Cases push past 50,000 (Indonesia Intelligencer June 20 - 26)
Hello Coconauts!
Today we’ve lifted the paywall to give our non-premium members a peek at what we do here at Indonesia Intelligencer. If you’re interested in joining us full-time hit subscribe here:
Stay safe out there and we’ll see you next week.
COVID-19
The latest
Yesterday’s announcement of an additional 1,178 new infections has pushed the total past 50,000. The Health Ministry confirmed another 47 deaths within a 24 hour period.
The top
Central Jakarta remains the most highly-infected area in Indonesia with 149.2 cases per 100,000 people, followed by Jayapura and then Surabaya. “[…] We had to consider the population number as part of our calculation to see the rate of transmission within the community,” Dr. Dewi Nur Aisyah, an epidemiologist and a member of the COVID-19 task force, said.
The new epicenter
President Joko Widodo visited Surabaya yesterday as the city threatened to overtake Jakarta as the COVID-19 epicenter of the country. He called on all relevant agencies to team up and better strategize management of the emerging disaster across East Java. “Surabaya can’t control this outbreak alone. Gresik, Sidoarjo and other cities should also be involved in one [unified] system of management because the mobility of people is not limited to Surabaya,” he said.
Meanwhile, as the number of cases continues to grow East Java has cemented its position as having the highest death rate in Indonesia. In one of the saddest cases, a one-month-old baby died Sunday in the East Java district of Tlanakan. "Based on the contract tracing we carried out, the baby contracted Covid-19 from neighbors who visited him soon after he was born," Pamekasan regency Covid-19 task force chief Syaiful Hidayat told media.
Viral video
Fancy yourself a budding filmmaker? The Home Ministry has launched a video contest worth Rp 168 billion (US$11.8 million) focusing on the ‘new normal’ measures. The Ministry said it had received over 2,000 entries but not everyone is excited. Critics say the cost of the initiative is way too high and would be better spent battling the pandemic.
Recommended reading:
Meanwhile, layoffs resulting from the impact of coronavirus were encouraging more people to clear land for crops using fire, said Ruandha Agung Sugardiman, director general of climate change control in environment and forestry ministry.
And social distancing rules imposed in some areas were making it harder to tackle fires.
“It hampers our access to the flames,” he told reporters.
BIN’s role in the pandemic response is problematic for three reasons: First, BIN does not have specialization in epidemiology and public health. Therefore, the fact that they made a modeling of COVID-19 is something that is out of their areas of competence. Such a task is better left to the Ministry of Health or epidemiologists and public health experts.
Business and economy
Centring the central bank
Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati says her ministry is looking at ways for Bank Indonesia, the central bank, to take on a bigger role in managing the economic crisis. “I’m still discussing with the central bank about the kind of instrument that would allow Bank Indonesia to share the burden. There is really a very fine balance between Bank Indonesia and myself trying to establish how we are going to manage this very shocking effect from Covid-19,” she said Tuesday, as reported by Bloomberg.
Grabbing big bucks
Research released this week shows Singaporean-owned Grab has contributed Rp 77.4 trillion (US$5.45 billion) to the Indonesian economy in 2019. The mammoth contribution has been attributed largely to a boom in its Grab Food delivery service. The Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and Tenggara Strategics study found food accounted for Rp 37.3 trillion alone. The finding bodes well for its role in the post-pandemic recovery, Tenggara Strategics executive director Riyadi Suparno said, as reported by the Jakarta Post.
Blue Bird flies again
Taxi operator Blue Bird has enjoyed a bump in business after many of the large scale restrictions eased. President director Noni Purnomo told Bloomberg that around half of the company’s 20,000 drivers are back on the road after demand dropped a huge 80 percent earlier in the year.
New firm, who dis?
Muhamad Fajrin Rasyid, co-founder and president director of Bukalapak, has left the unicorn to join state-owned telecommunications firm Telkom. Prior to joining Bukalapak in 2011, Rasyid had worked at competitor Indosat Ooredoo. A successor has not yet been named.
"Within 10 years with Bukalapak, we have inspired Indonesian youths to continuously dream big and work hard to make it a reality. Now is the time to make a greater contribution to the advancement of Indonesia and focus on developing Indonesia's telco industry in Telkom. I hope my experience in developing a startup business as it is today, could contribute to the development of Telkom," he said in a statement.
Recommended read:
"We cannot push economic matters, but health issues are ignored," he noted.
"In its place, we cannot also focus solely on health issues, but the economy gets disrupted. I have repeatedly informed the regional leaders to push 'the brake and accelerator pedals' in a balanced mode. This is now challenging," he reiterated.
In facing this reality, President Jokowi has urged the nation to have the mental fortitude, as all countries, including Indonesia, are reeling from public health and economic crises owing to the impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Politics
Sentence
The West Jakarta District Court Wednesday jailed a couple for the attempted assassination of former security minister Wiranto last year. Syahrial Alamsyah, 51, was sentenced to 12-years while Fitria Diana, 21, will serve nine years. The sentences fell short of prosecutors expectations.
Rohingya rescue
Fishermen in Aceh rescued nearly 100 Rohingya refugees after the boat carrying them spotted floating off the coast Wednesday. The latest incident follows an increase in Rohingya refugees taking to the sea, including a recent case in Malaysia in which 300 Rohingya refugees were rescued from a broken boat.
Recommended reads:
'Anyone can get into politics': Indonesian transwomen defy all odds to break glass ceiling (The Jakarta Post)
In a small village in Sikka regency, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), transwoman Hendrika Mayora Victoria was elected as the chairperson of the village consultative body (BPD) in March this year, defeating six other male candidates.
The win did not come easily for Hendrika – affectionately called Bunda Mayora – who had to fight for acceptance in her Catholic-dominated community through devotion to the church, as well as women, the elderly and children.
“Facing apathy, I remained focused on my work so people slowly begin to see that transpeople are not stupid, jobless, despicable sinners, and that we have the potential to help others,” Bunda Mayora told The Jakarta Post on Saturday.
A court in Indonesia has sentenced two indigenous farmers to eight and 10 months in prison respectively for stealing oil palm fruit from a plantation company that is itself accused of stealing their land.
On June 15, the Sampit district court in East Kotawaringin, in the Bornean province of Central Kalimantan, ruled Dilik Bin Asap from Penyang village guilty of harvesting palm fruit on land claimed by the villagers but cultivated by PT Hamparan Masawit Bangun Persada (PT HMBP), an affiliate of the BEST Group. The court also found James Watt, a prominent land rights activist, guilty of ordering Dilik and other farmers to harvest the fruits.
As a result, the panel of judges sentenced Dilik to eight months in prison and James to 10 months in prison.
Top Coconuts Jakarta
‘Bloodsucking, flying head creature’ killing livestock in Sumatra village, police investigating
Convicted pedophile Russ Medlin made sex tapes with underage victims in Jakarta: police
Rare Asian golden cat dies after recent rescue from boar trap in West Sumatra
Tracing the Infected: How far can COVID-19 mass surveillance work in Indonesia?
Top Coconuts Bali
18-year-old Russian influencer Anastasia Tropitsel killed in motorbike accident in Bali
Hundreds of truck drivers protest after Bali scraps free rapid testing at Gilimanuk Port
Indonesia confirms over 68,000 dengue fever cases as Bali records second-highest tally
Denpasar man dies following freak accident involving kite string