Ministry Of Health: Impossible To Close The Entrance Of Foreign Travelers

JAKARTA - Spokesperson for the COVID-19 Vaccination of the Ministry of Health, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, said that it was impossible for the government to close the entrance to the country for foreign travelers even though Omicron had entered Indonesia.

"Of course, what is certain is that it is impossible to stop the return of Indonesian citizens (WNI) to our country," said Nadia, quoted by Antara, Thursday, December 30.

Responding to the ban on entry into the country, Nadia said that until now the government has not planned to completely close the entrance to the country, either by land, sea, or air. Because, from the travelers who come from abroad, there are many Indonesian citizens.

In addition, the government also has no plans to add to the list of countries prohibited from entering Indonesia, outside of the 13 countries previously mentioned.

Like Turkey and Saudi Arabia for example. Although the Omicron case also came from the two countries, many tourists from Indonesia returned from Turkey. The same is the case with many Indonesian migrant workers returning from Saudi Arabia.

"It is impossible to close the return of Indonesian citizens to our country. Is it then the foreigners too? Is it necessary to do a ban like the 13 countries that we have postponed from entering Indonesia. We are still continuing to study this," she said.

Realizing that she cannot prohibit the rights of her citizens to return to Indonesia, Nadia emphasized that in accordance with existing regulations, examinations through the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test with whole genome sequencing (WGS) and S-gene target failure (SGTF) will continue to be carried out on returning traveler.

The government has also confirmed the rules for quarantine for 10 days for travelers from other countries, apart from those listed, as well as adding a 14-day quarantine for people returning from 13 countries who have been banned from entering Indonesia.

Through these two methods, those who are positive for COVID-19 can be immediately traced and found, then given treatment in quarantine places that have been prepared by the government.

"So, in accordance with the regulations. You have to do a PCR test twice if there are positive ones, both in the exit test and entry test. They must be carried out, followed by the WGS examination," she said.