Indonesia likely to impose stricter curbs by Saturday

Indonesia is expected to impose by Saturday stricter curbs as South-east Asia’s most-populous country battles a second wave of coronavirus infections, driven by the more transmissible Delta variant.

The planned new measures, called Pemberlakuan Pembatasan Kegiatan Masyarakat (PPKM) Darurat, or emergency public activity restrictions, would likely cover Java and Bali, said a senior government official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The latest restrictions had previously been slated to start three days earlier, which is today.

President Joko Widodo has appointed coordinating maritime affairs and investment minister Luhut Pandjaitan as the PPKM Emergency coordinator for Java and Bali, the ministry’s spokesman Jodi Mahardi said in a statement last night. On the impending new Covid-19 measures, Mr Jodi said: “The government is currently formulating stricter measures that it will take. The government will make an official announcement.”

He did not give the time frame on the announcement, but The Straits Times understands it may come tomorrow.

The new measures may require all employees in the non-essential sector to work from home and ban dining in at restaurants, a lawmaker, who is a member of the health committee in Parliament, told ST separately via text message.

Currently, 25 per cent of a company’s employees are allowed to work from the office, and restaurants can operate at 25 per cent capacity.

The MP said domestic air travel will be allowed only for those who have been vaccinated and can produce negative polymerase chain reaction swab test results.

Yesterday’s discussions on the planned stricter restrictions, ST understands, saw some lobbying from business groups that want the restrictions to be more lenient than the original plan.

This included a suggestion to rethink the plan and instead allow vaccinated employees to work from the office, on the basis that an already weak economy and businesses cannot afford to see a further decline in productivity. Also discussed was whether shopping malls must be shut or can open with a 25 per cent capacity cap.

Under the current colour-coded Covid-19 regime, badly hit regions are red zones that are subject to tougher restrictions – localised lockdowns or PPKM Micro.

Areas that have been designated as red zones include the capital Jakarta, parts of Yogyakarta and the regions of Kudus in Java, Bangkalan on Madura island, Bandung in West Java, and parts of Riau in Sumatra. Regions with fewer Covid-19 cases are labelled either orange or yellow.

Many have said that the current system is no longer effective, and the Red Cross said yesterday that the Delta variant is driving Indonesia closer to the edge of “a Covid-19 catastrophe”.

Indonesians thronging outside a Covid-19 vaccination centre in Tangerang, in the suburbs of Jakarta, yesterday, as the country battled a second wave of infections driven by the more transmissible Delta variant. Indonesia is expected to impose stricter Covid-19 restrictions by Saturday. A senior government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the planned new measures, called Pemberlakuan Pembatasan Kegiatan Masyarakat (PPKM) Darurat, or emergency public activity restrictions, would likely cover Java and Bali. Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Pandjaitan has been appointed by President Joko Widodo as the PPKM Emergency coordinator for Java and Bali, the ministry’s spokesman Jodi Mahardi said in a statement last night. An MP who is a member of the parliamentary health committee told The Straits Times that the latest measures may require all workers in non-essential sectors to work from home and dining in may be banned at restaurants. PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

The mitigation team of the Indonesian Medical Doctors’ Association on Sunday appealed to the government to impose a hard lockdown of at least two weeks, especially in Java. It said maximum enforcement is needed, as surging cases have overloaded hospitals.

Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan said in an interview with TVOne on Sunday: “Hospital lobbies, hallways have turned into treatment wards. Emergency rooms have been used as ICUs (intensive care units). This means our situation is really serious.”

Of the total 10,448 isolation wards in hospitals across Jakarta, 9,787, or 94 per cent, were occupied as at Monday, Mr Anies said. Appealing to all Jakarta residents to avoid any non-essential trips, the governor said: “This is not a situation in the movies. This is real. Our hospitals are experiencing serious situations.”

Indonesia on Sunday set a new record for daily coronavirus infections, with more than 21,000, bringing the country’s tally for the pandemic to more than 2.1 million. There have been 57,138 deaths.

Like in other countries, the accelerated spread of the infections fuelled by the Delta variant has overwhelmed doctors in Indonesia.