Don\'t Add to Patients’ Misery

KOMPAS/HERU SRI KUMORO

Speaking at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta on Monday (2/3/2020), President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo explains that two Indonesian citizens have contracted the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The two people were infected via a Japanese citizen who met them in Depok, West Java. This is the first case of Indonesian citizens having contracted the virus in Indonesia. The two are being treated in the isolation room at the Sulianti Saroso Infectious Diseases Hospital.

Chaos may be the right word to describe discussion on social media after President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo announced that two Indonesian citizens tested positive for the new coronavirus. Aside from people urging others to buy hand sanitizer and face masks, detailed information on the identity of the two patients, including their photographs, spread on social media.

A number of news outlets also released personal information about the two patients. More than that, images of the home of the two patients marked with police lines being sprayed with disinfectant by the police immediately went viral.

All that gave the impression of the "emergency" situation. Indeed, the spread of the Covid-19 disease caused by the new coronavirus has been very fast and must be closely monitored.

No one [told me] until it went viral yesterday (Monday, 2/3), after the President announced that two Indonesian citizens had tested positive for COVID-19.

"I was really depressed because of the news that stigmatized me and my child. I felt sorry for my daughter; her photos were exposed like that. It caused chaos," the patient of the second case said in a telephone interview with Kompas in Jakarta on Tuesday (3/3/2020). She and her daughter, the patient of the first case, are being treated in an isolation room at Sulianti Saroso Infection Disease Hospital, Jakarta.

The patient of the second case also deplored the government\'s decision to immediately announce the status of her illness before she received information about her health condition. "No one [told me] until it went viral yesterday (Monday, 2/3), after the President announced that two Indonesian citizens had tested positive for COVID-19. I asked the doctor. He said that my child and I had tested positive for the coronavirus while saying that there was nothing to worry about," she said.

Her condition had improved.. "Sometimes, a little cough," said the patient of the second case, who hoped they would recover soon.

KOMPAS/PRIYOMBODO

A security officer wears a mask while standing guard at the Sulianti Saroso Infectious Diseases Hospital in North Jakarta on Monday (2/3/2020). Two people from Depok, West Java, who have tested positive for COVID-19, are being treated at the hospital. They are known to have been in direct contact with a Japanese citizen during a visit to Indonesia, who was later discovered to be infected with COVID-19.

Violating ethics

An executive at the Politics and Health Center of the Indonesian Association of Public Health Experts, Syahrizal Syarif, regretted that the personal data of the COVID-19 patients had been disseminated to the public and even disclosed by local officials.

"It clearly violates the code of ethics, and must be corrected. The identification of the patient\'s location is not a problem but it must be ensured that details, such as their name, address, as well as other personal information, is not disclosed,“ he said.

Disclosing the personal data of the patient also violates Law No. 14/2008 on the disclosure of public information. Article 17 on points (h) and (i) state that personal information is excluded if it relates to the history, condition of family members, and the physical and psychological condition of a person. "Public disclosure of the identity of sufferers of the COVID-19 is a violation of personal rights. Personal information can only be revealed with the permission of the owners or if they are needed for information for a public position," said Arif A. Kuswardono, commissioner of the Central Information Commission.

The mass media also has the same responsibility, especially since the Press Law and the Journalistic Code of Ethics regulate it. Although there are officials who mention the patient\'s identity, the media should not disclose the information, making the subject as the victim.

KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI

A man takes photos of the house of two Indonesian citizens who have tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), at the Studio Alam housing complex in Depok, West Java, on Monday (2/3/2020). President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo confirmed the first cases of COVID-19 infection in Indonesia on Monday.

The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) called for the media not to disclose the identities of new coronavirus carriers. The Journalistic Code of Ethics only contains articles on victims of sexual violence or child crimes whose identities need to be protected. However, it does not mean that the protection should be given only to those two cases.

"The Journalistic Code of Ethics asks journalists to protect their identities in the two cases in an effort to minimize the negative impact from the media exposure. This is one of four important principles in the Code of Ethics. Three other important principles are seeking the truth, being independent, and being transparent and responsible, "said the statement of AJI\'s stance signed by AJI chairman Abdul Manan and secretary Riza.

Journalists and media should filter and convey enlightening information. We should use the educational function of the press by announcing the latest developments in the Covid-19 case, the number of victims, how to deal with its spread, as well as other useful tips so that the public can avoid the disease that does not yet have an antidote vaccine.

We appreciate the appeal of President Jokowi that that government officials, medical officers, and mass media have maintained the privacy of the two COVID-19 patients. Efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19 continue to be carried out by the government. The President also assured that the two patients were being treated well. The government is also ready to protect the public from the spread of the new coronavirus.

Do not add to the suffering of the COVID-19 patients with news coverage.