The Indonesian government has extended the quarantine for international arrivals to 7 days to prevent transmission of new Omicron Covid-19 variant.
The Central government through the Coordinator of Maritime and Investment Minister, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan has revised the entry requirement policy by extending the quarantine time for international travelers to seven days. This extended quarantine was added as a prevention measure to stop the spread of the new Covid-19 variant called Omicron. According to early research, the new variant recently found in South Africa and now around the world could be more transmissible and evade vaccines.
From the previously implemented 3 day quarantine, Luhut extended the quarantine time to 7 days for both international travelers and Indonesian citizens who have recently traveled from other countries outside Indonesia. Travelers who have recently traveled from 11 countries with high risk of Omicron variant transmission such as Hong Kong, South Africa, Malawi, Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Eswatini, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Lesotho are now required to undergo 14 days of quarantine upon arrival.
The Head of Badung Hotel and Restaurant Association, IGN Rai Suryawijaya stated that this policy was a perfect step to anticipate the third wave of Covid-19 transmission in Bali. “We can totally understand as this new Covid-19 variant has become a third wave of Covid-19 transmission in several European countries and Israel.” Suryawijaya said on Monday (29/11).
However, he said the new policy will further affect the Bali tourism sector. Bali is also facing a partial lockdown for the holidays plus tourism businesses will already be under more strict measures and operate with more restrictions.
“I must admit that this will impact our tourism industry as people become more reluctant to travel, but we still may have a few domestic tourists that come in December.” Suryawijaya concluded.
Source : https://thebalisun.com/bali-quarantine-extended-to-7-days-for-international-arrivals/
