In July, Indonesia was dubbed one of the global epicentres for Covid-19. Media reports warned of a health system collapse and cemeteries overwhelmed with burial demands.
Coronavirus
COVID-19 has posed numerous challenges across the globe. The pandemic and its associated restrictions have changed the way we work, study, socialise, and interact.
Officials have announced that all Bali regions have officially turned into a Covid-19 epidemiological orange zone.
Ms Siti is among the majority of Indonesia’s elderly who have not been inoculated against the coronavirus, even as the country speeds up its nationwide vaccination programme to hit two million doses a day starting this month.
Indonesia has been hit particularly hard [by COVID-19]. Tourism businesses have had no choice but to reduce business hours, lay off employees and implement pay cuts.
The tourism sector is a significant driver of Indonesia’s economic growth – so important that the country has been trying to open the doors to international tourists in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
An Indonesian court has sentenced former Social Affairs Minister Juliari Peter Batubara to 12 years in prison for embezzling more than US$2 million in Covid-19 relief program funds.
As many as 34,702,821 Indonesians have received their second COVID-19 vaccine dose as of this past weekend, according to the COVID-19 Response Task Force.
While the COVID-19 pandemic has affected almost all parts of society, it has deeply impacted people with disabilities, many of whom have been dragged closer to the poverty line as the ongoing crisis severely reduces their income.
Indonesia plans to let people pay for a Covid-19 vaccine booster shot from early next year. Health Minister Mr Budi Gunadi Sadikin said availability is slated for January 2022.
The ongoing public activity restrictions in Indonesia due to the Covid-19 pandemic have forced many businesses to close down. However, the public’s limited mobility has also inspired many young people to start their own business at home.
When Amalia Ulfa heard the news of her parents dying from COVID-19, her world shattered. Ms Ulfa’s father died at the family home on July 10, seven days after he tested positive.
Danastri Rizky Nabilah, a filmmaker from Yogyakarta – a city in Indonesia known for its education and art – has no choice but to sell snacks after losing up to 40% of her income during the pandemic.
This report explores the impact of COVID-19 by focusing on a place considered to be Indonesia’s cultural hub, a place where tradition, modernity, arts and history overlap.
With restrictions still in place in much of Indonesia, Jakarta’s malls are allowed to operate at 25% capacity to try to keep the economy moving, but customers must prove via a smartphone application that they’ve received at least one vaccination.
“Every bar or beach around the world used to ring with the sound of an Australian accent,” writes ReelOzInd 2021 Jury member and journalist Brigid Delaney.
