Day: July 20, 2021

Muslim communities across Indonesia marked the eve of Eid Al-Adha on Monday evening with takbiran events at mosques even as a drastic surge in COVID-19 cases pummeled the country’s health system.

Due to the rise in COVID-19 cases and the enforcement of emergency public activity restrictions in the islands of Java and Bali, there was a complete ban on city-wide convoys for takbiran events this year.

Therefore, takbiran was fully convened inside mosques on Monday with a limited number of participants instead of city-wide convoys, which could trigger crowds and increase the risk of the spread of the more contagious Delta variant.

Muslim communities in the Ciomas neighborhood areas of Bogor district, West Java province, for instance, attended takbiran events at mosques near their homes under the strict implementation of the health protocols.

They commenced the takbiran or “recital of Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala is Great” after performing the congregational maghrib (sunset prayer). They paused the takbiran when the isya (evening prayer) time came.

Several mosque goers continued with the takbiran for several hours after completing their isya. The takbiran was also broadcast by Radio Silaturrahim (Rasil), a popular radio station for Muslims, after Maghrib.

The Eid al-Adha or Day of Sacrifice, which marks the culmination of the rites of Hajj (pilgrimage) at Mina near the holy city of Mecca, is regarded as an important Islamic festival after Eid Al-Fitr.

This year, Eid Al-Adha is set to fall on Tuesday (July 20, 2021). Its first day will be marked by congregational prayers in the morning.

After that, Muslims will slaughter sacrificial animals, including goats, sheep, and cows, to commemorate the tests of faith of Prophet Ibrahim and his son, Prophet Ismail.

The meat of the slaughtered animals will be packed by volunteers from the sacrificial committee before distribution to eligible recipients.

Due to the observance of Eid Al-Adha amid the pandemic and the enforcement of a partial lockdown, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan has instructed his men to ensure the absence of crowd-pulling events.

The Jakarta provincial government’s agencies must actively monitor the implementation of the guidelines and rules that the Ministry for Religious Affairs and Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) have issued, he said.

The rules advise Muslims to perform the Eid prayer at home and slaughter sacrificial animals at slaughterhouses under the strict observance of the health protocols, he added.

The distribution of the packed meat of the slaughtered animals must also be conducted without crowding, Baswedan said.

Meanwhile, in connection with the Eid Al-Adha celebrations, West Papua Governor Dominggus Mandacan has urged residents across his province to maintain peace and harmony.

“I urge all religious communities in West Papua to keep practicing tolerance ahead of the Idul Adha festivity that our Muslim brothers and sisters will celebrate on July 20,” he said.

The celebrations this year are taking place amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which has forced the West Papua provincial government to impose emergency public activity restrictions in Manokwari district and Sorong city, he observed.

During the enforcement of the partial lockdown amid a spike in infections, the Ministry for Religious Affairs has called on Muslim communities in Indonesia to perform the Idul Adha prayers at home.

West Papua has been struggling to flatten its COVID-19 curve amid the growing threat posed by the highly contagious Delta variant.

To help the provincial government cope with a resurgence of infections, Mandacan had announced a partial lockdown in Manokwari district and Sorong City from July 12, 2021. The decision to impose the partial lockdown from July 12 to July 20 was made after considering the recent surge in infections, the conditions in hospitals, and the vaccination rates in Manokwari and Sorong, he said.

The imposition of the partial lockdown has been supported by assessment level 4 criteria such as hospital bed occupancy, which has exceeded 65 percent, and a significant spike in COVID-19 cases, he informed.

Vaccination rates in the two areas, which have remained below 50 percent, have also been among the parameters considered for the lockdown, Mandacan said, adding that West Papua remains categorized as a red zone, or an area with a very high risk of infection.

People have been prohibited from outdoor activities under the partial lockdown. Essential sectors such as banking, healthcare services, energy and staple food supplies, and export-oriented industries have been exempt from the lockdown. Those involved in logistics, food industries, transportation, construction, disaster mitigation, nation’s strategic projects, and provision of basic necessities have been allowed to operate, but in compliance with health protocols, the governor said.

Meanwhile, in his capacity as chairman of the West Papua chapter of the National Democratic Party (Nasdem), Mandacan said he has donated 80 heads of cattle to 11 districts and cities in the province.

On July 17, 2021, Mandacan had symbolically donated one cow to the Al Hijrah Borobudur Mosque manager, La Hada, in Manokwari city.

