Pari Island Residents "Break Piggy Bank Together" To Live In Pandemic Period

JAKARTA - All the uncertainties in the pandemic situation in Indonesia have begun to affect the lives of many people, especially those who depend on their livelihoods in the non-formal sector. However, on the other hand, uncertainty also moves other groups of people to be more empowered.

As has been done by residents of Pari Island, Thousand Islands, Jakarta, for example. Thursday, April 9, residents who are members of the Pari Island Care Forum (FP3) "broke the piggy bank together" to buy groceries which they then distributed to 416 families all over Pari Island.

The chairman of FP3, Mustofa Beno revealed that the action of "breaking the piggy bank together" was based on their concern that the COVID-19, which from a month ago broke out in Jakarta, is now starting to have an impact on the decreasing income of Pari Island residents. the economy of the citizens.

Mustofa Beno, a representative of FP3, explained that the donations, which totaled Rp42 million, came from the funds of migrants who came to Pari Island last year. "This fund comes from the provision of IDR 1,000 per tourist who came to PUlau Pari in 2019," Beno told VOI, April 9.

"The funds are collected and managed by the Pari Island Marine Tourism Association to be used as basic necessities," he added.

According to Beno, the disbursement of this collective savings is an option to ease the burden on the residents of Pari Island. Moreover, for the past four weeks, Pari Island has not received any tourist visits following the ban on foreigners visiting the Thousand Islands area.

Before COVID-19

This was very different when COVID-19 was not yet endemic. In the past, almost every week there were around 900 to 2,500 tourists who came to visit.

Then, with the COVID-19 storm, the life of Pari Island residents became difficult. Not to mention that the fishermen's catch has also dropped dramatically.

"Even if there is a catch, no one will buy it and the fish auctions are starting to close," said Beno.

As a form of solidarity with others, the actions of the residents of Pari Island should be appreciated. Even though they are in trouble, they still help others. How they manage joint income is also important to see in other areas that live from the tourism sector.

However, despite all these acts of solidarity, the government still has to move to fulfill its mandate to support the people in the midst of this pandemic.