The Government's Plan To Quarantine Indonesian Citizens From Wuhan In Natuna Rejected By Local Residents

From left: TNI Commander Hadi Tjahjanto, Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi, Minister of Health Terawan (Mery Handayani / VOI)

JAKARTA - The government has agreed to choose Natuna Island as a place of quarantine or observation for Indonesian citizens from Wuhan when they arrive in Indonesia. Before arriving in Indonesia, the government had also carried out an examination and recovery of Indonesian citizens in Wuhan. The aircraft will be monitored via military frequencies.

TNI Commander Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto said that his party supported the repatriation process by providing infrastructure to support health protocols. Among them must be fulfilled, a place of isolation that is far from residents.

Hadi said the area that is suitable and considered the best is Natuna Island. There, there is also a military base that has complete facilities and is able to accommodate those returning from Wuhan, Hubei Province, China.

"Natuna is a military base that has hospital facilities, which are managed by three armies, sea and air. Natuna has a runway adjacent to the area which will be used for isolation," he said, during the release of the joint evacuation team, at Terminal 1A, Soekarno Hatta International Airport, Cengkareng, Banten, Saturday, February 1.

After arriving at Natuna, said Hadi, they immediately got off the plane and were directed to enter the shelter. "Able to accommodate up to 300 (people) equipped with all the needs of toilets, including field kitchens," he said.

Meanwhile, the distance from the quarantine area to community housing, said Hadi, is approximately 5 to 6 km. Then, there is a pier which is also approximately 5 km away.

"So that the results of the assessment meet the requirements for the health protocol. So that Natuna is chosen as a temporary transit point until it is declared free to meet with family," he said.

As for the process of moving from Wuhan back to Indonesia, said Hadi, the military will monitor the movements of the aircraft used. This monitoring will be carried out through frequencies owned by the TNI.

"By providing military frequencies and by operators to pilots with certain frequencies we can monitor what is being carried out from Chinese air to Indonesian airspace and we will continue to monitor it until it lands," he said.

Minister of Health (Menkes) Terawan Agus Putranto said, to ensure that the Indonesian citizens who will be evacuated are in good health. In order to ensure that everyone is healthy, the government has checked and recovered first while they were still in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China.

"Screening and hearings there are to ensure that Indonesian citizens who are sent home are healthy. Later we will conduct transit observations according to the WHO protocol. Of course it requires a protocol to observe healthy people, not sick people. We will continue to monitor the checks with discipline," he said.

A resident of Natuna, Riau Islands, refused to use his territory as a quarantine place for Indonesian citizens who were evacuated from China. As is known, the government has agreed to choose Natuna as a place of quarantine. Moreover, Indonesian citizens come from areas exposed to the Corona virus.

The Natuna community, according to Deputy Regent of Natuna Ngesti Yuni Suprapti, were restless because information was circulating that Natuna was used as a transit point, as well as quarantine, for Indonesian citizens from China. Residents are worried about the medical treatment of Indonesian citizens to ensure they do not contract the Corona virus.

"There is no coordination between the central government and the regions. There is no certainty (about the Natuna transit point), just news. But the news must be anticipated. That's why people want to know, how come suddenly there is such a plan," he said, as quoted by Detik.com.