Source: China News Network
According to Indonesia's "International Daily", The chief of staff of the Indonesian Presidential Office (KSP) Murdoko said that the government plans to tighten the conditions for traveling abroad. The plan was decided after the results of a survey conducted by KSP and the Immigration Directorate of the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights showed that many people still travel abroad.
Murdoko said in a KSP press release that based on the results of an in-depth investigation by the KSP and the General Directorate of Immigration, it was learned that there were still a large number of people traveling abroad, so the conditions for traveling abroad needed to be tightened.
One of the challenges in imposing restrictions, Murdoko said, is the difficulty in determining the purpose of people going abroad. Because in practice, it is shown that many people claim to go abroad for work, but in fact they are for tourism.
Therefore, the Indonesian government will further coordinate to follow up on plans to restrict travel abroad. He stressed that the General Directorate of Migration will coordinate with the anti-epidemic working group and the Ministry of Health to follow up on the plan.
He noted that Indonesian migrant workers, students and those with urgent needs (such as health or humanitarian reasons) will not be tightened by conditions for leaving the country.
Murdoko added that according to data from the Indonesian Ministry of Health as of January 15, 75% of the 748 cases of Omiljung found in Indonesia came from foreign tourists, most of them from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Malaysia, the United States and the United Arab Emirates. To this end, the Indonesian government has called on the public not to travel abroad unless necessary.
Earlier, Indonesian President Joko Widodo said that Indonesia is currently experiencing an upward trend in new crown cases caused by variants from South Africa. He therefore called on all parties to be vigilant but not to overreact.
Jokowi also called for a reduction in public mobility, saying that if there is no urgent need, everyone should reduce activities in lively venues. For those who can work from home, they can work from home. He said the Indonesian public should not travel abroad if there is no important and urgent matter. (Irw)