Even Though The COVID-19 Case Has Been Sloping, Indonesian Citizens Who Come To Japan Are Still Asked To Obey The Prokes

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JAKARTA - The Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo asked tourists from Indonesia who visit to adhere to health protocols even though COVID-19 cases tend to decline.

"Our visiting residents to Japan are expected to continue to comply with health protocols while still wearing masks, keeping a distance and washing hands," said Indonesian Ambassador to Japan and the Micronesian Federation, Heri Akhmadi as quoted by Antara.

Even though the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus has been considered a common flu, Indonesian citizens still have to maintain health because it coincides with the flu season.

Ini memang sedang pandemi dan juga musim flu. Jadi, harus tetap hati-hati karena di sini koncern-nya double flu, ujarnya.

The Japanese government has reopened visa-free travel borders for foreign tourists, including from Indonesia starting October 11, 2022.

Along with this policy, there is an increase in the number of passengers on the Garuda Indonesia airline on the Jakarta-Tokyo route.

General Manager of Garuda Indonesia for Japan Sony Sahlan said there was an increase in the number of passengers on Wednesday (12/10) flight or the day after the restrictions were lifted, which was 163 passengers from the previous flight Saturday (8/10) as many as 130 passengers.

"There is an increase from the number of passengers from Jakarta to Haneda in total of 163 people," he said.

He added that Garuda will also increase the frequency of flights from twice a week to three times a week with the Tokyo-Jakarta PP and Tokyo-Denpasar PP routes starting November 1, 2022.

Regarding the addition of tourists and ahead of the winter flu, the Japanese Ministry of Health appealed to take advantage of COVID-19 test equipment that can be used at home and online examinations to reduce exposure to the virus in hospitals.

The appeal also aims to ease the burden and occupancy of hospitals during a pandemic that coincides with winter.

Based on the Japanese Ministry of Health, the average weekly confirmed COVID-19 cases on Monday (17/10) were 29,503 cases or decreased from 31,585 cases.