The Nasdem party’s executive board members, legislators, and cadres in West Papua participated in buying the cattle for donation to show their solidarity and care for Muslim communities, he said.

The heads of cattle were meant to be donated to mosques in the districts of Manokwari, Manokwari Selatan, Teluk Wondama, Teluk Bintuni, Kaimana, Fakfak, Sorong, Sorong Selatan, Tambrauw, and Raja Ampat, as well as Sorong City, he added.

Source: Antara News

Jakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesia on Tuesday added 38,325 confirmed COVID-19 cases, bringing the total tally so far to 2,959,058 cases, according to the task force for COVID-19 handling.

With 29,791 daily recoveries, the total number of people recovering from the infection touched 2,323,666. Meanwhile, 1,280 people succumbed to the virus in a single day, bringing the death toll since the start of the pandemic in Indonesia on March 2, 2020 to 76,200.

The number of suspected cases was recorded at 267,333, with 179,275 specimens tested by laboratories, while active cases increased by 7,254, bringing the total to 550,192.

West Java province contributed the highest number of daily cases at 6,928, followed by Jakarta (6,213), and East Java (5,654).

Jakarta recorded the highest number of recoveries at 12,071, followed by Central Java, where 4,218 people recovered from COVID-19, and Yogyakarta, where 1,150 people made a full recovery.

Central Java recorded the most deaths at 303, followed by Jakarta and East Java, which both recorded 268 fatalities.

At the provincial level, the highest cumulative COVID-19 cases were recorded in Jakarta (757,525), followed by West Java (530,806), and Central Java (32,928).

Cumulatively, the highest number of recoveries were seen in Jakarta (652,207), followed by West Java (652,207) and Central Java (253,479).

Meanwhile, the highest cumulative death toll was recorded in East Java (16,463), followed by Central Java (14,978), and Jakarta (10,685).

In view of a drastic spike in coronavirus cases, the Indonesian government has imposed emergency movement restrictions on the islands of Java and Bali from July 3 to July 20, 2021.

As the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has continued to remain high, the emergency restrictions are likely to be extended further.

Source: Antara News

Jakarta (ANTARA) – Confederation of Indonesian Trade Unions (KSPI) President Said Iqbal revealed that the COVID-19 positivity rate from the factory cluster surpassed 10 percent, thereby necessitating several thousand workers to conduct self-isolation without medicines and vitamins.

“While (the employees) are conducting self-isolation, factories are closed, as they unlikely impose the work-from-home policy. They can only allow the workers to work in rotation,” he noted in Jakarta on Tuesday.

If several factories are closed and their employees conduct self-isolation, then the production target will decline and numerous workers will be compelled to take unpaid leave, he cautioned.

If the number of COVID-19 cases continue to soar and the cash flows of companies are disrupted, then they will lay off their workers, he stated.

“Many managements of companies have invited labor unions to discuss preparations for the reduction and layoff of workers in stages on grounds of efficiency,” he noted. Iqbal noted that the workers conducting self-isolation should be given vitamins and medicines for free from the Workers Social Security Agency (BPJS), so that they can return to work soon.

In addition, the vaccination program should be accelerated and expanded to cover several workers in order to achieve herd immunity soon.

Iqbal called on the Manpower Ministry to soon issue an emergency COVID-19 regulation to allow workers to work in rotation rather than to work from home, and employers must not slash the salaries of their workers.

As such, massive layoffs could be avoided, he noted.

Source: Antara News

For healthy people, oxygen is everywhere, free and taken for granted. But, for COVID-19 patients in Indonesia, medical oxygen has become a precious and life-saving necessity amid a devastating new wave of infections triggered by the highly infectious Delta variant.

In the latest infection spike, pneumonia and low blood oxygen levels, or hypoxaemia, have been common in patients.

COVID-19 affects patients’ respiratory system and causes shortness of breath as it disturbs the function of the lungs to allow the body to absorb oxygen from the air and expel carbon dioxide.

According to the task force for COVID-19 handling, Indonesia on July 20, 2021 added 38,325 confirmed cases, bringing the total tally so far to 2,959,058.

With 29,791 daily recoveries, the total number of people recovering from the infection touched 2,323,666. Meanwhile, 1,280 people succumbed to the virus in a single day, bringing the death toll since the start of the pandemic in Indonesia on March 2, 2020 to 76,200.

