Technical Guidelines Should be Immediately Issued

KOMPAS/ALIF ICHWAN

A banner reading "Don\'t go on the for the sake of your families" is installed near the entrance of the Depok Lama railway station in Depok, West Java, on Friday (3/4/2020). Train passengers will be asked to enter sterilization booths installed at the entrance of the station and have their temperature checked to help curb the spread of the coronavirus.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS— The government has decided to impose large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Indonesia. However, technical guidelines, such as the criteria and procedures for the enactment, are being drafted by the Health Ministry.

Due to the absence of the guidelines, regional governments have issued their own policies related to social restrictions. The government’s appeals to the public to not travel to their hometowns during Idul Fitri to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the regions have also not been fully complied with due to the absence of clear guidelines on the implementation of the policy.

The appeal not to travel to hometowns during Idul Fitri is stipulated in Home Ministerial Regulation No. 1/2020 concerning the prevention of the spread and acceleration of the handling of COVID-19 in regions. A similar appeal was also made by a number of regional heads, such as the governor of Central Java, Ganjar Pranowo. He urged Central Java residents who work in Jakarta, Surabaya and in other cities not to travel home. "Please, do not go home now and stay in place until the coronavirus outbreak subsides," he said on Friday (3/4/2020).

KOMPAS/P RADITYA MAHENDRA YASA

Banners on the danger of the coronavirus are installed in many areas, as seen here in Sendangrejo village, Minggir district, Sleman regency, Yogyakarta, on Friday (3/4/2020). Some villages have begun to restrict social activities involving outsiders entering their area. They limit the number of visits to the village, including guests and traders.

However, based on the monitoring of the Kompas , in several areas in Java and Sumatra, many people are still traveling to their hometowns.

In Blora regency, Central Java, since the announcement of the COVID-19 emergency status as of Thursday (2/4) night, there were 10,867 Blora residents who had just returned from overseas. "We asked travelers to carry out self-isolation in their homes for 14 days. Don\'t leave the house until the 14-day incubation period ends," the secretary of the Blora regency, Komang Gede Irawadi , said on Friday (3/4).

Three cases of examples

West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil said there were three COVID-19 cases in the province caused by homecoming activities. The first case occurred in Ciamis where an elderly person was infected by COVID-19 from his son who had just returned from Jakarta. Two other cases occurred in Bandung. The two residents from Jakarta returned to Bandung. Both tested positive for the coronavirus.

"This indicates the potential spread of COVID-19. The travelers are mostly millennials, while the sufferers are mostly elderly. It will be extraordinarily alarming if the Idul Fitri exodus gets out of control, " he said.

The situation, Kamil said, will get worse if it occurs in the southern part of West Java, because the majority of elderly and poor people live there.

The situation, Kamil said, will get worse if it occurs in the southern part of West Java, because the majority of elderly and poor people live there.

Although the majority of COVID-19 cases occur in areas around Jakarta, the number of people put under monitoring (ODP) and patients under supervision (PDP) for COVID-19 infection in some parts of West Java has continued to increase. According to data provided by the West Java Covid-19 Information and Coordination Center, the number of residents who are under the ODP status has reached 12,979 people, with the largest number found in Sukabumi with 3,024 people. As of Friday, 223 residents in West Java have tested positive for COVID-19.

KOMPAS/JUMARTO YULIANUS

The Trisakti Port passenger terminal in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, is deserted on Thursday (2/4/2020). The port has temporarily been closed since April 1 to limit the flow of people in and out of South Kalimantan.

Meanwhile, the head of Lampung Health Office, Reihana, said the number of people with PDP status in the province had reached 35 people and those under ODP status had reached 1,098 people, while the number of confirmed cases had reached 11 cases, with one death. According to Reihana, the increase in the number of people under PDP and ODP was due to the influx of travelers to Lampung, specifically from the COVID-19 epicenter region, in addition, a number of migrant workers who had just returned from overseas.

Monitoring the exodus

To anticipate the exodus ahead of the Idul Fitri holiday, the regent of Trenggalek, East Java, Mochamad Nur Arifin, has closed 40 road access points to and from Trenggalek. The homecoming goers who pass a medical examination will be put under the ODP status. They will be given a red ribbon and have to undergo a home quarantine for two weeks. Those who are suspected of being infected with the coronavirus will be isolated in a public health center or hospital and will be put under PDP status.

A similar policy was adopted by the regent of Pacitan, Indartato. "We oversee the mobility of the people. Every crowd must be dispersed," he said. Meanwhile, the West Sumatra provincial government asked sub-district and village heads to monitor travellers, especially those from affected areas. Residents who have just arrived in West Sumatra must isolate themselves at home for 14 days.

KOMPAS/WAWAN H PRABOWO

Motorcycle taxi drivers bring free rice boxes for lunch that they got from the Plataran Menteng Restaurant, Jakarta, Friday (3/4/2020). The restaurant distributes 100 boxes of rice every day to residents in need. The program, which was initiated to help the communities affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, is to be carried for the entire month of April.

Measures introduced by a number of regional heads are in accordance with the Home Affairs Minister’s Instruction No. 1 of 2020., which urges governors, regent and mayors to coordinate with the regional leaders communication forum, mass organizations, and community / religious leaders to appeal community so as not to go home in order to avoid the spread of COVID -19.

It is also stipulated that the people who have travelled have to conduct home quarantine and be put under the ODP status, while the local governments have to prepare health quarantines and emergency assistance according to the health protocol.

The guidelines for the implementation will be issued under the Health Minister’s regulation are expected to be issued within the next two days.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto, in a hearing with House Commission IX on Thursday (2/4), said that the technical guidelines for the implementation of the Government Regulation No. 21/2020 concerning the Large Scale Social Restriction as parrt of the efforts to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 is still being drafted . The guidelines for the implementation will be issued under the Health Minister’s regulation are expected to be issued within the next two days.

"The rules are still under harmonization among ministries and institutions regarding the criteria (PSBB). It is important to ensure that all aspects that will be determined in the criteria, such as how the rules of restrictions in public facilities, schools, and basic needs become clear, "said Terawan. (TAN/VIO/DIT/HRS/NCA/BRO/JOL/VAN/MTK)