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INDONESIAN Government Spokesperson for Handling COVID-19, Wiku Adisasmito explained the reason the Indonesia’s (RI) government did not close the door for international arrivals. Although, currently the Omicron variant is spreading in various countries, including in Indonesia due to overseas travellers.
“Because of various considerations, such as the rights of citizens and diplomatic relations,” said Wiku at his press conference, Tuesday (1/04).
Wiku explained that the results of the research in 2021, which used the proportion of imported cases per overall positive case, showed that the prohibition or restriction of foreign arrivals was a preventive measure that had the most impact on the stability of national economic conditions. Meanwhile, the effectiveness of prevention efforts is relatively small.
“This happens if the range of numbers is below 1% or there are various positive cases that appear more due to community transmission, not from direct travel agents,” he said.
Meanwhile, the current condition of Indonesia, the majority of cases of the Omicron variant, come from foreign travelers. Therefore, Wiku sees the need for simultaneous and multi-layered efforts to prevent the Omicron variant from stopping at the entrance of international arrivals as well as during the quarantine process.
“This is because the findings of the Omicron case in Indonesia to date are mostly from foreign travelers. Simultaneous and multi-layered efforts need to be made, starting from the outermost layer to the smallest element in society, in order to keep the Omicron variant from traveling at the arrival gate and during the quarantine process,” Wiku remarked.
He said the Omicron variant was also a lesson, especially for Indonesia, to continue to monitor the accuracy of circulating diagnostic test equipment. Wiku said that the availability of cheap, fast and effective test equipment is the key to the success of productive and safe community activities for Covid-19
“Don’t let the test equipment we use have the opportunity to pass positive people, especially those who are positive for Omicron,” Wiku pointed out.
As of January 4, the total national Omicron cases were 254 cases, consisting of 239 cases from international travelers (imported cases) and 15 cases of local transmission with symptoms ranging from asymptomatic to mild symptoms.
“Even so, so far, the cases of the Omicron variant can be handled well at the arrival gate, where 23% of them have recovered and have completed their quarantine,” concluded Wiku. [sources/photo special]
