.9 trillion. This condition was different from the January - September 2019 period, where the money in circulation was Rp. 14.8 trillion. Thus, the condition decreased by 35% or decreased by Rp. 5.2 trillion.
"Ketapang-Lombok Crossing Opening Reduces Traffic to Bali By 50%" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): The operation of crossings for ferry transportation from the Ketapang Port - Lombok has a drastic impact on vehicle traffic on Jalan Denpasar - Gilimanuk. There has been a decrease in the number of vehicles, especially freight transport crossing the national road Jalan - Denpasar Gilimanuk by up to 50%. Reduced vehicle traffic also speeds up the distance to Denpasar City or vice versa... What is clear, with the opening of the crossing from the Port of Ketapang - Lombok, NTB, it has reduced the number of goods transported on Jalan Denpasar - Gilimanuk. This is because almost all goods transported to NTB and NTT no longer cross Jalan Denpasar - Gilimanuk.
"The Covid-19 Pandemic Has Crushed Indonesia Tourism Sectors" from Bali Plus: “Indonesia is estimated to have lost foreign exchange of US$ 14.5-15.8 billion (around Rp. 213 trillion to Rp. 232 trillion) due to the decrease in foreign tourist arrivals. This slump is because the tourism sector relies heavily on human movement,” said Deputy Minister of Tourism and Economy Creative/ Deputy Head of the Tourism and Creative Economy Agency, Angela Tanoesoedibjo. To revive the country’s tourism sector, Angela said that her party would empower domestic tourists through a tourism discount program, planned to be launched in 2021 or after the Covid-19 vaccine is available. “The tourism discount is used to encourage domestic tour packages. Because during this pandemic, in addition to the factor of public confidence in the cleanliness of tourist destinations, people’s purchasing power is also decreasing during,” said Angela.
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 newsletter@migrationmedia.net.
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.
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