Indonesian capital Jakarta to close schools, workplaces to curb coronavirus outbreak
08 April, 2020
Authorities in the Indonesian capital Jakarta will impose large-scale social restrictions including closures of schools and workplaces to curb the spread of the brand new coronavirus in the hardest hit area of the country.
President Joko Widodo has sought to limit transmission of the highly contagious COVID-19 respiratory disease through social-distancing policies but has resisted general lockdown measures adopted in lots of countries.
But a sizable proportion of Indonesia's confirmed 2,738 cases of coronavirus, with 221 deaths, have occurred in the densely populated capital of about 10 million people, and a low level of testing together with data showing a spike in funerals there advise the true toll could possibly be much higher.
On Tuesday (Apr 7), Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto signed a central government order allowing Jakarta's administration to introduce restrictions on public life tougher than in the others of Indonesia, the world's fourth most populous country.
The restrictions to take effect for an extendable fourteen days include closures of schools and workplaces and limits on religious events and cultural activities.
Jakarta had already taken some steps to restrict public life after declaring a state of emergency that runs until Apr 19, but most were voluntary and Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan pushed for authority to take tougher action against COVID-19.
Baswedan told a news conference on Tuesday evening that the required restrictions would start on Friday with workplaces closing aside from eight sectors such as health, energy, food, and finance, like the capital market.
Public transport hours and passenger capacity will also be cut to reduce the risk of folks passing on the virus. Sets of more than five people in public spaces will be banned and police patrols risen to enforce compliance.
"We can do everything strictly," Baswedan said. "Our interest is to control the spread of (COVID-19)."
He said he was still finalising details of the restrictions and would spell them out in the coming days.
Pandu Riono, a public health expert at the University of Indonesia, said that with a number of the restrictions already in place "this is just a stamp that makes it look official."
There's been friction between Indonesia's central and local governments over social-distancing measures, with some regional leaders wanting to lock down provincial borders to stem the spread of the coronavirus.
Thousands of Jakarta residents have gone in recent weeks because of their home villages to discover a safe haven, or after losing their jobs, officials said.
There are also growing fears that the gross annual exodus of tens of millions of folks to homes across the nation's archipelago for the Muslim Ramadan holiday would accelerate the outbreak.
Indonesian authorities said last week cash handouts would go to poor families to persuade them in which to stay Jakarta, however the government rejected calls for a ban on the "mudik", as the original Ramadan migration is named locally.
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