Knowledge And Conspiracy Theory Of COVID-19 In The Village Community Head

Community in Cikarawang Village, Bogor, West Java (Photos: Ramdan Febrian / VOI)

JAKARTA - In Indonesia, COVID-19 has infected 369 people. Among them, 17 recovered and 32 others died. Some time ago we monitored the situation of Kampung Cikarawang in Bogor to capture people's views on COVID-19. In fact, the flow of information there is not only minimal, but also 'wild'. Imagine a society that sees COVID-19 as China's weapon of war against Indonesia.

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We arrived at Cikarawang Village, Dramaga District, Bogor, West Java, at midday, Wednesday, March 18th. At that time, the community was carrying out the noon prayers in congregation at the Cikarawang Village Mosque. Before arriving at the mosque, we were greeted by a gate with the words "Dirgahayu RI-45". The marks of the celebration of the proclamation of the nation's independence are still felt in this village.

From the gate, we walked along the road while looking at the houses that were close together on the right. Meanwhile, on the left, you can see a guardrail that separates the road from a ravine.

After walking about three hundred meters from the T-junction, we pulled over at a shop. Across from us was a motorcycle repair shop. While sipping warm black coffee, we observed the situation for almost an hour. From this observation, there is no visible effort to maintain distance made by the community in Cikarawang Village.

Cikarawang Village Settlements

Every now and then, some of them are seen chatting in the yard of the house. A few meters from the house we observed, a peekaboo was seen surrounded by many buyers, most of whom were children. While serving, the peekaboo looks engrossed in chatting with the man next to him.

Another activity was seen in a house under construction, complete with construction workers. People in Cikarawang Village do not know about the corona virus and the COVID-19 disease. Anggi, a resident we met, said life had to go on even though the plague was threatening. Anggi clearly did not understand the dangers of COVID-19.

In fact, three days earlier, Sunday, March 15, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) announced an appeal for people throughout Indonesia to carry out social distancing. The more so. Because, on Tuesday afternoon, March 17, or one day before our visit, the authorities announced a spike in COVID-19 cases from 134 to 172. In the announcement, the authorities also declared five people dead.

"How about it, if for example for one week they don't work, they can't eat ... The name also makes a living. Residents here continue to work as usual, some are driving motorbikes, construction workers," said Anggi.

Cikarawang Village residents

Another resident, Muhidin, revealed that social conditions in his village do not allow social distancing to be implemented. He said, "It would be difficult if we told you to keep your distance in an environment like this. Unless you know who is infected, it doesn't matter (keep your distance). At this point, we don't know who is infected or not. Keep your distance later the person will be offended. hard to keep feeling. "

Muhidin is still better, he knows the appeal to keep this distance from the television news. Other residents we met even admitted that they did not know anything about the social distancing appeal. Soleh, told us, there was no socialization by the local authorities.

"The most information is from the media, from WA. There has been no appeal about that. The environment here doesn't exist yet. From local parties, from the village, RW, so, have not appealed to the matter of maintaining distance, not yet. At the very least, just keep your feelings," he said.

The deeper we got, the more interesting our visit was. We increasingly know how the distribution of information among the community in Cikarawang Village is not only minimal, but also wild. One resident, David, shared his views with us. According to him, COVID-19 is China's way of destroying Indonesia. The reason is that COVID-19 occurred after the tension between Indonesia and China in the Natuna Sea.

"Basically, some say, China deliberately wants to bomb Indonesia. But, the way is smooth, play beautifully. The problem is the corona incident occurred after the Natuna naval war," said David theorized.

MUI fatwa

Return to the nearby mosque. We met a number of people who had just performed congregational prayers at the Cikarawang Village Mosque. We are concerned about the fatwa of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) which calls on Muslims in Indonesia to pray at home.

They admit that they do not know the fatwa. So, of course, it could not be seen that the people brought their own prayer mats, as the MUI recommended in the fatwa. In fact, after the prayers, residents were still seen shaking hands.

Two days before our visit, to be precise Monday, March 16, the MUI had issued a fatwa regarding religious practices during the corona virus pandemic. In fatwa number 5, it is stated that in an area where the potential for transmission is low, it is mandatory to guard oneself so as not to be exposed to the Corona virus while praying.

"Such as not having direct physical contact (shaking hands, hugging, kissing hands), bringing your own prayer mat, and frequently washing your hands with soap," he wrote.

However, it is clearly not the fault of the residents. They are the most unfortunate. Ignorance puts them in danger. At that time, there were no cases in Bogor Regency. The only cases recorded in Bogor are in the administrative area of Bogor City. Bogor Mayor Bima Arya announced that one person who tested positive for COVID-19 was a Bogor Agricultural University student who was boarding in the Sempur area.

"Those who tested positive for Covid-19 were residents of Jakarta who were boarding houses in the Sempur area. Information was conveyed by the Jakarta Health Office, so they were not residents of Bogor City. Student status," said Bima when confirmed via short message to CNNIndonesia.com, Tuesday (17/3) .

The situation changed. This is because, according to the information we collected on Thursday, March 19, Bogor Regency has recorded three positive cases, one of which died. New developments also include news about Bogor Mayor Bima Arya who on Friday morning, March 20, announced he was positive for COVID-19.