Evacuation Team Picks Up 68 Indonesian Citizens

KOMPAS/TOTOK WIJAYANTO

A total of 188 Indonesian citizens who worked as crew members of the World Dream ship are transferred from Indonesian Navy ship Dr. Soeharso to Sebaru Kecil Island in Thousand Islands on Friday (28/2/2020). They will have their health observed for 14 days to know whether they are infected with COVID-19. The picture was taken from the Tunas Wisesa 08 ship owned by PT Artha Graha.

KOMPAS - The Indonesian government sent on Friday afternoon an evacuation team of 23 people to Tokyo, Japan, to pick up 68 of the 78 Indonesian citizens working aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship.

The team will not evacuate eight other crew members because they are still being treated because they have been confirmed positive for the new coronavirus. The other two crew members are healthy, but want to stay and work on the cruise ship, which now lies at anchor in Yokohama, Japan.

Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Tangerang, on Friday that the evacuation team arrived in Tokyo on Saturday early morning local time. Furthermore, the evacuation team and the 68 Indonesian citizens are expected to arrive in Jakarta on Sunday.

According to Retno, nine Indonesian citizens on the ship were infected with the new coronavirus. However, one person was declared healthy so he went home, but he would be observed. Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto emphasized that Indonesia had built a system to handle such a deadly virus for years. The community is expected to remain vigilant, prioritize rational thought and not be paranoid.

KOMPAS/TOTOK WIJAYANTO

A total of 188 Indonesian citizens who worked as crew members of the World Dream ship are transferred from Indonesian Navy ship Dr. Soeharso to Sebaru Kecil Island in Thousand Islands on Friday (28/2/2020).

Continues to grow

The new coronavirus has continued to spread with the number of deaths in several countries also increasing. As of Friday, 57 countries have reported the spread of coronavirus, such as the Netherlands, Nigeria and North Macedonia.

"No country can assume they will be free from the epidemic. This is the worst outbreak in Europe," said the director general of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, referring to the case of Italy, where 17 people have died due to COVID-19.

Cases of deaths due to COVID-19 in Iran have also increased. Iran\'s Health Ministry said 34 people were killed and 388 positive were infected by the coronavirus.

AP PHOTO/EBRAHIM NOROOZI

People wear masks to help guard against the Coronavirus in downtown Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2020. On Sunday Iran\'s health ministry raised the death toll from the new virus to 8 people in the country, amid concerns that clusters there, as well as in Italy and South Korea, could signal a serious new stage in its global spread.

The handling of the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States drew protests. According to a member of the US House of Representatives, Jimmy Gomez, there are high-ranking officials in the family and child division of the Department of Health and Human Services (HSH) who filed a protest to the Office of Special Assistance.

"He protested his boss because he was asked to resign or be fired," he said.

The option was given when the official was asked to join the team to evacuate US citizens from Wuhan, China. Gomez deplored the steps of HSH officials.

( TA N/ DI / NDU/AFP/ REUTER /ADH / RAZ