To curb the infection surge, the government imposed emergency movement restrictions on the islands of Java and Bali from July 3 to July 20, 2021. With the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases continuing to remain high, the emergency restrictions have been extended further until July 25. The spike in COVID-19 cases in Indonesia has led to a fivefold increase in the country’s daily oxygen requirement from 400 tons to two thousand tons.

“We have reported to the cabinet that the demand for oxygen has increased very rapidly from 400 tons per day. Now it has increased to almost two thousand tons per day,” Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin informed at an online press conference on July 16, 2021.

On July 5, 2021, Maritime Affairs and Investment Coordinating Minister Luhut B. Pandjaitan, in his capacity as coordinator of the emergency restrictions, said that the availability of medical oxygen cylinders matters and must be addressed immediately.

The daily oxygen demand in Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, Yogyakarta, East Java, Banten, and Bali has reached 2,032 tons, comprising 714 tons for intensive care rooms and 1,318 tons for isolation rooms, according to data from the health ministry.

Minister Sadikin recently highlighted three strategies prepared by the government to boost medical oxygen supplies.

The first strategy entails importing 600-700 tons of oxygen per day, the second involves utilizing oxygen oversupply of 360-460 tons per day from domestic industries, and, the third encompasses importing oxygen concentrators for hospitals and households.

The minister highlighted that the annual production capacity of the nation’s oxygen industry is 866 thousand tons, of which 638,900 tons, or 75 percent, is utilized by industries and 27 percent by hospitals.

According to the Health Ministry, the nation’s daily oxygen requirement for hospitalized and self-isolating COVID-19 patients is pegged at 1,928 tons, , while the daily production capacity is 2,262 tons.

To meet the nation’s daily oxygen needs, the government is converting 575 thousand tons of oxygen for industries into medical oxygen. It has also decided to import oxygen concentrators, medical oxygen, and oxygen cylinders from China and Singapore. To support Indonesia in the fight against the COVID-19 spike, SOEs, private companies, and several countries have continued to provide oxygen assistance.

State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Minister Erick Thohir has assured that SOEs are willing and ready to support the government in dealing with the pandemic.

As of July 11, 2021, SOEs have deployed at least 27 ISO tank containers to supply medical oxygen to hospitals, particularly in Central Java and Yogyakarta, which are in dire need of oxygen, he said.

Thohir has instructed state-owned enterprises, including Pertamina and state fertilizer holding company PT Pupuk Indonesia to convert their tank trucks for transportation of up to 540 tons of medical oxygen per day.

Pertamina has installed a 20-ton ISO oxygen tank at Jakarta Hajj Dormitory (Asrama Haji) located in Pondok Gede as the government has deemed it an emergency hospital for treating COVID-19 patients with mild and moderate symptoms.

The state oil and gas company has so far helped transport and distribute at least 400 tons of oxygen to hospitals in Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, Yogyakarta, and East Java.

Recently, the government received 11 thousand oxygen concentrators (OC) from the Temasek Foundation and 15 Indonesian and Singaporean companies — Bakti Barito Foundation, Cikarang Listrindo, Dharma Satya Nusantara, East Ventures, Indies Capital Partners, Kino Indonesia, Sinar Mas, Tanoto Foundation, TBS Energi Utama, Triputra Group, UID Foundation, Wahana Artha, CapitaLand Hope Foundation, DBS Bank, and Singtel.

Several countries have sent assistance to help Indonesia deal with the oxygen shortage, including the United States (US), the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Australia, Singapore, South Korea, and Japan. Meanwhile, public-listed tire manufacturer PT Gajah Tunggal Tbk and the Endeavor Peaceful Indonesia (UID) Foundation have donated two thousand tons of liquid oxygen to the Health Ministry.

State-run Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital (RSCM) in Central Jakarta has been the first facility to receive the donated oxygen, according to information accessed by ANTARA on the Indonesian Health Ministry’s official website on Tuesday.

Under the first phase, 20 tons of liquid oxygen were provided to RSCM, Indonesia’s national referral center for government hospitals and a leading teaching hospital.

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has lauded domestic industries for their participation in efforts to meet the requirement for medical oxygen.

Indonesia has so far received assistance from several countries, including the United States, the Netherlands, Australia, South Korea, Japan, Great Britain, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, India, and China, according to the foreign ministry.

Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi has, on several occasions, reiterated the significance of global solidarity and cooperation in the fight against the pandemic.

“No one is safe until everyone is,” the minister has affirmed.

Source: Antara News