Viral Photos Of Travelers Swimming In The Madura Strait, Khofifah Affirms To Netizens The News Is Hoax

SURABAYA - Viral on social media photos of groups of people swimming in the Madura Strait, East Java. The narrative that circulates that those who swim are travelers to avoid isolation.

Information on travelers swimming in the Madura Strait was confirmed by the Governor of East Java, Khofifah Indar Parawansa, a hoax. Khofifah reminded netizens that they did not immediately swallow the information that was milling about on social media

“Dear netizens, those who swim are the Indonesian Navy (AL) soldiers. The action across the Madura Strait from Surabaya was carried out to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the Indonesian Navy's Pasmar-1, in 2016, ”said Governor Khofifah on his Instagram account khofifah.ip, Friday, May 7.

"So, if someone narrating the photo is a group of travelers who are determined to swim across the Madura Strait, it can be ascertained that it is a hoax or fake news," said Khofifah.

He said the Suramadu bridge was temporarily closed during the Eid homecoming ban on May 6-17. This is done to minimize the mobility of the community during the Eid Al-Fitr 1442 H homecoming ban, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Spokesperson for the COVID-19 Handling Task Force Wiku Adisasmito emphasized that local homecoming is also prohibited during this year's Eid homecoming period.

In this case, homecoming on a local scale is a trip to a hometown in cities that are still incorporated in certain areas or agglomerations.

Many people are confused about whether local homecoming is prohibited or allowed. This is because travelers in an agglomeration area do not need an exit and entry permit (SIKM).

"To solve the confusion that exists in the community regarding local homecoming in agglomeration areas, I emphasize that the government prohibits any form of homecoming, both across provinces and within one agglomeration city district," Wiku said in a YouTube broadcast of the Presidential Secretariat, Thursday, May 6.

However, Wiku emphasized that other activities besides going home in one regency / city or agglomeration, especially in essential sectors, will continue to operate without any kind of isolation in order to accelerate regional socio-economic activities.

"The public does not need to worry about the potential for exchanges within this one area because the operations have been regulated in the PPKM city district and micro PPKM programs through capacity and operational hours," explained Wiku.

There are a number of sanctions that will be imposed for people who are still determined to travel without a negative COVID-19 result letter, or a traveler's permit, which is reversed or returned to the area of origin of the trip.