Wednesday, June 17
Leaders of Buleleng Legislature swab tested after exposure to expert on Governor's staff + 2 villages in Denpasar shut down after local outbreaks + Schools not ready for 'New Normal' + more!
Good morning! Welcome to the COVID-19 Update for Bali for Wednesday, June 17. Please subscribe and share it with others in the foreigner community on the island. I happily put this daily newsletter together as a public service, and it will be free so long as the current emergency lasts. *A paid subscription is NOT required to access this content.* When signing up, select the "None" option and you'll get it delivered to your Inbox each day. But if you would like to support my work, please consider taking up a voluntary subscription at US$5/month. Thanks!
Status Update
National Numbers:
Bali Numbers:
New Infections by Regency
Overall Confirmed Cases Distribution:
Key: Red = Infected | Green = Recovered | Black = Died
Bali 30-Day Trends:
More details on the locations of positive cases within each Regency, as well as the number of suspected cases ("ODP") and people under in-patient observation ("PDP"), can be found in charts & infographics on the websites of each Regency's Covid-19 Task Force:
Badung | Bangli | Buleleng | Denpasar City | Gianyar | Jembrana | Karangasem | Klungkung | Tabanan
Sources:
The national update comes from the Indonesia National Disaster Management Agency: @BNPB_Indonesia
The Bali Numbers infographic comes from the Bali Provincial Government COVID-19 Task Force (link).
The Total Confirmed Cases Distribution map & Regency Numbers figures come from the Bali Provincial Government's data collection department (link).
The 30-day trend charts have been compiled using daily government data.
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 fund 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.
The Big News
"Chair of Buleleng Parliament Undergoes Swab Testing" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): After confirming that they had come into contact with one of the governor's experts who has tested positive for Covid-19, Chairman of the Buleleng Legislature (DPRD), Gede Supriatna, along with Secretary of the DPRD Buleleng Putu Dana and several staff at the Buleleng DPRD Secretariat, have undergone swab testing at Giri Emas Pratama Hospital yesterday. A total of 10 people underwent swab sampling... Secretary Buleleng's Covid-19 Task Force, Gede Suyasa, confirmed that contact tracing continues. "We just found 10 people, so that was the first to take a swab test. We are still searching. If the results really develop, of course there will be further swab tests," he said.
"After Nine Residents Exposed to Covid-19, Disinfectants Sprayed in the Meduri Region" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian): Adat Sumerta Village, together with Sumerta Sub-district in East Denpasar has restricted traffic on Jalan Meduri after nine residents in Gang IIIA Jalan Meduri tested positive for Covid-19. In addition, disinfectant has been sprayed along the street. Police Commander Ardiansyah Daulay, SIK, MH, said the spraying was carried out as an effort to reduce the spread of the virus in public places. "We carried out spraying several areas of the Sumerta Traditional Village, mainly along Jln. Meduri is included in every citizen's home," he said. People have been urged to obey the rules of the central and local governments and not to move outside their homes.
"Eight Members Of A Family in Padangsambian Kelod Positive for Covid-19" from The IDN Times (Indonesian): The eight people infected in Padangsambian Klod Village were a family infected with the corona virus after a family members working at the Kumbasari Market was confirmed positive for Covid-19. In addition to the family, previously four people in another family were also positively confirmed by COVID-19 because one of the family members was a nurse at the Sanglah General Hospital... Village Head Gede Wijaya Saputra said that access to the area would be tightened, including the environment around the family which will be put under observation. As many as 41 people will soon be tested.
Other Headlines
"Swab Results for 93 Sanglah Hospital Medical Team Returned, One Positive" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): The swab test results for 93 Sanglah Hospital medical officers finally came out. As a result, only one person – a nurse – tested positive for Covid-19. Hospital staff did a swab test because there was a patient who was about to undergo a surgery that turned out to be positive Covid 19. (Ed. Note: After the diagnosis, the nurse’s family has been swab tested, and 78 of her neighbors in Padangsambian Kelod Village will take rapid tests. Story here.)
"Indonesia to Allow Phased Reopening Of Schools in Covid-19 'Green Zones': Minister" from The Jakarta Post: "We'll allow schools in green zones to reopen," Education and Culture Minister Nadiem Makarim said. "Around 90 cities and regencies across Indonesia are considered green zones. The number of students in those areas is roughly equivalent to 6 percent of all students in the country. This means the remaining 94 percent still have to continue their education through online learning," added Nadiem... National Covid-19 Task Force chief Doni Monardo said the task force had mapped the risk status of all regions in the country affected by the Covid-19 pandemic based on 15 indicators from the World Health Organization. The indicators, which comprise the number of new cases, suspects and fatalities among other things, determine whether the regions fall into the green, yellow, orange or red category.
"Indonesian Schools Not Ready for 'New Normal': Survey" from The Jakarta Post: More than half of schools across the country say they are not ready to resume face-to-face learning in the so-called “new normal” period due to a lack of infrastructure and funds to do so, a recent survey by the Federation of Indonesian Teachers Associations (FSGI) has revealed... The survey was conducted earlier this month, involving at least 1,656 respondents comprising teachers, principals and school management in 245 cities and regencies in 34 provinces. Most of the respondents work at schools located within a green zone – meaning there is a low risk of COVID-19 infection.
"Kumbasari Market Opens, 12 Reactive Traders After Rapid Tests" from Bali Express (Indonesian): After 200 people took rapid tests, 12 traders in Kumbasari Market were declared reactive and were immediately administered swab tests. 200 additional traders and other market participants will take rapid tests on Wednesday... Director of Perumda Denpasar Sewakadarma Market, Ida Bagus Kompyang Wiranta, said that the Kumbasari Market is beginning to reopen with a quarter of the total number of traders.
"After 31 Days Of PKM In Denpasar City, Tens of Thousands of People Forced to Turn Back" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): From 15 May to 14 June 2020, thousands of people have been denied entry to the City of Denpasar because of the Community Activity Restrictions (PKM), including 1,207 people who were not allowed to enter Denpasar because they were not wearing masks and 19,229 because they had no clear purpose and did not have a statement.
The View from Outside
"Bali's Open-air Burials Endure Despite Covid-19 Crisis" from Agence France-Presse: For centuries Bali's Trunyanese people have left their dead to decompose in the open, the bodies placed in bamboo cages until only the skeletons remain. It is a ritual they haven't given up -- even as the COVID-19 pandemic upends burial practices worldwide with religious leaders in protective gear, cemetary workers in hazmat suits, and mourners banned or unable to comfort each other because of social-distancing rules... In Bali local officials claim the novel coronavirus, which has infected at least eight million and killed more than 430,000 globally, has yet to reach the remote north east where the Trunyan live. "The funeral process remains the same but now we have to wear masks," explained village head Wayan Arjuna.
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.
Local travel website Traveloka has a helpful page with a summary of what’s needed to travel to and within the country. You can also order a rapid test or swab (PCR) test via their platform: Link
The British Embassy in Jakarta has recently posted a great summary of the Indonesian government's travel restrictions on their Facebook page. You can read it here.
If you are trying to plan travel anywhere, here are some 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 Travel Information Manual Automatic (Timatic) database feeds into airlines' reservation systems, so it is the most reliable list of flight restrictions around.
Revolver Maps' Travel Restrictions Database - This list pulls directly from IATA's Timatic database and arranges the countries in lists that are easier to navigate and creates share-able links for every country. NOTE: This is a third-party service and they warn that the updates to their system can be delayed by several hours for certain countries.
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 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 will 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 newsletter@migrationmedia.net.