Wednesday, April 1
Good evening! Welcome to the COVID-19 Update for Bali for Wednesday, April 1. 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
The latest official infection numbers for Indonesia:
Sources:
Charts are from Worldometers and are current as of 00:00 GMT today.
Official updates are available from the Indonesian Government here.
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.
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.
The Big News
"The Indonesian President Temporarily Halts Entry of Foreign Nationals to Indonesia Due to Covid-19" from BaliPlus: President Joko Widodo has temporarily halted the entry and transiting to all regions of Indonesia for all foreigners in order to prevent the transmission of the Covid-19 coronavirus... "It has been decided that all visits and transit of foreign nationals to Indonesian territory will be temporarily stopped," said Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi at a press conference after a the Cabinet meeting. However, foreign citizens who have a Limited Stay Permit (KITAS), Permanent Stay Permit (KITAP), holders of Diplomatic Stay Permits and Official Stay Permits, can still enter the territory of Indonesia by following the appropriate and applicable health protocols.
"Free Extensions for Visa Holders and Temporary Ban On Foreigners Entering Indonesia" from The Seminyak Times: The regulation also relates to foreigners residing in Indonesia, namely foreigners who hold a Visit Stay Permit (including a free and paid for visa on arrival) that has expired and/or cannot be extended. They will be granted a Forced Majeure Stay Permit without having to submit an application to the Immigration Office, and free of charge. Foreigners who hold a Temporary Stay Permit (KITAS) and Permanent Stay Permit (KITAP) that have expired and/or cannot be extended again, will be postponed and given a forced stay permit automatically without the need to submit an application to the Immigration Office, as well as free of charge... Jhoni said this will take effect from 2 April 2020 at 00.00 Jakarta time, until the COVID-19 pandemic is declared finished by the authorities.
"President Jokowi Frees Electricity for the Next 3 Months" from Berita Bali (Indonesian): President Joko Widodo has decided to provide assistance to people by providing concession payments for electricity. Jokowi said that a leeway would be given for the next 3 months, namely April, May and June 2020... "For 450 VA electricity customers, the number of which is around 24 million customers, electricty will be free for the next 3 months, namely for April, May, June 20. As for the 7 million 900 VA customers, they will see their rates discounted by 50 percent. This means that they will pay only half of April to June 2020," Jokowi said.
"Disappointed Residents Prohibited From Entering Bali, Must Meet Mandatory Requirements To Be Able To Pass" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): Hundreds of people who want to enter Bali via the port of Gilimanuk Tuesday were rejected. Those who were rejected came from the red zone outside Bali, including people who had recently been in designated the Covid-19 red zones... Jembrana Regent I Putu Artha said, "This is not forbidding people to come to Bali. But if those who come are from the corona red zone, I ask them to return to their area of origin and to isolate in their respective areas." He explained that the refusal of residents from the red zone when they were going to Bali was a form of government prevention so that the Covid-19 outbreak does not increasingly spread in Bali.
Other Headlines
"Regent Eka Ensures Safe Food Reserves" fro Bali Puspa News (Indonesian): Tabanan Regent Ni Putu Eka Wiryastuti has ensured people that food reserves in Tabanan Regency are safe for the next 3 months... He emphasized that all food reserves in Tabanan Regency should not be sold outside the region and certainly be able to meet the needs of the community in Tabanan Regency. "The food reserves that we have in the form of rice, fish, vegetables and others should not be sold out first, we make sure our community in Tabanan is first met," he said.
"South Denpasar Area of Panjer Closed to Minimize the Spread of Covid-19" from Berita Bali (Indonesian): From March 31 to April 7, the South Denpasar area of Panjer will be temporarily closed, in order to minimize the spread of Covid-19... The closure of access roads leading to the Panjer region was justified by the South Denpasar Police Chief Kompol I Nyoman Wirajaya on Wednesday. According to him, the application of the closure is part of a trial to reduce the spread of Covid-19. "This is a trial to suppress the spread of the corona virus. The trial lasts for a week. For unauthorized residents are asked not to enter the Panjer area from 19:00 - 24:00," the former Kuta police chief told reporters.
"Electricity Use In the Kuta Area Has Dropped 35%" from The Bali Post (Indonesian): The coronavirus pandemic has reduced office and tourism activities in Kuta and South Kuta. With this reduced activity, the electrical power load has also reduced... The highest usage of electric power load occurred in January, reaching 396 MW. Meanwhile, data on March 30 showed that electricity usage had dropped dramatically, to 254 MW.
"646 Prisoners In Bali Freed Amid COVID-19" from The IDN Times (Indonesian): The COVID-19 epidemic has caused around 30,000 prisoners across Indonesia to get parole. This is based on the decision of the Minister of Law and Human Rights, Yasonna Hamonangan Laoly... As many as 646 prisoners in Bali received awards from President Joko Widodo through an assimilation and intervention program. It is only intended for Indonesian Citizens.
"Ngurah Rai Customs Adjust Operations Until April 21, 2020" from The Bali Tribune (Indonesian): New precautionary and preventative measures have been adopted by customs and excise services at Ngurah Rai Customs and will contnue until April 21. The adjustments include the policy of limiting access to the Ngurah Rai Customs office... "For this matter, face-to-face services with service users with an interest in the Ngurai Rai Customs Office are diverted through electronic mail, telephone, facsimile, or video call media using the WhatsApp application," explained the Head of the Ngurah Rai Customs Information Information Services Section, Teddy Triatmojo, on Wednesday. When documents (hard copies) must be submitted, this can be done through an intermediary mechanism for security officers.
The View from Outside
"Coronavirus In Bali: Shutdown Underway As Indonesia Bans All Foreign Tourists" from 7News.com.au: Bali’s streets and beaches are like you’ve never seen them before – devoid of tourists and traffic. As the police, military and disaster mitigation agency again conducted widespread disinfectant spraying using water cannons, and Bali beaches were closed to the public, the holiday island’s state of emergency took effect... Bali’s tourist industry is now decimated by the COVID-19 pandemic and Indonesian authorities are playing catch up to stem what many believe will be an avalanche of virus cases when it takes hold.
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.
For any questions, comments or tips, please contact us at newsletter@migrationmedia.net.