America To Europe Experiences Rise In COVID-19, Foreign Minister: Thank God Indonesia Is Pressing Cases Again

ILLUSTRATION/PIXABAY

JAKARTA - Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi said that currently a number of countries in the world were experiencing an increase in COVID-19 cases over the past week.

From August 12 to 19, 2021, Retno said that North America had an increase in cases of 12 percent, Europe by 3 percent, and Oceania by 24 percent. However, in Indonesia, the number of cases has decreased.

"We in Indonesia, thank God, during this period we were able to suppress the spread of cases by minus 22 percent," said Retno on the Presidential Secretariat's Youtube video, quoted on Friday, August 20.

Meanwhile, the ASEAN region also experienced a decline in cases of minus 0.4 percent. However, there are also several countries in ASEAN that are still experiencing a significant increase in cases.

"Some countries in ASEAN are still experiencing significant increases, such as Brunei Darussalam, which has increased by 304 percent, the Philippines 41 percent, Vietnam 12 percent, and Thailand 6 percent," said Retno.

Retno continued, to reduce the spread of the virus, there are two main steps taken by countries in the world, namely limiting people's mobility and implementing health protocols, as well as accelerating vaccination.

He said, in addition to reducing the possibility of transmission, vaccination can reduce the possibility of hospitalization and death rates.

"Data from various countries shows that the majority of those infected and undergoing hospitalization are those who have not been vaccinated," he said.

Based on the analysis of Public Health England (PHE), continued Retno, showing that two-dose vaccination can effectively prevent hospitalization and death due to the delta variant.

In addition, the United States CDC data also shows hospitalizations and deaths in the United States have decreased since vaccination began in early 2021. Meanwhile, Health Institute data shows that 99 percent of deaths in Italy occur in unvaccinated COVID-19 sufferers.

Therefore, Retno asked the public not to be careless and to continue to be vigilant when Indonesia experienced a decline in cases. He also asked the public to follow the national vaccination program.

"We should continue to be vigilant. Countries that have experienced zero COVID-19 for months can experience re-infection. Let's continue to make efforts, let's continue to support the vaccination program together," he concluded.